componist

Lejava, Marián

Marian Lejava (1976) is an award-winning Slovak composer, conductor and teacher who began to devote himself to music at the age of five. In the years 1982-88, he was a singer and later a soloist in the Boys' Philharmonic Choir of the Slovak Philharmonic in Bratislava. Parallelly studied the violin and music theory (1983-1990). But it was his numerous experiences as a singer performing in the great cantatas of the 20th century classics such as Stravinsky (Symphonie de Psaumes), Honegger (Jeanne d´Arc au bûcher), Britten (War Requiem), Orff (Carmina Burana) or Martinu (Kytice) that led him to composition, which he began to devote himself since 1986 when he was 10 years old. In autumn of 1990 his Double bass concerto was performed by Slovak Philharmonic and led to his studies of composition in the subsequent years 1990-96 at the Conservatory in Bratislava. Parallelly he began study conducting and then during 1996-2001 he resumed his studies both composition and conducting at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava under the leadership of the elite of Slovak composition and performance art (Vladimír Bokes and Róbert Stankovský, later Ondrej Lenárd). In parallel, he studied at summer academies and workshops in composition and conducting under the guidance of personalities such as Erich Urbanner, Mathias Hermann, Tristan Murail, Christian Wolff and Klaus Huber and Peter Eotvos, Zsolt Nagy, Gunther Herbig, Iván Fisher and Gerd Auer.
Already in 1993 he won his first prize in the composition competition of A. Moyzes for String Quartet No. 1 and later collected other awards for his later works. Also in 1993, he began conducting his own works and the works of his colleagues, and in 1999 he was approached by the composer Daniel Matej to conduct the VENI ensemble, of which he was the chief conductor for 10 years. During the period 1999-2007, Lejava devoted himself as a performer (conductor, but also performer - viola, synthesizer and objects) to a wide range of notated music of the 20th and 21st centuries, as well as open scores and improvisation. At the same time, he also began conducting classical music and operas (starting in 2005). Over the past 25 years he has premiered more than 200 scenic, concert and ensemble works by domestic and international authors and participated in more than 30 CD albums, mostly with new music. With his long-time artistic partner, violinist Milan Pala recorded 4 solo albums with concertos by Szymanowski, Berg, Beethoven, Schumann and numerous Slovak composers. Album with both Szymanowski and Berg Violin concertos earned him his second Radio_Head Award for album of the year. Most recently, they released together a unique recording of both violin concertos by Pascal Dusapin, which have not been released on one album so far. Lejava is also the laureate of the two highest domestic awards for composition and conducting, the latter for his opinion-making efforts starting with the recording of the award-winning album with Szymanowski and Berg Violin concertos as well as other albums with his musical partner Milan Pala.
As a composer, he developed from the integration of influences and patterns of 20th century music to the period of "silent works" in which he focused more on sound, resonation and extended playing techniques of individual instruments (2000-2007). After 2008, through The Wrath Session Vol.1 for 9 instruments (2008) and especially Ciaccona - first violin sonata (2010-12), he finds new inspiration in expressiveness and completes his own musical language working with frequent references to particular music masters of past eras, creating new thought connections. Lejava basically perceives music visually and often creates works with connotations to specific works of visual art. Since 2010, he has been collaborating with the phenomenal violinist and composer Milan Pala to whom he, since 2012, has composed a number of concertant works (Principium, Exstinctio, OMAYRA, Vertigo, Herbsttag, Tristor, Vor der Sommerregen) and solo pieces (Ciaccona - sonata no.1, Adieu, Elogiaria - Hommage variations and the rememBACHed thoughts - sonata no.2). In recent years (since his music theatre Gottgefählig of 2016), he has been more inspired by words (poetry, prose) and will devote himself more to the vocal works (for concert and scenic performance). Lejava is also also often involved in music for drama, where he likes to offer autonomous author's works (orchestral or chamber) in addition to obligatory electronic music. In this field he cooperated with all major theater scenes in Slovakia since 2017.
From his doctoral studies in composition and conducting between 2001-2010, he began teaching at the Department of Composition and Conducting at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava, where he still teaches composition and orchestral conducting. In the years 2007-2014 he was the chief conductor of the Opera Studio and since 2020 the chief conductor of the Symphony Orchestra of the Academy. Since 2024, he is the head of the department of composition and conducting.