Ján Števuliak (b. 1999, Slovakia) is a composer, organist and artist based in Finland,
exploring music in connection with the communal, the environmental (both human and non-human) and contrasts between subjectivity and objectivity. Raised in a rural environment of the Orava region in Slovakia, their early musical education was influenced by folk and church music. Sonic features in Ján’s works are often a result of finding a way of translating extra-musical phenomena, working with thematic restraints, aleatorism or post-processing.
Most recently, Ján has written a post-human speculative piece inspired by a bike rave for the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, researched ritualism in a work for the Avanti! orchestra or collaborated on music to accompany Buster Keaton’s film The Cook at IRCAM. They have written for dance and stage since the start of their studies at Trinity Laban Conservatoire and collaborated with dramaturgs on interdisciplinary shows at the University of Arts Helsinki.
Ján is a recipient of both composition and organ performance prizes (XXII Gorazd Organ Days 2017, John Halford Composition Prize 2022). Ján has workshopped with Liza Lim or Martin Matalon, as an organist, they perform traditional or experimental works and are active as a performer in electroacoustic sets.
CV
Structured CVs and bio in EN or SK available upon inquiry (e-mail below)
Ján started committing to composition at the age of 17. Their upbringing has been musical- they attended piano, organ, music theory and history lessons at local music institutes.
During studies in London, Ján has received lessons from Gwyn Pritchard, Soosan Lolavar and Paul Newland. They composed works ranging from solo or chamber works to orchestral works, in which they would explore various techniques and practices. Often, works fuse acoustic and electronic elements. Trinity Laban has been an inspiring environment, offering ventures towards contemporary dance, stage works and possibilities for combining music with different art forms, and this is reflected in Ján’s output. In 2021-22, in collaboration with choreographer Sunniva Moen Rørvik, they presented a baroque-inspired dance suite Suita Utopica.
In 2022, Ján received The John Halford Composition Prize and their works have been performed at the Lake District Summer Music Festival or at the New Lights Festival.
Relocating to Helsinki, Ján studied towards a master’s degree at the Sibelius Academy with Lauri Kilpiö and Matthew Whittall. Moreover, they had the honour to workshop with Liza Lim, Martin Matalon or Cecilia McDowall. Ján has written works for the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra and the Avanti! orchestra, in which, among others, they ventured into microtonality.
In the summer of 2024, Ján have collaborated with Krõõt-Kärt Kaev and Natalia Laguens on a work for Buster Keaton’s silent film The Cook. This work was premiered in Paris as an IRCAM production, performed by Ward De Ketelaeare of BL!NDMAN collective.
Ján’s practice as an organist has also greatly influenced their compositional output. They are dedicated to reshaping the stereotypical idea of the instrument, as a composer and as well as a performer. Ján is interested in performing early music, works by less-known composers (often significant to their home region) and new music, and is keen on improvisation. Ján has served as an organist at St Emeric in Čimhová, Slovakia (2014-) and St Martin’s in Trstená, Slovakia (2017-2018). They have given numerous recitals and taken part in nationwide organ competitions, placing first at the 2017 Young Organists Competition in Námestovo, and they became the laureate of XXII Gorazd Organ Days 2017. In 2023, they performed in Viitasaari with Musiikin Aika course members alongside Quatuor Bozzini, performing James Tenney’s In a large, open space.
In 2021, Ján has co-founded Orbweavers, a de-centralized label and collective. The collective organized events for new and performative music and releases new music via Bandcamp.
They are active as a choir singer. Ján have sung in various choirs and scholas since age 7, performing a wide-ranging repertoire from plainchant or sacred works to works by R. Vaughan Williams, L. Bernstein or M. Monk.
Interested in music history and musicological research, they wish to popularize valuable works out of the canon, work with underperformed historical sources or use historical notations in current practice.
Ján have done a couple of live shows combining Sonic Arts, performance arts and electroacoustic music. For these, they often improvise on wind instruments such as clarinet or bassoon-reed 3D printed Shawms, develop tape material from field recordings or by excessive processing, create own scenes or visuals or perform with movement.
