“Meeting with Composer Justina Repečkaitė”, Paris
“As part of International Women's Rights Day, the Médiathèque Hélène Berr library continues its engagement with contemporary music by hosting a composer to discuss her work.
Born in Vilnius, Justina Repečkaitė studied composition in Lithuania and later in France.
She has been living in Paris for thirteen years. Her compositions have been performed at prestigious venues such as the Philharmonie, IRCAM, the Centre Pompidou, the Musée de l’Homme, Le 104, and Radio France.
Her Lithuanian heritage, interest in medieval culture, and studies at IRCAM have profoundly shaped her artistic journey. Several recurring themes permeate her compositions: pagan incantations, medieval and Baroque manuscripts, as well as references to craftsmanship, tapestry, and embroidery, which inspire the creation of certain scores.
Her work also incorporates in-depth research on physical models.
This meeting is organized in partnership with Véronique Verdier, a philosopher and musician, author of the book Créations musicales : Une approche philosophique, published in 2021 by Delatour, who will also serve as moderator.”
Sfäärit (2025) in Musica Nova, Helsinki
Supported by the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation, Justina Repečkaitė has been commissioned by the Musica nova Helsinki festival to compose a new work for Sfäärit. Her composition for harpsichord, portative organ, and electronics (using transducers) will be performed by Marianna Henriksson and Petteri Pitko in a project that merges contemporary music with dance.
Initiated by harpsichordist Marianna Henriksson and choreographer Anna Mustonen, Sfäärit brings on the stage dance performers Anna Maria Häkkinen, Marlon Moilanen, and Mira Kautto. In addition to Repečkaitė’s work, the program includes a new composition by Finnish composer Lauri Supponen’s for portative organ and a compostion For Marianna (2020) for harpsichord solo by British-Iranian composer Shiva Fesharek.
Sfäärit on the Zodiac website.
Lecture Series on Music of Our Time, Helsinki
Sibelius Academy talks and lectures are held in the auditorium of Helsinki Music Centre:
“Musica nova composer Justina Repečkaitė: Sfäärit (Spheres) – composition as choreography 23.01.2025
Justina Repečkaitė discusses her new work, to be premiered on Thursday 6th of February on Musica nova Helsinki festival in Centre for New Dance as a part of the Sfäärit (Spheres)performance initiated by harpsichordist Marianna Henriksson and choreographer Anna Mustonen. In Sfäärit (Spheres), the artists explore the assumptions and questions surrounding the coming together of dance and music. Repečkaitė studied composition in France, i.a. in IRCAM and is one of most succesful Lithuanian composers. Her music has been described by critics as having “many similarities to a diamond“.
This lecture is held in English.”
Sturnus vulgaris cohibitus at the Season of Lithuania in France
December 6th Sturnus vulgaris cohibitus (2020) for pianist & transducers will be performed by Christine Marchais at the Rouen City Hall, France in the concert L’âme de la musique lituanienne.
”As part of the 2024 Season of Lithuania in France, organized by the French and Lithuanian Institutes, the spirit of the northernmost country by the Baltic Sea will come alive through the soloist Christine Marchais, who will honor Lithuanian composers from past and present. Rarely performed pieces will be featured, offering a chance to discover the composer and painter M. K. Čiurlionis (1875–1911), an ardent admirer of Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner, who aspired to a synthesis of the arts. Audiences will also experience the work of young composers such as Justina Repečkaitė, born in 1989, who uses speakers inside the piano to create an intriguing sound world.”
Stalactite (2016) UK premiere
Wednesday, December 4th, 2024, the Lithuanian pianist Lauryna Sablevičiūtė will give the UK premiere of Justina Repečkaitė’s composition Stalactite (2016) at the Tung Auditorium, in a concert titled Frozen Light. Lauryna Sablevičiūtė: “The power of light and life lies in a simple fact that they are inseparable. Each piece that I chose for this programme is fused with life and light; as we approach the end of the year Bach-Busoni’s Chorale and Ghost Variations by Schumann reminds us of timelessness of music and our being.”
Sturnus vulgaris cohibitus (2020) at Huddersfield festival
On November 24th, Sturnus vulgaris cohibitus (2020) will receive its UK premiere, performed by Richard Uttley at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. Since its creation in Vilnius in 2020, the piece has been performed in Germany, France, and Italy. Notably, an analysis of Sturnus vulgaris cohibitus was featured in Robert Fleitz’s Master’s thesis, Microtonality in Works for Solo Piano: Three Case Studies in the Baltic Keyboard Repertoire, defended at Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music.
The radioshow Musique d’Avenir on RTS
The radioshow Musique d’Avenir on RTS (The Radio Télévision Suisse) will broadcast the Eklekto’s "Concert Création" on November 17th at 22:00. Recorded at Les 6 Toits in Geneva on October 11, 2024 the concert premieres Justina Repečkaitė’s composition “Whispering Skin” alongside music by Adrien Trybucki as part of a weekend dedicated to celebrating Eklekto's 50th anniversary.
The host of Musique d’Avenir, Anne Gillot, interviews Justina Repečkaitė, Adrien Trybucki, and Corentin Marillier, one of the co-directors of the Eklekto.
Pulsating Skin (2021) in New York
On October 15th, the Talujon percussion group will perform Pulsating Skin (2021) for 4 snare drums and electronics. Described by the New York Times as possessing an "edgy, unflagging energy," Talujon is dedicated to advancing contemporary percussion music through a variety of performances, commissions, educational programs, and outreach activities. The ensemble consists of percussionists Ian Antonio, Caitlin Cawley, David Cossin, Matthew Gold, Tom Kolor, Michael Lipsey, and Matt Ward. Pulsating Skin (2021) premiered at the Darmstadt Summer Course in 2021 and has since been performed in Basel (CH), Shanghai (CN), Feldafing (DE), and Paris (FR).
Whispering Skin premiere by Eklekto
Justina Repečkaitė was commissioned by the Geneva Percussion Center Eklekto to write Whispering Skin for 4 percussion players and transducers. The piece premiered alongside music by Adrien Trybucki at the "Concert Création" at Les 6 Toits in Geneva on October 11, 2024, as part of a weekend dedicated to celebrating Eklekto's 50th anniversary.
Podcast “Flèche sensible”
Justina was interviewed by Jeff Lagoutte for the radio show “Flèche sensible”. Listen on October 6th at 22h on 106.3 FM rfpp.net or go directly to Youtube. They discuss her compositional approach, her composition "La Muë" for children's choir, serpent and electronics, "Vellum" for orchestra, and her project for the Musica Nova festival in 2025.
Vellum (2020) at Paris Philharmonic
On the 5th of October, Justina Repečkaitė’s composition Vellum (2020) was performed at the Paris Philharmonic by Orchestre Pasdeloup, conducted by Christian Vásquez in the concert entitled Choeur d’orchestre. Commissioned by the festival. Gaida, Vellum was premiered by Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra conducted by Anu Tali on the 30th of October, 2020, in the Congress Hall, Vilnius.
Ensemble Recherche plays Tapisserie (2015)
On September 25th, 2024, in a concert titled Kunst/Zukunft, Ensemble Recherche will perform Justina Repečkaitė’s Tapisserie (2015) alongside works by Malte Giesen, Jennifer Walshe, Joanna Bailie, Şahin Kureta, Yuri Demetz, and Alfran García.
Address: Ensemblehaus Freiburg, Schützenallee 72, Freiburg i.Br., Germany.
This concert is part of the ABO Freiburg concert series.
Ensemble Recherche – dedicated to contemporary music since 1985.
Linos festival in Cologne
September 20th at Sancta Clara Keller, Cologne
Justina Repečkaitė’s composition Echo Chamber, commissioned by the Linos Festival, will be performed by the Linos Trio. In the same concert, titled Versus, another of Justina’s works, Unbenannt-2 (2016) for string quartet, will be performed by Quatuor Zaïde. The quartet previously played Unbenannt-2 earlier this year at the Cordes-sur-Ciel Festival.
Get your tickets HERE.
La Muë (2024) concert video
Enjoy a concert video featuring Justina Repečkaitė’s composition La muë for serpent, children's choir and electronics premiered on the 27th of April, 2024 at salle Espro, Ircam by the serpent player Patrick Wibart, Les Pages of CMBV conducted by Clement Buonomo and Ircam team. Co-commissioned by IRCAM - Centre Pompidou and the Center of Baroque Music Versailles - CMBV.
Pulsating Skin (2021) in Paris
La Nuit des musées RITUELS at Musée de l’Homme, 18th of May at 10:00 PM organised by Ensemble Calliopée. PULSATING SKIN CONCERT: Cage, Repečkaitė, Shostakovich, Vivaldi, performed by percussion students of Thierry Miroglio (Conservatoire Darius Milhaud): Suzanne Blanc, Jules Boileau, Léonard Gilg, Titouan Laruelle. Justina Repečkaitė performed electronics for Pulsating Skin (2021) for 4 snare drums and electronics herself! This piece was premiered at Darmstadt Summer Course.
Toro (2015) video
An inspiring video clip of Toro (2015) created by Tristan Scott, who also showcases his euphonium skills in the performance, he presents the piece: “It's a very exciting work for euphonium and electronics depicting a primal dance between two bulls, the performer and the electronics. To achieve bull-like noises, the piece features precisely notated multiphonics, effects, and other animalistic sounds. I hope you'll check it out!”
Residentuu:r
The “Residentuu:r” session with Justina Repečkaitė took place on the 3rd of May at Elutuba Lava Taga in the light of Ensemble U: concert (link for the livestream) where Justina Repečkaitė‘s Incantare for flute and tape was featured at the Natural History Museum of Tartu on May 4th, 2024 during the Baltic and Estonian Music Days festival.
Livestreams from Baltic and Estonian Music days
Watch two concerts with Justina Repečkaitės ’s compositions Vellum (2020) for orchestra performed by ERSO conducted by Clement Power and Incantare (2018) for bass flute and tape performed by Tarmo Johannes from Baltic and Estonian Music Days 2024 in Tartu, Estonia.
Janus project at IRCAM
Justina Repečkaitė’s composition La muë for serpent, children's choir and electronics will premiere on the 27th of April, 2024 at salle Espro, Ircam. Co-commissioned by IRCAM - Centre Pompidou and the Center of Baroque Music Versailles - CMBV, La muë uses the text of Samuel Auguste Tissot - Essai sur la muë de la voix (1754) - an essay on children’s voice change. In July, Justina started working at IRCAM with the computer music designer (RIM - réalisateur en informatique musicale) João Svidzinski. They recorded Patrick Wibart playing the serpent, a low-pitched early brass instrument, showing not only a traditional use of the instrument but also a technique of simultaneous singing and playing the instrument.
The Janus program — a new, innovative partnership between the CMBV and IRCAM —combines the French baroque repertoire and new works of 4 young European composers:
Datura on Mosaïque playlist
Justina’s composition "Datura," performed by the trombone player Mathilde Comoy, is now featured on the ensemble Ars Nova playlist 🔹MOSAÏQUE🔹 YouTube channel. This project commissions 1 composer to write around 1 minute composition for 1 musician.