Vytautas Miškinis
Vytautas Miškinis (born 5 June 1954 in Vilnius, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union) is a Lithuanian music composer and professor, who has been Choir Director of the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre conservatory since 1985. He has also served as Artistic Director of the Ąžuoliukas youth choir.
He began his career in Ąžuoliukas at the age of seven as a vocalist, and continued as Artistic Director from the age of 25. All the achievements of the choir from 1979 have been due to Mr. Miškinis’ leadership.
For several years he conducted the Kaunas State Choir and Vocal Ensemble Museum Musicum. With the choirs, he has won prestigious prizes at numerous national and international competitions – in Marktoberdorf, Gorizia, Varna, Maribor, Tampere, Mainhausen, Nantes. Currently Mr. Miškinis is the Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the All-Lithuanian Choir Festival.
Vytautas Miškinis has led choral performances and given lectures in Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the Ukraine and USA.
Mr. Miškinis worked as a member of Jury at International Choir and Choral Composition Competitions in Tolosa, Spain; Varna, Bulgaria; Marktoberdorf and Bochum, Germany; Neerpelt, Kortrijk and Aalst Belgium; Maribor and Ljubljana, Slovenia; Tallinn and Tartu, Estonia; Riga, Latvia; Budapest and Debrecen, Hungary; Arezzo, Italy; Choir Olympics Linz (Austria) 2000, Busan (Korea) 2002, Bremen (Germany) 2004, Xiamen (China) 2006, Graz (Austria) 2008, and Shaoxing (China) 2010; CCP Manila 2009; Suwalki (Poland); Bergen (Norway); Pau and Tours (France); Neuchatel (Switzerland); Mainhausen (Germany) 2011.
To date he has composed and recorded over 700 pieces, both religious and secular. In the United States he has composed works for The University of Louisville Collegiate Chorale and the Golden Gate Men's Chorus (San Francisco, CA). These compositions for choirs are published in Lithuania and France, Germany, Slovenia, Italy, Spain, Japan and USA.
References
- From Behind the Iron Curtain. Department of Music, University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
- Cummins, Nicholaus B. (2012). The Unaccompanied Choral Works of Vytautas Miškinis with texts by Rabindranoth Tagore: A Resource Guide (PDF) (D.M.A.). Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University.