Ilya Ziblat Shay is a composer, sound artist and a researcher.
His works combine interactive computer systems and live performance. He uses a hybrid set of digital and compositional tools including audio synthesis, computer-human interaction, machine listening algorithms, creative coding, graphic and open notation, and playing the bass. Improvisation and real-time structuring are recurring threads in his work, both as composer and a performer.
Searching for new means of expression that reach beyond the purely musical, Ilya approaches current world issues with a critical ear. Language, the human voice, and speech samples are often used as material for real-time processing. By sonically deconstructing politically charged material, especially samples extracted from the news and social media, his work aims to map technological~political~ethical questions as augmented musical narratives. (‘Breathtaking mangled messes … a volatile document of a volatile time’, Jack Davidson, Noise Not Music).
Ilya regularly collaborates with musicians and ensembles. His works have been played on major stages and in festivals in Europe and other places. He holds a PhD from Leiden University, and since 2005.