Yannis Kyriakides is one of The Netherlands’ leading and most innovative composers of the last decennia. His work is often based on experiments with electronics and his musical roots in Cyprus. He also collaborates often with artists from other disciplines, such as dance, theatre or installation art.
Kyriakides won the Gaudeamus Award in 2000 for his piece a conSPIracy cantata. Since then his ties with Gaudeamus have remained strong. In 2019 he was a jury member himself for the Gaudeamus Award and with regularity there are pieces by him played at the Gaudeamus Muziekweek.
In 2020 Kyriakides wins the biannual Johan Wagenaar Prijs for his entire oeuvre. In that same year he wrote the piece one hundred years, commissioned by Gaudeamus, to celebrate our 75th anniversary. The piece premiered on 19 September in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, performed by the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and Silbersee.