Foto: Meinrad Hofer
Biography
Thomas Wally is an Austrian composer, violinist and senior lecturer of music theory courses at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. His music has been performed in Europe, in the US, in Canada, Argentina, Iran, Israel, Hong Kong and Tokyo by ensembles and orchestras such as the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien, Boulez Ensemble, Meitar Ensemble, Mondrian Ensemble, Klangforum Wien, PHACE, OENM, NAMES, Ensemble risonanze erranti, Ensemble mise-en and Ensemble STYX. His compositions were programmed at numerous festivals such as Wien Modern, Bregenzer Festspiele, Ultraschall Berlin, Klangspuren Schwaz, Transart Bozen, Impuls Graz and Musiktheatertage Wien.
His compositions have been broadcast by Ö1, Kulturradio RBB, Deutschlandfunk Kultur, SRF, France Musique and NHK (Japan). Thomas Wally has been awarded numerous prizes and scholarships such as the Austrian state scholarship for composition (2009, 2012, 2018), the Helmut Sohmen composition prize 2009, the Outstanding Artist Award 2010 by the Federal Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture and the Förderungspreis of the City of Vienna 2012. 2015 his composition loop fantasy was awarded the 2nd prize at the Toru Takemitsu Composition Award, Tokyo. 2016 he received a Theodor Körner Förderpreis for Caprice (VII) ultrajaune. Thomas Wally is recipient of the Musik-Preis der Stadt Wien 2016 (“Music Prize of the City of Vienna”) and of the Ernst-Krenek-Preis 2020 (awarded for cycle: 25 easy pieces). 2020 a portrait CD, recorded by the Mondrian Ensemble in the ORF RadioKulturhaus Vienna, was released by the Austrian label col legno. Further recordings of his music were released by the labels Hänssler Classic, ALM records, Gramola and orlando records.
As a violinist, Thomas Wally dedicates himself to the performance of contemporary music, inter alia as co-founder and violinist of ensemble LUX. Since 2002 he is a frequent substitute with the Vienna Philharmonic and since 2001 in the Vienna State Opera. In a new radio series called “Neue Musik auf der Couch” (Ö1, Zeit-Ton) Thomas Wally analyses important contemporary compositions.
Thomas Wally studied composition with Dietmar Schermann, Erich Urbanner, Chaya Czernowin and violin with Josef Hell at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. In 2005/2006 he spent an exchange year at the Sibelius-Akatemia Helsinki as a student of Paavo Heininen.
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