Born in 1976 in Borshtchevo in Western Ukraine, he graduated from the College of Music in Tarnopol (1994) and then studied composition with Miroslav Skoryk at the Music Acdemy in Lviv. His honours include Second Prizes at the Prokofiev International Composers’ Competition in Mariopol, Ukraine (2000) and at the National Young Artists’ Competition. He is also a recipient of the Lev Revutsky State Prize.
In 2003, thanks to a grant from the Polish Minister of Culture within the framework of the ‘Gaude Polonia’ project, he studied with Zbig-niew Bujarski at the Music Academy in Kraków. In the same year, as
a commission from the Warsaw Autumn Friends’ Foundation, he composed Why is my verse so barren of new pride for The Hilliard Ensemble. The work was premiered during the Festival ‘Arvo Pärt – the man of the borderland’ in Sejny, north-eastern Poland, in the presence of Arvo Pärt.
Bohdan Sehin’s works have been performed by the ‘Gloria’ Lviv Chamber Choir, The Hilliard Ensemble, the ‘Cantus’ Chamber Choir from Uzhorod, the ‘Leopolis’ Chamber Orchestra and the pianist Jozsef Örmény.
Since 2003 Bohdan Sehin has worked closely with the M. Zankovetska National Drama Theatre in Lviv.

Selected works: Winter Music for two flutes and piano (also version for solo piano – 1998), Ru-umbárbar for two pianos and percussion (1998), In One Movement for symphony orchestra (1999), Postludium for solo piano (2000), Blazhen Muzh/Blessed is the Man for a cappella mixed choir, a setting of Psalm 1 (2000–03); *** (without title) for flute, cello and piano (2001, version for violin, cello and piano – 2005), Dedication to… for solo organ (2002), Alleluia for a cappella mixed choir (2002–04), Stabat Mater for mixed choir and symphony orchestra (2002–03), Why is my verse so barren of new pride (dedicated to Arvo Pärt) for countertenor, two tenors, bass and seven instruments, a setting of Shakespeare’s Sonnet 76 (2003).

The piece *** (without title) is concerned with exploring diatonic ideas. It is comprised of long phrases of separate consonances in calm dynamics and of a brief climax in the middle section. At the beginning the work proceeds on two planes – unison violins and piano – which influence one another, as the original musical ideas develop. Towards the end these two planes become homogeneous.
The piece was originally scored, in 2001, for flute, cello and piano for the Lviv-based contemporary music ensemble ‘Pro et Contra’. Its first performances were at the International Forum of Young Composers in Kiev and at the ‘Contrasts’ International Contemporary Music Festival in Lviv. In 2005 I wrote a new version of the piece – for violin, cello and piano – for the ‘Two Days and Two Nights of New Music’ Festival in Odessa.

Bohdan Sehin