Born in 1947, he graduated from the Gnessin Musical-Pedagogical Institute in Moscow in 1971 as a composer and musicologist. In 1978 he graduated from the post-graduate musicological department of the Leningrad State Conservatory, and in 1983 defended his PhD in musicology. He is the author of many articles on contemporary music as well as of the first Russian book about Messiaen. In 1973–83 he worked as an editor for the ‘Musica’ publishing house and was the editor of several volumes of Shostakovich’s music. Many of his compositions have been commissioned by well-known performers and ensembles, including the Dutch bass-clarinet player H. Spaarnay, the Swiss harpsichordist P. Kaufman, the International Saxophone Ensemble under J.-M. Londeix, and Ensemble Modern.
His works have been performed at many international festivals including the Zagreb Biennale, the Warsaw Autumn, London’s Almeida, the Sergey Prokofiev Festival in Duisburg, ‘Beauty – Utopia?’ in Frankfurt, as well as the annual Russian festivals – the Moscow Autumn and Alternativa.
Victor Ekimovsky is the president of the Association of Contemporary Music in Russia.
Selected works (since 1990): Deus ex machina (Composition 55) (1990), Tripelkammervariationen (Composition 56) for 15 performers (1991), People’s gatherings on winter evenings (Composition 58) for two pianos (1992), Kites flying (Composition 59) for four soprano recorders (1992), Mondscheinsonata (Composition 60) (1993), Symphonic Dances (Composition 61) for piano and orchestra of 90 musicians (1993), From Escher’s Catalogue (Composition 63), instrumental theatre for seven musicians (1994), La Favorite – La Non favorite (Composition 64) (1994), 27 Destructions (Composition 65) for percussion ensemble (1995), The Mirror of Avicenna (Composition 66) for 14 performers (1995), Phantom of the Theatre (Composition 71), instrumental theatre for composer and 10 performers (1996), Swan Song (Composition 72) for string quartet (1996), Swan Song (Composition 73) for conductor, string quartet, double bass and tape (1996), Swan Song (Composition 74), virtual composition for loudspeaker and 11 wind instruments (1996), Doppler Effect (Composition 75), virtual composition for large orchestra (100 players) performing in the open air (1997), Musikunterricht in einer bizantinischen Schule (Composition 76) for tenor recorder (1998), Graffiti (Composition 78) for seven performers (1998), Corona di sonetti (Composition 79) for recorder and harpsichord (1999), Vers libre (Composition 80) for two quarter tone pianos (1999), Lexicon der nicht Gesellschaftsfähigen Ausdrücke (Composition 81) for violin, viola and cello (1999), Attalea princeps (Composition 82), concerto for violin and orchestra (2000), Biriulki (Composition 83) for six performers (2001), Verse for the End of Century (Composition 84) for soprano, bass clarinet and percussion with a 19th-century folk Russian text (2001), Rafflesia (Composition 85) for piano and ensemble (2002), The Princess has pricked her finger – and all the Kingdom fell asleep... (Composition 86) for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, percussion and tape (2003).

The Princess pricked her finger – and all the Kingdom fell asleep...
This is a musical interpretation of a well-known tale, but without
a happy ending: there will be no prince with a kiss, and everybody would have to sleep for a hundred years…

Victor Ekimovsky