Victoria Borisova-Ollas

Victoria Borisova-Ollas (born 21 December 1969) is a Russian-Swedish composer who first received international recognition for her symphonic poem Wings of the Wind which won second prize in the 1998 Masterprize International Composition Competition in the UK.

She was born in Vladivostok, and studied with Nikolai Korndorf at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow and continued her studies in composition at the Academy of Music in Stockholm and Malmö Music College. In 1997, she studied composition with Jeremy Dale Roberts at the Royal College of Music in London.

She has composed two symphonies, Symphony No. 1 "The Triumph of Heaven" and Symphony No. 2 "Labyrinths of Time".

Her opera The Ground Beneath Her Feet, with a libretto written by Edward Kemp, is an adaptation of the novel of that name by Salman Rushdie. The premiere at Bridgewater Hall during the 2007 Manchester International Festival was narrated by Alan Rickman, conducted by Mark Elder, and featured a film component by Mike Figgis.

Since 2008 she has been a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.

Prizes and awards 1997 - Royal Swedish Academy of Music scholarship to study at the Royal College of Music in London 1998 - Second place in the Masterprize International Composing Competition for Wings of the Wind 2006 - TCO Culture Award (awarded jointly) 2008 - Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music Award 2008 - Music Publishers Award (Musikförläggarna) for The Ground Beneath Her Feet 2009 - The Rosenberg Prize (Hilding Constantin Rosenberg prize) 2010 - Music Publishers Award (Musikförläggarna) for Golden Dances of the Pharaohs 2011 - Christ Johnson Award (Christ Johnson-prisen) Grand Prize of the Golden Dances of the Pharaohs 2016 - The Stockholm Music Association (Musikföreningen i Stockholm) Choir-composer Scholarship 2017 - Expressen's Spelmannen Award for 2016 STIM's Scholarship - 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003

Selected works

Orchestral Image – Reflection (1994) for 2 violins and orchestra A Shadow of the Night (1995) for orchestra Octagon (1996) for piano and orchestra Schreitende Alléen (1997) for orchestra Wings of the Wind (1997) for orchestra Symphony No.1 The Triumph of Heaven (2003) for orchestra Colours of Autumn (2002) for orchestra The Kingdom of Silence (2003) for orchestra Before the Mountains Were Born (2005) for woodwind and orchestra Open Ground (2006) for orchestra Angelus (2008) for orchestra Golden Dances of the Pharaohs (2010) for clarinet and orchestra Träumerei (2010), transcription for symphony orchestra of a piano piece by Robert Schumann Wunderbare Leiden (2010) fantasy on themes by Robert and Clara Schumann for two pianos and symphony orchestra

Large ensemble Keter (2003) for 12 saxophones Creation of the Hymn (2013) for string orchestra

Chamber and small ensemble Rainbow Hunt (1995) for flute, saxophone, guitar, percussion and tape Creation of the Hymn (1996) for string quartet Behind the Shadows (1998) for viola, cello, contrabass and percussion ...im Klosterhofe (1998) for cello, piano and tape ...ein schöner Winterabend in Sachsen (1999) for violin and piano Roosters in Love (1999) for saxophone quartet Ce n'est pas le geste qui dure... (2002) for flute, guitar, viola and cello In a World Unspoken (2005) for saxophone quartet and organ Seven Singing Butterflies (2005) for clarinet and string quartet

Choral Psalm 42: Wie der Hirsch schreit (2008) for orchestra, two soloists, mixed choir and organ Vinden som ingenting minns (2015) for choir and orchestra

Opera and stage The Ground Beneath Her Feet (2007) stage performance for orchestra, singers and narrators (Libretto: Edward Kemp after a novel of the same name by Salman Rushdie) Hamlet drama (2008) for trombone and orchestra (Libretto: William Shakespeare) Dracula (2017) opera

Keyboard works Hymn i sten (1996) for piano Adoration of the Magi in the Snow (2000) a polyphonic fantasy for organ Silent Island (2000) for piano A Midnight Bell (2002) for piano Secret Beauty of Waters (2004) for piano Serenade for Twins (2004) for piano Djurgården Tales (2009–11) for two pianos