Overview
Described as “otherworldly and mysteriously familiar” (Chicago Classical Review), and as “exciting and clear... with a striking boldness" (Luigi Nono Prize), the music of composer Igor Santos (b. 1985), has been performed internationally, by leading musicians such as Ensemble Modern, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Ensemble Dal Niente, Yarn Wire, International Contemporary Ensemble, Alarm Will Sound, the American Composers Orchestra, and The Florida Orchestra.
His work centers on mimetic relationships between found sounds, acoustic instruments, and video, all of which is dramatized through repetition and often involving microtonal keyboards. Through this approach, Igor recontextualizes everyday sounds and images, using found materials to reference his mixed heritage, engage with the pacing contemporary visual culture, and to blur the lines between high and low art within his practice.
Igor has earned degrees in Music Composition from the University of Chicago, the Eastman School of Music, and the University of South Florida. In 2024 he served as Visiting Professor in Music at Pomona College, where he taught composition, electronic music, and scoring for media. From 2016-2021, he served as Technical Director and staff member of Ensemble Dal Niente.
He has received numerous distinguished commissions and awards, including the Koussevitzky Foundation Commission (Library of Congress), Chamber Music America Classical Commissioning Grant, John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, Rome Prize (American Academy in Rome), Ferruccio Busoni International Composition Prize (Akademie der Künste, Berlin), Illinois Arts Council Composition Fellowship, McKim Fund Commission (Library of Congress), Riot Ensemble Commission Competition, Fromm Music Foundation Commission (Harvard University), Red Note Composition Competition, Luigi Nono International Musical Composition Prize, among others.
Outside of his concert work, Igor is also active working in media, scoring films and documentaries in collaboration with artists in his native town of Curitiba, Brazil.
