Born in 1968, London.

Formal Education:
BAhons (University of Sussex) ‘90;
Mmus (Royal Academy of Music – King’s College London) ‘95.

Composition Teachers:
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (84-87), Oliver Knussen (85-87),
Melanie Daiken (83-86, 94-96) Judith Wier (87).

Film Music Commissions:
When the Man – Rhinohs Pictures – 2007
The Music of Erik Zahn - 2006
The Honeymoon – 2am Films – 2006
Tramps! – Sunnipa Pictures – 2005

TV music commissions:
In Search of Jack the Ripper – Ironhill prods / Discovery Tours and Events - 2005
Moses and the Passover Meal - Mosca, Channel 4 1998
The Adventurers - Cafe Prods, Discovery Channel, 1996
There We Are John; the last interview with Derek Jarman - British Council, Ch.4 1994
If You Are Drinking Too Much - Kodak Advertising Competition - LCP 1993
Living Islam - BBC2 1993
The Last Exodus - BBC2 1990 Gold Medal winner; NY Film Festival 1991
Life Power - BBC2 1985
Bert Hardy - Joseph Plateau Prods. Channel 4 1984

Radio music commissions:
The Eve of Yom Kippur – BBC World Service - 2004
Moby Dick - BBC Radio 4 - BBC Radio Collection - 2000
Open Wide - BBC Radio 4 1998
Heated Air - BBC Radio 4 1998
Glowboys - BBC Radio 3 1996
Ho Ho! The Clown is Dead - BBC Radio 3 1995
If On a Summer’s Night - Goldsmith’s College Masters project (1st) 1994

Theatre music commissions:
Carnesky’s Ghost Train – touring theatre show - 2004
Jumping On My Shadow – Half Moon Theatre 2001
The Pilgrimage - Young Vic Theatre 1999
Oedipus Flabbergasted - British Council - Cochrane Theatre 1993

Classical music commissions:
A Bee Sting Dance in Rohan’s Kitchen – Isis Ensemble - 2007
Nostalgia’sOwn End – Concerto for Klezmer Band and Orchetra – She’Koyakh /
The Wallace Ensemble / cond. Ben Wolf / QEH 2004
Solinski Fantasies – JMI Award Commission 2003
The Rooster is Already Crowing – Jewish Music Institute Commission – 2001 (pno, vln, ‘vc)
Colne Cannons - Colne Philharmonic Orchestra Millennium Commission - 1999
Sonata for Solo Violin - Susanne Stanzeleit - 1999
Symphony: The Imagined Hero - Isis Ensemble 1995 orchestra
Steppenwolf - Royal Academy Symphony orchestra 1995 orchestra
Old Wedding Song - Redcliffe Chamber Concert series commission -1994
(cl, vln, ‘vc, perc) winner of Elkin Memorial prize
Six Songs of Corruption and Death - BBC Singers 1994 choir
14 Chords through 17 Frames - Three Reeds 1993 ob/ob/cor anglais
Amadeus Meditation - Brighton Sinfonia 1993 piano/orchestra
in addition many other pieces uncommissioned

Teaching experience:
Recommended private tutor of composition – Royal Academy of Music – 1994-6
Tutor of GCSE, AS and A Level Music and Music Technology – Bartholemews Tutorial College, Brighton, 1994- 2007.Tutor of GCSE, AS and A Level Music – K-BIS Theatre School, Brighton – 2002-2004. Private teacher of theory, composition, music technology and violin since 1997 of students aged 5-65.

Instruments:
Violin, viola, flute, folk flutes, clarinet, Middle Eastern folk clarinets, saxophones, Bulgarian and Macedonian bagpipes, Hungarian zither, guitar, banjo, piano, accordion, percussion.

Major Performance Venues include:
St. Martin’s in the Fields
The Barbican
National Theatre
Royal Albert Hall
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Chapel Royal, Brighton
Purcell Room
Everyman Cinema, Hampstead
Lewes Prison
St. James’ Palace (in the presence of HRH The Queen)
Spiegeltent
Corn Exchange, Brighton
Concorde2 Brighton
Komedia, Brighton
RSC Stratford
BBC Radio
London Coliseum
Round House, Camden Town
And many other venues around Britain Europe and the US

Collaborations and/or performances with many artists including:
Willie Russell
Damon Albarn
Amanda Palmer (Dresden Dolls)
Sandy Dillon
Patrick Wolf
Sh’Koyakh
The Wallace Ensemble
The Matzo Boys
Broadway Project
Pressure Drop
Hardkandy
Black Grass
Herbie Flowers
Jambience
Junoreactor

Regular Performances as a member of:
The Rohan Theatre Band
The Guild of Funerary Violinists
Dr. Asperger’s Klezmer Tonic
Noiseless Blackboard Eraser
Kriwaczek/Human Duo
Two Violins

Solo Studio albums:
Ghost Train
New Ritual Dark Music
Walking East
Looking Back
The Wandering Jew
Moby Dick
Ritual Dark Music
New Bigger Ears

Instrumental Albums:
Dr Asperger’s Klezmer Tonic
Nostalgia’s Own End
Rohan Kriwaczek – Funerary Violinist
Salon Concert Music
King David Report - (with Jason Dickinson)
Two Violins - (with Jason Dickinson)
Circles in the Sand - (with Jason Dickinson)
Live – (with Philip Jackson)

Rohan Theatre Band albums:
Perfect World
Love and Loss
Unhealthy Leftovers
Cemetery Songs
Rants and Accusation
Unsavoury Songs

Editor of the Guild of Funerary Violist’s Archive series:
The Art of Funerary Violin
The Funerary Notebooks of Herr Gratchenfleiss
Pierre Dubuisson
Herbert Stanley Littlejohn
Babcotte, Sudbury and Eaton

Books:
An Incomplete History of the Art of Funerary Violin, published by Duckworth (UK). Overlook (US), Scribe (Australia), Eichborn (Germany).

Commissioned to write articles for magazines including The Liberal, Scribe, The Strad and Jewish Quarterly.
Catalogue of Available Classical Works

Orchestral Works:
Nostalgia’s Own End – Concerto for Klezmer Band and Orchetra 2004
Colne Cannons - Full orchetra - no horns. 1999.
Seppenwolft - Full orchestra. 1995.
Amadeus Meditation - solo piano / full orchestra. 1993.
Triumphant into the Blinding Frey - String Orchetra – 1994

Chamber Music:
A Dream of Something Lost and Found - flute quartet - (fl, vln, vla, vc.) 2002
The Rooster is Already Crowing – (pno, vln, vc). 2001
Old Wedding Song - (cl, vln, vc, perc) winner of Elkin Memorial prize. 1994
Suite from The Last Exodus - (cl, alto fl, vc, cb) - a suite of 2 minute pieces. 1990
14 Chords through 17 Frames - oboe trio (ob,ob,cor anglais.) 1993
plus 2 string quartets and other assorted bits..

Choral:
Six Songs of Corruption and Death - full choir – 1994

Works for Violin and Piano:
Rohan’s Book of Quirky Dances – 20 pieces.
A collection of light, charming and eccentric pieces, partly inspired by Jewish and Gypsy music traditions. These make excellent concert fillers, and some make great encores. They are not meant to be played as a set.
Three Pieces – Fantasizing the Shtetl – 3 movements.
Three dark and intense concert pieces, written in part as a warning against nostalgic reinterpretations of the past. 16 minutes.
2 Farewells – 2 movements.
2 elegant and wistful pieces depicting a sad moment of parting. Only the first half of number 1 has been performed.
Solinski Fantasies – Three pieces.
3 pieces loosely melodically based on a set of recordings made in 1911 by Josef Solinski. These have been developed into dramatic and quirky concert pieces. Romanian melodies meet Eric Satie. Only number 1 has been performed. In total around 15 minutes.
Dos Bettlers Lied – single movement.
Much in the spirit of Kreisler, an intentionally charming salon piece that wears its heart on its sleeve. 4 ½ minutes.
A Turkisher Schostakovich Koshmar – single movement.
A very intense and technically difficult contrapuntal piece set in a world reminiscent of Schostakovich in a Turkish market. Unperformed.
3 Bagatelles – 3 movements
Inevitably inspired by Beethoven, these are a modern (though not modernist) slant on the bagatelle for violin and piano. A humble tribute to the Great man. Unperformed.
2 Impromptus – 2 movements.
Inevitably inspired by Schubert, these are a modern (though not modernist) slant on the impromptu for violin and piano. A humble tribute to the Great man. Unperformed.
A Tentative Sketchbook of Gothic Misdemeanours – 8 sections
A visit to a very dark and intense place. 8 short musical frames, semi-minimalist, and filled with disguised musical quotes. Technically not too difficult but very demanding musically. Unperformed.

Works for Solo Violin:
Rohan’s Book of Fiddle Tunes – around 100 tunes,
40 by me, the others collected from Gypsy, Jewish, Sikh and Celtic traditions. These pieces are ideal for the slightly more sophisticated functions. I have earned my living playing these tunes for the last few years – tedious though it is. Can be played solo or with chordal accompaniment on guitar, piano, accordion etc.
Sonata for Solo Violin – 3 movts.
Composed in part as an exercise to improve my double stopping this piece turned out much larger than I intended. The final movement has been performed a number of times, and gives a great opportunity to show off virtuosity. The first two movements are good for students to practise 6ths and 5ths.
In addition another 20 or so duos for 2 violins and a around 10 un-catalogued pieces for violin and piano.

The Art of Funerary Violin, compiled and edited by Rohan Kriwaczek - 48 pieces, 98pp.