Ivan Šiller is a recognized authority in the field of contemporary music and 20th-century music, and he is also appreciated for his perspective on historical music. His international career includes innovatively designed concert programs, radio broadcasts, and acclaimed recordings. His artistic activities are complemented by a lifelong dedication to pedagogy, concert lectures, and workshops, which inspire a new generation of musicians.
Ivan Šiller has closely collaborated with many leading composers, including Philip Glass, Elliott Sharp, Louis Andriessen, Chris Newman, Dai Fujikura, Piet Jan van Rossum, Daniel Matej, and Milan Adamčiak. In the 2024/2025 season, he will present chamber recitals in Brno and Bratislava, where the premieres of contemporary composers will reflect the composition Trois morceaux en forme de poire by Erik Satie. His solo recitals at the Slovak Philharmonic in Bratislava, Pardubice, and Košice will offer a program of works by Franz Schubert, Alban Berg, Béla Bartók, and György Ligeti. Ivan Šiller continues his long-term collaboration with soprano Helga Varga Bach, and together they are gradually presenting a collection of 114 songs by Charles Ives, recording them for the Slovak Radio. With Ensemble Ricercata, he will present the multimedia project CAGE 113, offering a unique perspective on John Cage’s Beach Bird for Camera. With the ZOE Chamber Orchestra, he is systematically engaged in the interpretation of all the piano concertos by J. S. Bach.
In July 2025, a 3-CD recording exclusively featuring the solo and chamber works of Slovak composer Tomáš Boroš will be released by the Hudobný fond publishing house. This recording is the latest addition to a series of critically acclaimed collaborations with Hudobný fond, following the albums Old Boys Anthology (2023), VENI ensemble (2019), and Ensemble Ricercata (2016). The Old Boys Anthology recording has received several prestigious reviews, including those in the American magazine Fanfare, Czech Harmónia, and the Spanish magazine Scherzo.
In addition to Hudobný fond, Ivan Šiller also closely collaborates with the InMusic publishing house. In 2018, he released his debut solo album FIFTY, a collection of more than 20 pieces by contemporary composers. In 2020, the album Lasciar sonare followed, featuring works by P. Glass, V. Silvestrov, G. Ligeti, and M. Burlas, which was nominated for a Radio_Head Award in the classical music category. For the American label MODE Records, together with the VENI ACADEMY ensemble, he recorded the album Dispersion featuring the music of Elliott Sharp. In 2016, with the Cluster ensemble, he released the triple album Cluster ensemble plays Philip Glass for the labels Orange Mountain Music (USA) and Hevhetia (SK), which received significant acclaim in the British The Guardian and the American Pitchfork.
Ivan Šiller also serves as the program director for the international festival PIANO DAYS, which includes workshops and programs for children, podcasts with performers, and radio recordings. He has been leading a cycle of chamber concerts at the Art Gallery in Nové Zámky for 18 years and has been organizing chamber concerts at the Slovak Radio for 12 years. His aim is to bring innovative concert programs to smaller towns in Slovakia.
Ivan Šiller is the recipient of numerous awards. In 2014, he won two Radio_Head Awards for the best recording with the VENI ACADEMY ensemble. From 2016 to 2018, he and the Cluster ensemble were nominated for the Tatra Bank Foundation Art Award and the Crystal Wing Award. In 2000, the Minister of Education of the Slovak Republic awarded him the St. Gorazd Medal for his contributions to education. He received the prize for the best piano collaboration at the EMCY international competition in Hamburg and the laureate title at the piano competition in Dublin.
As an artist transcending the boundaries of traditional interpretation, he co-creates alternative educational platforms, such as the student project VENI ACADEMY and the Sound Orchestra series of children’s workshops, focusing on improvisation, graphic scores, and experimental music. He is the founder of the Učiteľské kolégium (Teachers’ College), which supports innovative approaches in higher education and works on developing new study programs for universities. He works as an associate professor at the Faculty of Education in Bratislava and as the pedagogical director of Superar Slovakia. He is involved in teacher education through courses on how to teach music effectively. In the spring of 2022, he launched the IMAGINE documentary film series in collaboration with Braňo Gotthard, which explores the music of the 20th and 21st centuries.
During his studies, he participated in artistic residencies at the Tanglewood Music Center (USA), Banff Centre for the Arts (Canada), and Darmstädter Ferienkurse (Germany). He studied piano with Milica Kailing, Daniela Varínska, and Daan Vandewalle.