
Works by Ioana Ilie
Biography
Ioana Ilie was born in Sibiu, Romania in 1988. She began playing the piano at the age of three and by the time she received her first piano lesson one year later, she had already composed a handful of pieces. Impressed by the prodigy of her creations, a music theory teacher from the city's High School of Arts offered to write down the compositions which Ioana was always playing from memory. She won her first competition at the age of five and has meanwhile performed throughout Europe, America and Asia. By winning the Constantin Silvestri scholarship in 2004 she was able to spend a year at the Pocklington School in York, England. In 2014 she was the first to be awarded a 3-year scholarship by the Notenstein La Roche Private Bank's Cultural Program for Young Musicians. She completed her studies with Adrian Oetiker (piano), Balz Trümpy (composition), Rudolf Lutz (improvisation) and Jan Schultsz (Lied accompaniment) at the FHNW Academy of Music.
At the age of only 21, Ioana Ilie was the appointed to teach piano improvisation at the Trossingen Academy of Music between 2011-2015 and since 2015 she has been teaching piano at the Basel Music Academy. Described by the Badische Zeitung as a “master of improvisation”, the Romanian is often heard exposing the rare art of classical improvisation, which has now become her trademark.
There are numerous works for piano solo by Ioana Ilie, though as the Lied and chamber music have a special place in her heart, these musical forms can often be found in her compositions. Her music has so far been heard throughout Europe (among others through the internationally known Ensemble “Phoenix” under the direction of Jürg Henneberger) and the USA. Compositions of hers are on both her debut CD “ON CLOUD TEN”, as well as on her latest recording “ZODION – piano pieces about the 12 zodiac signs”.
About the music
Previous to my studies at the Basel Music Academy, my music was heavily influenced by Beethoven and Brahms, so the classical-romantic sonata form was predominant in my compositions. The lessons with the Swiss composer Balz Trümpy significantly opened my compositional perspective and motivated me to look for other sounds. My style could be described as post-romantic (reminiscent of the "fin de siècle" sound), in which many impressionistic elements can be found. My sources of inspiration are now less formal and more visual, mostly originating in nature (such as my piano cycle "The Clouds", music depictions of the cloud formations) or in mythological or philosophical concepts (such as my latest composition "Zodion", inspired by the zodiac signs). I enjoy writing chamber music and song cycles, although the multifaceted colors of the orchestra are particularly close to my heart.
Composing "The Evening Star" for the Basler Gesangverein - a new piece for soprano, baritone, choir and orchestra
The commission of a piece of such magnitude is a huge honour for a composer - even more so when it comes from Switzerland's oldest mixed choir, Basler Gesangverein. Ioana's newest composition will be performed alongside the beautiful "Pilgrimage of a Rose" op. 112 by Robert Schumann, which tells of a fairy and her desire to become a mortal. "The Evening Star", Ioana's composition, is based on the eponymous poem by the most famous Romanian poet, Mihai Eminescu, which in turn presents us the story of Hyperion, who wants to renounce his immortality out of love for a princess.
"The Evening Star" will be performed on three occasions in the following Swiss venues:
- November 29, 2025, 17:00 - Stadtcasino Basel
- November 30, 2025, 19:30 - Église des Jésuites, Porrentruy
- December 7, 2025, 17:00 - Podium Düdingen