List of Contemporary Classical Composers per Country
This list is subjective and includes the composers who composed significant works after 1960 in a contemporary style. The country they are classified in does not depend on their birthplace, on the country where they were raised, on their passport but rather on the country where they got their musical training and became composers. A classic example is Xenakis who was born in Romania from Greek parents, got his early education in Romania and Greece, but then moved to France where he established himself as a composer and took French nationality. For the purpose of this list, he is classified in the French section. There is no need to have a debate about it, because this list is based on this criterion.
It will evolve over time and like for all variable lists on this site I will make quarterly reviews if necessary. It is based on the opinion of my peers (composers, musicians and scholars) and myself.
-Albania: Thomas Simaku (1958)
-Argentina: Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983), Osvaldo Golijov (1960), Mauricio Kagel (1931-2008), Martin Matalon (1958), Alex Nante (1992)
-Armenia: Avet Terterian (1929-1994), Tigran Mansurian (1939)
-Australia: Brett Dean (1961), Chris Dench (1953), Lisa Illean (1983), Liza Lim (1966), Ella Macens (1991), Peter Sculthorpe (1929-2014), Carl Vine (1953)
-Austria: Peter Ablinger (1959-2025), Friedrich Cerha (1926-2023), Georg Friedrich Haas (1953), Bernhard Lang (1957), Klaus Lang (1971), Thomas Larcher (1963), Wolfgang Mitterer (1958), Olga Neuwirth (1968), Christian Ofenbauer (1961), Johannes Maria Staud (1974)
-Azerbajian: Franghiz Ali-Sadeh (1947), Rahilia Hasanova (1951)
-Belgium : Jean-Paul Dessy (1963), Stefan Prins (1979)
-Brazil: Marcos Balter (1974), Jose Antonio De Almeida Prado (1943-2010), Michelle Agnes Magalhaes (1979), Felipe Lara (1979)
-Bulgaria: Dobrinka Tabakova (1980)
-Cambodia: Chinary Ung (1942)
-Canada: Martin Arnold (1959), Taylor Brook (1985), Allison Cameron (1963), Sarah Davachi (1987), Zosha Di Castri (1985), Vivian Fung (1975), Nicole Lizée (1973), Alexina Louie (1949), Simon Martin (1981), Cassandra Miller (1976), Marjan Mozetich (1948), Marc Sabat (1965), Raymond Murray Schafer (1933-2021), Linda Catlin Smith (1957), Ann Southam* (1937-2010), Haralabos Stafylakis (1982), Chiyoko Szlavnics (1967), Claude Vivier (1948-1983)
-Chile: Anibal Vidal (1991)
-China: Qigang Chen (1951), Yi Chen (1953), Du Yun (1977), Ge Gan-Ru (1954), Lei Liang (1972), Huang Ruo (1976), Bright Sheng (1955), Tan Dun (1957), Xiaogang Ye (1955), Yifan Guo (1995), Ying Wang (1976), Zihan Wu (2001), Zhou Long (1953), Zhou Tian (1981)
-Colombia: Carolina Noguera (1979)
-Croatia: Mirela Ivicevic (1980)
-Cuba: Leo Brouwer (1939), Tania Leon (1943)
-Cyprus: Yannis Kariakides (1969)
-Czech Republic: Ondrej Adamek (1979), Sylvie Bodorova (1954), Victor Kalabis (1923-2006), Krystof Maratka (1972), Martin Smolka (1959)
-Denmark: Hans Abrahamsen (1952), Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen (1932-2016), Vagn Holmboe (1909-1999), Per Norgärd (1932-2025), Poul Ruders (1949), Bent Sorensen (1958), Simon Steen-Andersen (1976)
-England: Thomas Ades (1971), Julian Anderson (1967), Joanna Bailie (1973), Natasha Barrett (1982), Richard Barrett (1959), Sally Beamish (1956), George Benjamin (1960), Harrison Birtwistle (1934-2022), Mark Bowden (1979), Charlotte Bray (1982), Gavin Bryars (1943), Cornelius Cardew (1936-1981), John Casken (1949), James Clarke (1957), Anna Clyne (1980), Edward Cowie (1943), Laurence Crane (1961), Peter Maxwell Davies (1934-2016), Tansy Davies (1973), Michael Dougherty (1954), Jonathan Dove (1959), Steve Elcock (1957), Brian Elias (1948), Brian Ferneyhough (1943), Edmund Finnis (1984), Michael Finnissy (1946), Graham Fitkin (1963), Alexander Goehr (1932), Michael Zev Gordon (1963), Philip Grange (1956), Bryn Harrison (1969), Jonathan Harvey (1939-2012), Sam Hayden (1968), Kenneth Hesketh (1968), Simon Holt (1959), Emily Howard (1979), Martin Iddon (1975), Kenneth Leighton (1928-1988), Oliver Leith (1990), John Lely (1976), Eden Lonsdale (1996), Emma Jane Lloyd (1987), Christian Mason (1984), Colin Matthews (1946), David Matthews (1943), Joseph Phibbs (1974), John Pickard (1963), Naomi Pinnock (1979), Rebecca Saunders (1967), Robert Saxton (1951), Mark Simpson (1988), Robert Simpson (1921-1997), Howard Skempton (1947), Ronald Stevenson (1928-2015), Matthew Taylor (1960), John Tavener (1949-2013), Michael Tippett (1905-1998), Joby Talbot (1971), Mark-Anthony Turnage (1960), Hugh Watkins (1976), Judith Weir (1954), Hugh Wood (1932-2021)
-Estonia: René Eespere (1953), Elis Hallik (1986), Liisa Hirsch (1984), Tönu Körvits (1969), Arvo Pärt (1935), Urmas Sisask (1960), Lepo Sumera (1950-2000), Veljo Tormis (1930-2017), Helena Tulve (1972), Erkki-Sven Tuur (1959)
-Faroe: Sunleif Rasmussen (1961)
-Finland: Kalevi Aho (1949), Einar Englund (1916-1999), Sebastian Fagerlund (1972), Paavo Heininen (1938-2022), Joonas Kokkonen (1921-1996), Magnus Lindberg (1958), Pehr Henrik Nordgren (1944-2008), Seppo Pohjola (1965), Einojuhani Rautavaara (1928-2016), Kaija Saariaho (1954-2024), Aulis Sallinen (1935), Esa-Pekka Salonen (1958), Outi Tarkiainen (1985), Jukka Tiensuu (1948), Olli Virtaperko (1973), Harri Vuori (1957), Lotta Wennäkoski (1970), Sauli Zinovjev (1988)
-France: Gilbert Amy (1936), Mark Andre (1964), George Aperghis (1945), Benjamin Attahir (1989), Alain Bancquart (1934-2022), François Bayle (1932), Franck Bedrossian (1972), Karol Beffa (1973), Christophe Bertrand (1981-2010), Sasha J.Blondeau (1986), Pierre Boulez (1925-2016), Augustin Braud (1994), Fabien Cali (1983), Edith Canat de Chizy (1950), Bernard Cavanna (1951), Raphaël Cendo (1975), Guillaume Connesson (1970), Pascale Criton (1954), Marc-André Dalbavie (1961), Bastien David (1990), Francis Dhomont (1926-2023), Hugues Dufourt (1943), Joël-François Durand (1954), Pascal Dusapin (1955), Henri Dutilleux (1916-2013), Jean-Claude Eloy (1938-2025), Thierry Escaich (1965), Luc Ferrari (1929-2005), Jean-Louis Florentz (1947-2004), Olivier Greif (1950-2000), Gérard Grisey (1936-1998), Philippe Hurel (1955), Michael Lévinas (1949), Ivo Malec (1925-2019), Philippe Manoury (1952), Bruno Mantovani (1974), Yan Maresz (1961), Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992), Marc Monnet (1947), Eric Montalbetti (1968), Tristan Murail (1948), Maurice Ohana (1913-1992), Bernard Parmegiani (1927-2013), Camille Pépin (1990), Eliane Radigue (1932-2026), Eve Risser (1982), Thierry Pécou (1965), Jean-Claude Risset (1938-2016), Yann Robin (1974), Jacopo Baboni Schilingi (1971), Philippe Schoeller (1957), Eric Tanguy (1968), Iannis Xenakis (1922-2001)
-Georgia: Giya Kancheli (1935-2019)
-Germany: Carola Bauckholt (1959), Nikolaus Brass (1949), Moritz Eggert (1965), Reiko Füting (1970), Heiner Goebbels (1952), Friedrich Goldmann (1941-2009), Hans-Werner Henze (1926-2012), York Höller (1944), Adriana Hölszky (1953), Eva-Maria Houben (1955), Sophia Jani (1989), Helmut Lachenmann (1935), Philippe Maintz (1977), Isabel Mundry (1963), Karola Obermüller (1977), Klaus Ospald (1956), Matthias Pintscher (1971), Enno Poppe (1969), Wolfgang Rihm (1952-2024), Peter Ruzicka (1948), Marie Schreer (1990), Mathias Spahlinger (1944), Ernstalbrecht Stiebler (1934-2024), Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007), Wolfgang Von Schweinitz (1953), Hans Tutschku (1966), Jörg Widmann (1973), Bernd Alois Zimmermann (1918-1970)
-Greece: Konstantia Gourzi (1962), Panayiotis Kokoras (1974), Myrto Nizami (1994)
-Hungary: Peter Eötvös (1944-2024), Marton Illies (1975), György Kurtag (1926), Györgi Ligeti (1923-2006)
-Iceland: Daniel Bjarnason (1979), Atli Ingolfson (1962), Thuridur Jonsdottir (1967), Maria Huld Markan Sigfusdottir (1980), Anna Thorvaldsdottir (1977)
-Iran: Anahita Abbasi (1985), Aftab Darvishi (1987), Gity Razaz (1986), Einaz Seyedi (1982)
-Ireland: Gerald Barry (1952), Ann Cleare (1983), Donnacha Dennehy (1970), Elisabeth Maconchy (1907-1994)
-Israel: Chaya Czernowin (1957), Yair Klartag (1958), Betty Olivero (1954), Shulamit Ran (1949)
-Italy: Marco Baldini (1986), Luciano Berio (1925-2003), Oscar Bianchi (1975), Pierluigi Billione (1960), Franco Donatoni (1927-2000), Ivan Fedele (1953), Francesco Filidei (1973), Luca Francesconi (1956), Stefano Gervasoni (1962), Matteo Gualandi (1995), Clara Iannotta (1983), Giulia Lorusso (1990), Luigi Nono (1924-1990), Paola Prestini (1975), Fausto Romitelli (1963-2004), Lucia Ronchetti (1963), Giacinto Scelsi (1905-1988), Salvatore Sciarrino (1947), Giovanni Sollima (1962), Marco Stroppa (1959), Francesca Verunelli (1979)
-Japan: Dai Fujikura (1977), Toshio Hosokawa (1955), Malika Kishino (1971), Misato Mochizuki (1969), Akira Nishimura (1953-2023), Naoki Sakata (1981), Toru Takemitsu (1930-1996), Karen Tanaka (1961), Takashi Yoshimatsu (1953), Joji Yuasa (1929-2024)
-Korea: Unsuk Chin (1961), Younghi Pagh-Paan (1945), Isang Yun (1917-1995)
-Latvia: Andris Dzenitis (1978), Santa Ratniece (1977), Peteris Vasks (1946)
-Lithuania: Marius Baranauskas (1978), Juste Janulyte (1982), Justina Jaruseviciute (1992), Zibuokle Martinaityte (1973), Egidija Medeksaite (1979), Onute Narbutaite (1956), Ruta Vitkauskaite (1984)
-Mexico: Julio Estrada (1943), Arturo Fuentes (1975), Victor Ibarra (1978), Mario Lavista (1943-2021), Gabriela Ortiz (1964), Hilda Paredes (1957)
-Netherlands: Peter Adriaansz (1966), Simeon ten Holt (1923-2012), Louis Andriessen (1939-2021), Jobina Tinnemans (1975), Michel Van der Aa (1970), Robert Zuidam (1964)
-New Zealand: Eve de Castro-Robinson (1956), Denis Smalley (1946)
-Norway: Nils Henrik Asheim (1960), Eivind Buene (1973), Arne Nordheim (1931-2010), Maja Ratkje (1973)
-Peru: Juan Arroyo (1981), Jimmy Lopez (1978)
-Poland: Zbigniew Bargielski (1937), Henryk Gorecki (1933-2010), Wojcieh Kilar (1932-2013), Aleksander Kosciow (1974), Witold Lutoslawski (1913-1994), Krzysztof Meyer (1943), Andrzej Panufnik (1914-1991), Krzysztof Penderecki (1933-2020), Joanna Wozny (1973), Agata Zubel (1978)
-Portugal: Andreia Pinto Correia (1971), Emmanuel Nunes (1941-2012), Joao Pedro Oliveira (1959), Jaime Reis (1983)
-Puerto Rico: Angelica Negron (1981), Roberto Sierra (1953)
-Romania: Maia Ciobanu (1952), Iancu Dumitrescu (1944), Horatiu Radulescu (1942-2008), Doina Rotaru (1951), Roman Vlad (1982)
-Russia: Sergey Akhunov (1967), Vyacheslav Artyomov (1940), Edison Denisov (1929-1996), Alissa Firsova (1986), Sofia Gubaidulina (1931-2025), Vera Ivanova (1977), Marina Khorkova (1981), Nikolai Korndorf (1947-2001), Elena Langer (1974), Vladimir Martynov (1946), Alexander Raskatov (1953), Olga Rayeva (1971), Elena Rykova (1991), Alfred Schnittke (1934-1998), Rodion Shchedrin (1932-2025), Boris Tishchenko (1939-2010), Galina Ustvolskaya (1919-2006)
-Scotland: James Dillon (1950), Helen Grime (1981), Alistair Hinton (1950), Oliver Knussen (1952-2018), James MacMillan (1959), Anna Meredith (1978), Thea Musgrave (1928)
-Serbia: Milica Djordjevic (1984), Marko Nikodijevic (1980), Alexandra Vrebalov (1970), Djuro Zivcovic (1975)
-Slovakia: Adrian Democ (1985), Vladimir Godar (1956)
-Slovenia: Nina Senk (1982)
-South Africa: Priaulx Rainier (1903-1986), Kevin Volans (1947)
-Spain: Benet Casablancas (1956), Francisco Coll (1985), Luis de Pablo (1930-2021), Gustavo Diaz-Jerez (1970), Gabriel Erkoreka (1969), Roberto Gerhard (1896-1970), Francisco Guerrero (1951-1997), Ramon Lazkano (1968), Jose Manuel Lopez Lopez (1956), Joan Magrané (1988), Elena Mendoza (1973), David Moliner (1991), Hector Parra (1976), Alberto Posadas (1967), Lula Romero (1976), Jesus Rueda (1961), Mauricio Sotelo (1961), Octavio Vazquez (1972)
-Sweden: Ellen Arkbro (1990), Malin Bang (1974), Catherine Christer Hennix (1948-2023), Anders Hillborg (1954), Allan Pettersson (1911-1980), Ylva Skog (1963), Lisa Streich (1985), Andrea Tarrodi (1981)
-Switzerland: Dieter Ammann (1962), Richard Dubugnon (1968), Jürg Frey (1953), Beat Furrer (1954), Jannik Giger (1985), Heinz Holliger (1939), Klaus Huber (1924-2017), Michael Jarrell (1958), Helena Winkelman (1974)
-Taiwan: Ya-Lan Chan (1994)
-Turkey: Turgut Erçetin (1983), Cenk Ergün (1978), Cem Güven (1997), Atac Sezer (1979), Zeynep Toraman (1992)
-Ukraine: Leonid Desyatnikov (1955), Victoria Poleva (1962), Alexey Retinsky (1986), Valentin Silvestrov (1937)
-United States: John Coolidge Adams (1947), John Luther Adams (1953), Timo Andres (1985), Robert Ashley (1930-2013), Lera Auerbach (1973), Milton Babbitt (1916-2011), Mason Bates (1977), Martin Boykan (1931-2021), David Bruce (1970), John Cage (1912-1992), Robert Carl (1954), Richard Carrick (1971), Elliott Carter (1908-2012), Christopher Cerrone (1984), Anthony Cheung (1982), John Chowning (1934), Gloria Coates (1933-2023), John Corigliano (1938), George Crumb (1929-2022), Sebastian Currier (1959), Bryce Dessner (1976), Alexandra du Bois (1981), William Duckworth (1943-2012), Jordan Dykstra (1985), Julius Eastman (1940-1990), Jason Eckardt (1971), Marti Epstein (1959), Nomi Epstein (1978), Robert Erickson (1917-1997), Reena Esmail (1983), Gregory Rowland Evans (1994), Mohammed Fairouz (1985), Morton Feldman (1926-1987), Inti Figgis-Vizueta (1993), George Flynn (1937), Gabriela Lena Frank (1972), Kenneth Fuchs (1956), Peter Garland (1952), Stacy Garrop (1969), Randy Gibson (1978), Philip Glass (1937), Michael Gordon (1956), Annie Gosfield (1960), John Harbison (1938), Lou Harrison (1917-2003), Michael Harrison (1959-2026), Jake Heggie (1961), Sarah Hennies (1979), Michael Hersch (1971), Jennifer Higdon (1962), Dennis Johnson (1938), Tom Johnson (1938), Ben Johnston (1926-2019), Aaron Jay Kernis (1960), Catherine Lamb (1982), David Lang (1957), Anne Leilehua Lanzilotti (1983), Libby Larsen (1950), Hannah Lash (1981), Mary Jane Leach (1948), Benjamin Lees (1924-2010), Fred Lerdahl (1943), George E.Lewis (1952), Lowell Liebermann (1961), Alvin Lucier (1931-2021), Tod Machover (1953), Sky Macklay (1988), Ingram Marshall (1942-2022), James Matheson (1970), Missy Mazzoli (1980), Timothy McCormack (1984), Andrew McIntosh (1985), Cindy Mc Tee (1953), John Melby (1941), Alex Mincek (1975), Meredith Monk (1942), Jessie Montgomery (1981), Nico Muhly (1981), Jeffrey Mumford (1955), Adam Neiman (1978), Phill Niblock (1933-2024), Andrew Norman (1979), Elizabeth Ogonek (1989), Pauline Oliveros (1932-2016), Gérard Pape (1955), Tristan Perich (1982), Vincent Persichetti (1915-1987), Kevin Puts (1972), Gity Razaz (1986), Kory Reeder (1993), Steve Reich (1936), Ellen Reid (1983), Roger Reynolds (1935), Terry Riley (1935), Ned Rorem (1923), Elena Ruehr (1963), Frederic Rzewski (1937-2021), Daniel Schmidt (1942), Joseph Schwantner (1943), Laura Schwendinger (1962), Ralph Shapey (1921-2002), Elliott Sharp (1952), Caroline Shaw (1982), Nina Shekhar (1995), Arlene Sierra (1970), Gabriella Smith (1991), Kate Soper (1981), Tyshawn Sorey (1980), Laurie Spiegel (1945), Cristina Spinei (1984), Steven Stucky (1949-2016), Ellen Taaffe-Zwilich (1939), James Tenney (1934-2006), Christopher Theofanidis (1967), Augusta Read Thomas (1964), Michael Torke (1961), Joan Tower (1938), George Tsontakis (1951), Akshaya Avril Tucker (1992), Max Vinetz (1996), Paul Wiancko (1983), Cassie Wieland (1994), Daniel Wohl (1980), Julia Wolfe (1958), Christian Wolff (1934), Scott Wollschleger (1980), Charles Wuorinen (1938-2020), La Monte Young (1935), Nina C.Young (1984), Julie Zhu (1990), John Zorn (1953)
