Borut Kržišnik

Borut Kržišnik (born 7 October 1961) is a Slovenian composer of contemporary music, based in Ljubljana. He is best known for his "polyglot musical style", and his concept of integration of live acoustic music with digital environment and technology.

According to the editorial board of the Music Biennale Zagreb 2014, Kržišnik is considered one of “the most notable representatives of the historical avant-garde.” The board highlighted his methodology, particularly his use of sampling, which enables the emulation of a virtual symphony orchestra as well as entirely synthetic sounds. They identified the dynamic between digital and classical techniques as fundamental to his music, noting that "among the most important elements of his musical language is the synthesis of technologically advanced (digital) composer interventions and classical ones." They framed his work as a "polyglot musical invention" that freely draws on a wide range of techniques and styles, from popular and cacophonic to atonal, tonal, minimalistic, and neoclassical.

The methodology and musical content in Kržišnik's work are closely related. Kržišnik’s creative practice unfolds in two distinct, intertwining stages: an initial phase of spontaneous composition followed by one of conceptual structuring. He begins with free improvisation and impromptu recording, without written notation or preconceived plans. This raw, unrestrained material gradually gives way to a second, structural phase in which he introduces fixed musical lines, shapes the work’s structure and defines its contextualization. This planned phase does not reject the initial free impulse but builds upon it, creating a counterpoint between the spontaneity of live music and the mechanical nature of digital technology. Through this dialectic, Kržišnik stages a musical dialogue—or even a duel—between man and machine, interrogating the human condition in the material world.

He has released nine albums and composed music for numerous dance, film and theater productions. His most notable collaborations include Peter Greenaway, Gerald Thomas, Edward Clug, Janez Janša (then Emil Hrvatin), and Julie Anne Robinson, among others.