ABOUT ME

Ilia Rayskin is an upcoming Brooklyn based drummer, composer, electronic and visual artist who has deep artistic roots across a very diverse field of influences and art forms. The young artist is well respected for his highly sophisticated sense of rhythm and harmony as well as his versatility and agility on the drum set. As a composer Ilia draws extensively from 20th century milestone composers such as Ligeti and Lutosławski.

As a performer he is active extensively in the fields of improvisation, “new-music” and contemporary Jazz/black American music. Having played concerts and tours all across the globe by his late 20s, he is currently writing music for various instrumentations such as his virtuosic piece for solo cello: “I Almost Touched Your Light (2026)”, performing with his double piano “XA Quartet” and working as a sideman and soloist with artists and orchestras in the US, Canada, Asia and Europe such as Shinya Lin, Hristo Goleminov, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra and the NFM Wrocław Philharmonic. He also performs internationally as a solo artist, with self-built electronic setups and live-interactive visuals.

Born in Amsterdam, Ilia was exposed to music from an early age — chamber music rehearsals and records played in the living room with repertoire spanning from Bach to The Police. At the age of six he took up the violin. Upon moving to Germany, he switched to drums and soon started to perform with local bands and theatre productions.

At age eighteen he began his Bachelor’s degree in Jazz drums at the Amsterdam Conservatory and became an integral part of the city’s musical landscape while residing there. Following his graduation he relocated to NYC, where he recently completed his Master’s degree at The New School. He has studied with a plethora of highly imaginative and internationally renowned musicians such as Matt Mitchell, Peter Evans, Kim Cass, Jacob Sacks, Anna Webber, Eric Wubbels, Tim Berne and Ben Monder.