About

Lilyanne Dorilas is a violinist and composer based in Boston, Massachusetts. She is a 2024 graduate of Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), earning Bachelor’s Degrees in Cognitive Science and Music (Violin Performance). She studied violin with Dr. Stephen Sims and composition with doctoral candidate Kristian Schembri (CIM). In February 2024, she was the first CWRU Concerto Competition winner in the school’s history to compose, perform, and premiere the second movement of her Violin Concerto No. 1 (“Golden Hour”) with CWRU’s Symphony Orchestra. She was the soloist on her big band “Old World” (2023), and her neoclassical string quintet “4 ½ Stages of Grief” (2022) was performed by the Cleveland Chamber Collective in February 2023. Two months later, her first piano piece “Kaleidoscope Variations” was programmed on CIM’s Composition Department Recital, showcasing her Post-Romantic, blues, Haitian konpa, and Still-infused Bach influence. She also premiered her violin and piano duos “Somber Swaying” and “Leap Frog” with CWRU and CIM musicians during student-led composition showcases and her senior recital in Spring 2024. Her instrumental rock-infused solo piano piece “Black Amber” was selected for Ensemble for These Times (E4TT) and American Mavericks Project’s 2024 Calls for Scores and will be premiered in California and New York City respectively in 2025.

Dorilas’ versatility is evident in every ensemble she writes for, from her modal jazz solo violin pieces to her string orchestra works. Her striking harmonic writing and enchanting lyricism are pillars of her style that enthrall any audience she encounters. Her current projects include a collection of modal pieces for all violin levels, string and piano quartets, and large-scale orchestral pieces.

Dorilas is a passionate advocate for expanding classical pedagogy and repertoire in all areas, from beginning to explore scales and modes in beginner exercises to using diverse composers’ music examples in undergraduate theory fundamentals. As an alumna of the Sphinx Organization (2017-2019) and New Jersey Youth Symphony Orchestra (2013-2019), she performs works by historical and contemporary composers of color alongside her own in an effort to bring awareness to the vast diversity of African diasporic music. Aside from her musical endeavors, she enjoys speaking Mandarin, spending time with her younger siblings, and writing her historical fiction novel.