Raphaël Cendo (1975, France) studied piano and composition at l’Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris (graduated in 2000). Further studies in composition followed at Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris (till 2003) and courses in composition and music informatics at IRCAM (till 2006). His professors were Allain Gaussin, Brian Ferneyhough, Fausto Romitelli and Philippe Manroy.

He composed pieces for renown international ensembles, such as: Itinéraire, Orchestre National d’Ile de France, Ensemble InterContemporain, Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, Les Percussions de Strasbourg, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Ictus, Cairn, Diotima quartet, Musicfabrik, Alternance, and his pieces were performed in numerous venues – Opéra de Lille, Centre Georges Pompidou, and festivals: Mito (Milan), Biennale di Venezia, Radio France, Voix Nouvelles (Royaumont), Présences of Radio France, Ars Musica (Brussels), festival Musica (Strasbourg), festival Why Note in Dijon, festival Darmstadt, and festival in Donaueschingen.

Supported by French Academy, Rafaël Cendo will be resident of Villa Medici in Rome till 2011. In 2009 he was awarded Prix Pierre Cardin of the Académie des Beaux Arts.

Affront (2010) was commissioned and performed by Ensemble Alternance on October 11 at Regenstein Recital Hall of Northwestern University of Evanston (Chicago).