Simaku's music has been reaching audiences all over Europe and the USA for over a decade, and it has been awarded a host of accolades for its expressive qualities and its unique blend of drama, intensity and modernism. Prestigious awards include the Serocki International Prize, Lutoslwaski Award, BASCA Award, Fellowship from the Arts & Humanities Research Council in London, Leverhulme Fellowship, DAAD Residency in Berlin, and Honourable Mention at the 2006 Musical Personalities International Competition - Alexander Tansman.
In 1995 his work Epitaph for String Orchestra was selected by the International Jury for the ISCM World Music Days in Germany - the first ever Albanian music to be included in this prestigious festival. Subsequently Simaku's works have been selected by the International Juries for the ISCM festivals of 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006. Other festivals where his music has been performed include Huddersfield, Tanglewood, Avignon, Miami, Zagreb-Biennale, Weimar, Munich, Rome, Cagliari, KlangSpectrum (Austria), Viitassari (Finland), Alea III Boston, Innsbruck(Austria), Odense (Denmark), Manchester, York, Birmingham, Automne de Tirana etc.
Broadcasts of his music include those by BBC Radio 3, Radio-France, SWR2, MDR, Deutschlandfunk (Cologne), Amsterdam Radio 4, ORF (Austria), Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Japanese, Polish, Croatian, Danish, Portuguese, Hellenic, Swedish, Romanian, Swiss and Icelandic radio stations.
Notable performances include, among others, those given by the Arditti Quartet, English Northern Philharmonia, Slovenian Radio-Television Orchestra, European Union Chamber Orchestra, MusikFabrik, London's Kreutzer Quartet, Amsterdam New Music Ensemble, the New London Orchestra, Goldberg Ensemble, Tokyo Phonosphere Musicale, Insomnio Ensemble, Polish Radio Chamber Orchestra, Rubinstein Quartet, Copenhagen Sinfonietta, Concorde (Dublin), Luxembourg Sinfonietta, Romanian Radio Chamber Orchestra, Capricorn Ensemble, Norwegian Medieval Trio, Tyrolean Ensemble of New Music (TICOM), The Duke String Quartet, Tirana Asmus Ensemble.
Internationally acclaimed soloists such as Peter Sheppard Skaerved,Neil Heyde, Garth Knox, Rohan de Saram, Noriko Kawai, Christopher Orton, Ian Pace, Vania Lecuit and Madeline Shapiro have performed his solo works. Simaku's music is published by UYMP and Emerson Edition.
http://www-users.york.ac.uk/~ts8/index.html