Manolis Vlitakis was born in 1967 in Athens, where he studied music theory and counterpoint at the N. Skalkottas Conservatory and French literature at the Universtiy of Athens. He went on to study composition with Walter Zimmermann at the Berlin University of the Arts (Hochschule der Künste), where he is currently enrolled in an advanced degree. In 1998, he was awarded the Socrates Grant from the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied with Marco Stroppa, Olivier Trachier and Marc-André Dalbavie. He participated in the Darmstadt Summer Courses in 1994 and 1996. In 1996, he received the Förderpreis from the Berlin University of the Arts for his work Five Short Pieces for Ensemble. He has been a jury member in the entrance examinations at the Hochschule der Künste and for the Karl Hofer Prize.