Avner Dorman (
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
: אבנר דורמן; born April 14, 1975 in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...
,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
) is an Israeli-born
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Def ...
,
educator
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. ...
and
conductor.
Education
Dorman holds a doctorate in music composition from the
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most eli ...
, where he studied as a C.V. Starr fellow with
John Corigliano
John Paul Corigliano Jr. (born February 16, 1938) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. His scores, now numbering over one hundred, have won him the Pulitzer Prize, five Grammy Awards, Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, an ...
. He completed his master's degree at the
Buchmann-Mehta School of Music of
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Loca ...
(where he majored in
music
Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...
,
musicology
Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some ...
, and
physics
Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which re ...
) studying with
Josef Bardanashvili.
[Jerusalem Post, Feb 23, 2001, Zehavi, "Rock-music 'Brat' moves on]
Career
At age 25, Dorman became the youngest composer to win Israel's Prime-Minister's award. He has since been awarded the
ACUM prize for his Ellef Symphony.
''
Ma'ariv'' newspaper in Israel named Dorman "Composer of the Year" for 2002, and the performance of his song cycle "Boaz" received the Israeli Cultural Ministry Prize for best performance of Israeli music the same year. Dorman's "Variations Without a Theme", premiered by
Zubin Mehta
Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Mehta's father was the fo ...
and the
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (abbreviation IPO; Hebrew: התזמורת הפילהרמונית הישראלית, ''ha-Tizmoret ha-Filharmonit ha-Yisra'elit'') is an Israeli symphony orchestra based in Tel Aviv. Its principal concert venue ...
in November 2003 and won the 2004 Best Composition of the Year award from ACUM. This piece led to a commission from Zubin Mehta, PercaDu, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra for "Spices, Perfumes, Toxins!", a concerto for percussion duo and orchestra.
Orchestras that have performed Dorman's music include the
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...
,
New York Philharmonic Orchestra
The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...
, the
Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra,
San Francisco Symphony
The San Francisco Symphony (SFS), founded in 1911, is an American orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980 the orchestra has been resident at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in the city's Hayes Valley neighborhood. The San Fr ...
, the
Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and the
Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra
The Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra (German: ''ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien'', or RSO Wien) is the orchestra of the Austrian national broadcaster Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF). Unlike most other Austrian orchestras, the RSO Wien has a sub ...
.
In 2006,
Naxos Records
Naxos comprises numerous companies, divisions, imprints, and labels specializing in classical music but also audiobooks and other genres. The premier label is Naxos Records which focuses on classical music. Naxos Musical Group encompasses about ...
released an album dedicated to Dorman's piano works with
Eliran Avni at the piano. In 2010, Naxos Records released an album dedicated to Dorman's chamber orchestra concerti.
Avi Avital's performance of Dorman's "Mandolin Concerto" on this recording was nominated for a
2010 Grammy Award in the category of
Best Instrumental Soloist Performance with Orchestra.
Dorman's debut opera, ''Wahnfried'', was named as a finalist for the 2018
International Opera Awards
The International Opera Awards is an annual awards ceremony honouring excellence in opera around the world.
Origins
The International Opera Awards was founded in 2013 by Harry Hyman, a UK businessman, philanthropist and supporter of opera, and ...
, in the category of "World Premiere". He was awarded the 2018 Azrieli Prize for Jewish Music for his violin concerto, ''Nigunim'', originally written as a violin sonata for violinist
Gil Shaham and pianist
Orli Shaham
Orli Shaham (born 5 November 1975) is an American pianist, born in Jerusalem, Israel, the daughter of two scientists, Meira Shaham (nee Diskin) and Jacob Shaham. Her brothers are the violinist Gil Shaham and Shai Shaham, who is the head of the L ...
.
Dorman is an associate professor of theory and composition at the Sunderman Conservatory of Music at
Gettysburg College
Gettysburg College is a private liberal arts college in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1832, the campus is adjacent to the Gettysburg Battlefield. Gettysburg College has about 2,600 students, with roughly equal numbers of men and women ...
. He served as music director of
CityMusic Cleveland chamber orchestra from 2013 to 2019.
Compositions
Opera
*''Wahnfried'' (2016)
*''Die Kinder des Sultans'' (2019)
*''Kundry'' (2021)
Percussion concertos
*''Spices, Perfumes, Toxins!'' (2006)
*''Frozen in Time'' (2007)
*''Eternal Rhythm'' (2018)
Orchestral works without soloists
*''Chorale for Strings'' (1999)
*''Ellef Symphony'' (2000)
*''Variations Without A Theme'' (2003)
*''Uriah'' (2008–9)
*''Azerbaijani Dance'' (2010)
*''(not) The Shadow'' (2010)
*''Astrolatry'' (2011)
*''After Brahms'' (2015)
*''Siklòn'' (2015)
*''A Most Sacred Oath'' (2021)
Large Wind Ensemble
*''Ellef Symphony''
*''Spices, Perfumes, Toxins!''
*''A Most Sacred Oath'' (2021)
Works for narrator and orchestra
*''Uzu and Zuzu from Kakaruzu'' (2012)
Choral works (with or without orchestra)
*''Psalm 67'' (2004)
*''Letters from Gettysburg'' (2013)
*''Dialogues of Love'' (2014)
*''The Seventy Names of Jerusalem'' (2015)
Violin concertos
*''Violin Concerto no. 1'' (2006)
*''Violin Concerto no. 2 – "Nigunim"'' (2017)
*''Violin Concerto no. 3 – "Still"'' (2019)
Piano concertos
*''Piano Concerto in A'' (1995)
*''Piano Concerto no.2 – "Lost Souls"'' (2009)
*''Piano Concerto no.3'' (2021)
Concertos for various instruments
*''Piccolo Concerto'' (2001)
*''Concerto Grosso'' (2003)
*''Saxophone Concerto ''(2003)
*''Mandolin Concerto ''(2006)
*''Cello Concerto ''(2013)
*''Double Concerto ''(2019)
Sonatas for violin and piano
*''Sonata No.1 ''(2004)
*''Sonata No.2 ''(2008)
*''Sonata No.3 – "Nigunim"'' (2011)
*''Sonata No.4'' (2014)
Piano trios
*''Tree-yO!'' (1996)
*''Trio ''(2001)
String quartets
*''String Quartet No.1 ''(2003)
*''String Quartet No.2 ''(2004)
*''Prayer for the Innocents ''(2009)
Other chamber pieces
*''Udacrep Akubrad ''(2001)
*''Boaz'' (2002)
*''Jerusalem Mix ''(2007)
*''Memory Games ''(2011)
*''The Fear of Men'' (2006)
*''Mantra ''(2013)
*''Consumed ''(2014)
*''Suite for Solo Saxophone'' (2015)
*''How to Love ''(2016)
*''Variations on a Simple Theme ''(2017)
*''For Solo Violin ''(2017)
Piano sonatas
*''Sonata no.1 ''(1999)
*''Sonata no.2 ''(2000)
*''Sonata no.3 – "Dance Suite"'' (2005)
*''Sonata no.4 – "Libi Bamizrach"'' (2011)
*''Sonata no.5'' (2018)
*''Sonata no.6'' (2020)
Other solo piano music
*''Prelude No.1'' (1992)
*''Moments Musicaux ''(2003)
*''Azerbaijani Dance ''(2005)
*''Octurne Insomniaque ''(2007)
*''Karsilama for Two Pianos'' (2012)
*''Three Etudes'' (2012)
*''After Brahms ''(2014)
*''For a Friend I Never Knew ''(2017)
Short opera
*''Boundless'' (2018)
*''Now'' (2018)
Music for film
*''
Wonderland'' (2013), directed by
Avi Nesher
*''
Past Life'' (2016), directed by
Avi Nesher
Music for dance
*''Ben'' (1997)
*''Accord/Discord ''(1999)
*''Falafel ''(2001)
*''Impact'' (2006)
References
External links
*
Avner Dorman biography at G. SchirmerInformation about Avner Dorman on the New York Philharmonic Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dorman, Avner
1975 births
Living people
20th-century classical composers
21st-century classical composers
Israeli composers
Israeli classical musicians
Jewish classical musicians
Israeli Jews
People from Tel Aviv
Juilliard School alumni
Tel Aviv University alumni
Gettysburg College faculty
Male classical composers
20th-century male musicians
21st-century male musicians
Adi Lautman Interdisciplinary Program for Outstanding Students alumni