Uri Brener

Composer/pianist/arranger Uri Brener was born 1974 in Moscow and has been playing the piano since the age of four. His first compositional attempts go back to the age of seven, and his first acclaimed opuses appeared at the age of 12 (among them symphonic pieces, piano and chamber music). After studying and performing in Russia, Germany and Holland, he then moved to Israel, where he got his PhD with excellence in composition.

Uri Brener's music is performed worldwide: Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, France, Holland, Canada, USA, Australia, Latvia, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Russia, Serbia, Croatia, among others in such venues as MOMA in New York, Capitolini Museum in Rome, Philharmonic Tschaikovsky Hall and State Tretyakov Gallery of Moscow, Staatliche Antikensammlungen in Munich, Akademie der Schoene Kunste in Berlin, Tel-Aviv Art Museum and others).
Among performers of his music there are distinguished orchestras and ensembles:
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under Zubin Mehta, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra under Frédéric Chaslin, Moscow Soloists under Juri Bashmet, Israel Chamber Orchestra as well as “Tel-Aviv Soloists” orchestra, , “Continuum” ensemble (NY, USA), New Julliard Ensemble (NY, USA), “Aviv” quartet Igudesman and Joo Duo, Blumina Trio (Germany) among others, as well as soloists such as Sergey Nakaryakov (France), Sergey Ostrovsky (Switzerland), Anton Dressler (Italy), Rachel Mercer (Canada), Arkady Shilkloper (Russia), Kristina Reiko Cooper (Israel–USA), Evgenia Epstein (Israel-Croatia), Noam Buchman (Israel) and more.
Uri has written large variety of compositions (over hundred) in wide range of styles and genres, which include piano-, chamber-, vocal-, choral-, symphonic-, electro-acoustic, crossover-, experimental- and other kinds of music. His works list include: three piano sonatas, two Piano Concertos, Violin Concerto, few symphonic poems, four string quartets, three double concertos, Sinfonia Concertante “Faust” alongside with chamber pieces for most solo instruments and voices, as well as their different combinations and ensembles, Oratorio “Shunamit”, a musical fairy tale / ballet “The Prince of Soup and a Magic Stone” and much more.
Uri has also produced dozens of different kinds of arrangements in different styles for different ensembles, varying from a transcription of the famous “Carmina Burana” by C. Orff for a small symphonic orchestra and arrangements for choir, down to jazz and crossover arrangements, be it a Big-Band, vocal- or a combo-jazz ensemble. His transcription of the Carmina Burana was performed numerously in most prestigious halls in Israel such as the Tel-Aviv Opera house by Israeli Sinfonietta Orchestra under maestro Doron Salomon in cooperation with the Kamea Dance company and by other orchestras.

Brener has also composed two suites for flute and jazz trio in a crossover genre, first of which, “Jazz Sebastian Bach”, was commissioned and recorded by the renown flutist Noam Buchman together with Uri`s jazz trio Tabula Rasa and highly praised by both national and international media; it was published by the Harmonia Music in London. The second, “Clazzic Suite”, was commissioned by the Munich based crossover ensemble by the same name lead by a flutist Martina Silvester and is based upon iconic classical works such as Debussy`s “Syrinx”, Stravinsky`s “Firebird” and other works by Bach, Mozart and others and will be released as a CD this year.
Uri has participated as a teacher and lecturer in international workshops and master classes; he was invited as a special guest by festivals and was selected to be a member of a Jury for international and national composition competitions. Uri joins occasionally broadcasts on Israeli classical music channel `Kol HaMusika` presenting his own music, improvisations and the music by other artists, he has also appeared in TV shows. His compositions have been released on numerous CDs by such labels as "Naxos", "Albany records" and "Eighth Note".

Uri won a series of highly prestigious awards and scholarships among them the Prime Minister Prize for composition twice (2006 and 2017), an ACUM Award, which he has been awarded three times (2008, 2010 and 2015, an International Mozart Award from the International Biographical Center, Cambridge, England, and more.
In 2007 Uri has been appointed a composer in residence of the Israeli Sinfonietta Orchestra of Beer-Sheba, Israel.
Since 2016 he is a music director of the Mikro Theater in Jerusalem. In 2017 Uri also became a director of the oldest conservatory in Israel, Ron Shulamit, in Jerusalem.
brener@012.net.il
For Brener's website please click here