Dror Biran plays Prokofiev Sonata No.8-4

DROR BIRAN's playing has been described in Die Bleed as "powerful, but also beautiful sensitive, brilliant but full of artistry, seductively lyrical but intensely dramatic at the climaxes". The Plain Dealer added "his fortissimos crashed and roared, but next to them came pianissimos that whispered seductively...he has technique to burn and uses it effectively..."
His superb tonal control combined with interesting phrasing and voicing has won him consistent critical acclaim and enthusiastic audience.
Born in Israel, Dr. Biran is a top prize winner of several national and international piano competitions. He is a graduate of the Givataim Conservatory where he studied with Mrs. Lily Dorfman and The Rubin Academy of Music at Tel-Aviv University where he studied with Prof. Arie Vardi.

Dror Biran won top prizes at the M.K Ciurlionis International Piano Competition (1995), and the Cleveland International Piano Competition (1997) where he also received a special prize for the best performance of works by Chopin. His honors include the first prize at the "Pilar Bayona International Piano Competition" in Zaragoza, Spain (1998), first prize at the Israeli Rubin Academy Piano Competition (1998), and the Rafi Goralnik prize for pianists, in the Aviv Competition 2000. Dr. Biran has been a recipient of multiple the scholarships from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation for distinguished musicians.

Dr. Biran has performed widely as a soloist with major orchestras including the Lithuanian Philharmonic Orchestra, RTVE Symphony Orchestra of Spain, Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He has played under the batons of Etinger, Rodan, Gueller, Gacia Asensio, Lane and others. His concert tours have taken him to the United States, Eastern and Western Europe, Israel and South Africa.

As a chamber musician Dr. Biran has appeared on a regular basis with different music ensembles such as Carmel and Aviv String Quartets, he has also performed with members of The Cleveland Orchestra in different venues. His concerts have been broadcast by WCLV, WQXR, The Voice of Music -- Israel, Classic FM South Africa among others. Dr. Biran can be heard on the JMC (Jerusalem Music Centre) labels featuring ballades by Brahms and Chopin.
Dr. Biran received his Doctoral degree from The Cleveland Institute of Music where he studied with Mr. Paul Schenly and Dr. Daniel Shapiro. Dr. Biran taught at Youngstown State University and Case Western Reserve University.
Currently Dr. Biran teaches at University of Louisville School of Music in Kentucky as an Assistant Professor of Piano.
His future engagements includes chamber and solo concerts in USA, Europe, Israel and South Africa

Category:

Music

Tags:

• prokofiev
• sonata
• piano
• dror
• biran
• no.8

[klausknulp]

he looks like prokoffiev and he plays like him

[klausknulp]

very impressful!

[bonsema1]

whenever performing this sonata all keyboard artsits get compared to Richter. Highly unfair, Richter does tower a bit over the rest but not much as for instance is the case here. I thought that Richter put this fabulous musical interpretative artistry

in play and , there, there he ´s hard to beat. But meastro Bror is GOOD !!!

[meredith21846]

Good effort, however once one has heard Richter in this music subsequent performances pale into insignificance. I fully realise this is a hugely unfair comparison.

[LithikRob]

Pretty fucking incredible.

[EquisTox]

i'd never heard of this pianist before. but he sure kicks ass in this. he gets that oh so dreamy quality on the middle section of this movement, loved it. but what happened to the end? it was all going so well...

[coaster1000]

Prokofiev's best sonata.

[micheldvorsky]

Pretty musically inventive performance. He looks a bit like Charlie Runkle from Californication.

[kukusso]

Brilliant!

[pushbarman]

Dror Biran, apparently... :D