Renowned Israeli composer and pianist Amit Weiner held a master class in “Contemporary Composition – Film Music vs. Concert Music” on January 25, 2019 at the Recital Hall 2 of the Conservatory of Music, at the Albertus Magnus Building, University of Santo Tomas in Manila.
The master class was a collaboration between the Embassy of Israel in the Philippines and the University of Santo Tomas in coordination with the Office of Public Affairs. The program was also attended by the Embassy of Israel to the Philippines Deputy Chief of Mission Ms. Yulia Rachinsky-Spivakov who delivered a message to introduce the composer and the event.
Weiner, who is currently a senior staff lecturer at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, is the head of The Cross-Disciplinary Composition Division, and teaches composition, theory classes, and directing ensembles. He holds a Ph.D. in Composition from the Bar Ilan University.
The music of Weiner focuses on intermingling traditional Jewish melodies and contemporary compositional techniques. These compositions have had over two hundred performances worldwide, including at New York's Carnegie Hall and across the USA, the UK, Russia, Canada, China, Japan, Ukraine, Italy, Ireland, Malaysia, Nepal, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, and Israel.
As a composer, Weiner is active in the fields of concert music, music for film, and popular music. His oeuvre includes over 40 chamber and orchestral works, among them two concertos for piano and orchestra, a number of orchestral works, chamber music, songs, and works for piano. In addition, he composed music for three full-length films, and composed for Rai-TV Italy, and music libraries in London.
For his music, Weiner has won many international competitions and awards, among them recently the 2nd Prize at the Alfred Schnittke International Composers Forum and Competition 2016, in Lviv, Ukraine, The Asian Composers League “15-Minutes-of-Fame” competition, The America Israel Cultural Foundation, and more.
According to UST Conservatory of Music Dean Assoc. Prof. Antonio P. Africa, Ph.D., the master class was attended by students from the Music Technology and Compositiondepartments.
