The Master Classes participants of sufficient accomplishment and experience to rise to the occasion, are invited to prepare a complete concerto (except the concertos by Bach and Haydn) for the competition, which will take place during the course. The competition jury will consist of the course faculty, representatives of the Orchestra, and guest musicians invited to judge the event.

Those wishing to take part in the Concerto Competition will so indicate in the application form. In addition, they are required to present a letter from their primary teacher, testifying to their professional ability to perform in a full-fledged orchestral concert.

We are again offering this special course, which was launched in 2005. Led by Sivan Silver & Gil Garburg and Alexander Tamir from Israel, the Piano-Duo course will take place within the framework of the regular Master Classes. This course is intended for existing ensembles only. Please note that the Duo Course will be held only if the minimum required number of ensembles is accepted.

Mindful of the significance of chamber music in pianist’s professional life, a Chamber Music Workshop is offered to the Master Classes participants. This year, the focus is on sonatas for violin and piano. The faculty violinist Vera Vaidman, in true spirit of collaborative music-making, will take an active part in building performances, sharing her experience, knowledge and insight in the process. Successful projects may be presented in Master Classes public concerts.

As the number of places in the Workshop is limited, only those genuinely interested in the subject and with previous experience in studying and performing chamber music should apply.

If you intend to join the Chamber Music Workshop, please indicate so in the application, specifying which sonata (one) you wish to work on. The piano part should be ready for rehearsing from day one of the course.

Whether on the concert stage or in parlor music making, the voice and the piano are arguably the closest allies and collaborators. Think of the glorious songs by Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Wolf, Fauré, Tchaikovsky, Ravel, Mahler, Strauss, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich…

Some of today’s and yesterday’s greatest pianists are/were astounding collaborators to singers – Barenboim, Brendel, Horowitz (listen to his live recording with Fischer-Dieskau of the Schumann Dichterliebe), Uchida, Schiff, not to speak of the incomparable Gerald Moore.

Furthermore – and most significantly – the singer’s handling of a musical line, their breathing and articulation constitute an ideal for every pianist to strive towards.

This year's workshop, led by Professor Jonathan Zak, will focus on the great song cycles by Schubert, Die Schöne Müllerin and Die Winterreise.

Master Classes students interested in participating are requested to indicate so in their applications and should prepare from a repertoire to be advised.

Born in Jerusalem, he studied the cello and double-bass at the Tel Aviv University Rubin Academy of Music and earned a doctorate in conducting from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, USA. He later studied with Sergiu Celibidache. A professor of composition at Bar Ilan University, Israel, he lives with his wife and eight children in Jerusalem. His compositions include works for orchestra, chamber music, as well theater music and electro-acoustic works. A recent work ViolAlive was premiered in Germany by Kim Kashkashian and the Munich Chamber Orchestra. One of the most recent pieces, Quartet for Bruno Schulz for violin, clarinet, cello and piano, was commissioned and premiered by the Jerusalem International Chamber Music Festival in September 2008.

His Recordings are being released on ECM label. The first CD is already available and contains the Piano Quintet and the Odradek Quartet as well as Postlude for piano in two different interpretations.

In his work, the composer rejects abstract theoretical models or sets of rules. Often regarded as Mahler's successor, his music also conducts inner dialogues with György Kurtág, Witold Lutoslawski, and Giya Kancheli. Lewensohn's music is also influenced by his literary interests, especially writings of Samuel Beckett, Franz Kafka, and Bruno Schulz.

The composer sees the purpose of his compositions in reconsideration of the past and its interpretation. For all its ties to the past and often melancholic, introvert character, his music "is not looking back, but rather creates new perspectives through engaging, disengaging, and reengaging with our collective and personal musical childhood. Thus something new emerges – a future."