Biography
Composer Gilad Hochman is widely considered a rising talent in the international classical music scene and one of Israel's most prominent composers. His music was described as “written with a true artist’s hand” (Ora Binur, Ma’ariv), “the highpoint of an exciting performance” (Mlacolm Miller, Tempo Magazine), “sheds new light on customary expressions in music” (Noam Ben-Ze’ev, Ha’aretz) and as “original, fascinating, unusual and colorful” (Israeli Prime Minister Award committee 2007). He was also defined as “one of Israel’s most important composers” in an article concerning “composer Gilad Hochman’s meteoric career” (Christopher Nielsen, Deutschland Magazine). Hochman's oeuvre includes a wide range of compositions for solo instruments, chamber music, choirs and orchestras which reflects a verity of aesthetic approaches. His music is, on the one hand, a continuation of classical music’s development, yet on the other hand he puts a great emphasis on themes relating to the Jewish tradition and his Israeli origin, while creating his own contemporary musical language – personal, lyrical and expressive.
Gilad Hochman was born in 1982 in Herzeli’ya, Israel to an Odessa native father and a Paris native mother. He currently divides his time between Berlin, Germany and his native land. Amongst his many achievements and honors, at the age of 24 Hochman became the youngest composer to be awarded the prestigious Israeli Prime Minister Award (2007) for his artistic work. At age 22 he was the youngest to be appointed composer in residence by one of Israel’s leading orchestras, Ra’anana Symphonette. He founded and artistically directed the Arco String Ensemble and the New Sounds concert series of the Israel Composers’ League and in 2007 won a merit certificate from his home town, Ra'anana. Hochman began his musical life at the age of 6, studying the piano. He started composing at the age of 9 and at 18 graduated from the Herzeli'ya Music Conservatory, where he studied under composer Ilya Heifets and pianist Mark Shaviner. In 2007 Hochman graduated with honors from the Buchman-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University, studying under composer Gil Shohat, and by then his music was often performed at Israel’s best known venues, as well as in the US and Europe.
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Gilad Hochman’s diverse body of works includes Whom My Soul Loveth for solo cello and mixed choir (2009). The piece explores feeling of human yearning and is based upon a single verse from the biblical Solomon's Song of Songs (3:1). In this work Hochman defines, in an original fashion, the place of the individual cello vis-à-vis the choir surrounding it, creating a fascinating dialogue that shifts between a whispered prayer and dramatic, powerfully expressive climaxes. The uniqueness of this work does not derive solely from the unconventional ensemble, but more significantly from Hochman’s sensitive treatment of the melodic phrases, the gradual construction of the dramatic progression and the way in which the distinctive artistic goal is reached in the end. Another work, A Voice in the Wilderness for chamber orchestra (2006) was composed after a poem written by Israeli author Nava Semel. The piece creates musically the enchanted and mysterious desert landscape through which the poem’s protagonists move. Enriching its unique orchestration, the piece borrows from the world of Mediterranean sounds, leading the listener into a space replete with associations. Hochman’s virtuosity as a composer is evident in the many varied faces he accords the orchestra, and the way in which he expresses through it reach spectrum of moods. Among Hochman’s dozens of works that have gained acclaim – Monologue for solo saxophone (2003), Voice for violin and large ensemble (2004), Slightly Disturbed – monodrama for violin, clarinet and cello (2006), and On the Verge of an Abyss for mixed a-cappella choir (2008).
Hochman’s music is often commissioned and performed by leading musicians and music institutes worldwide. It was played, among others, by Ensemble Modern – Frankfurt, Oriol Ensemble, Synergy Ensemble, Musica Nova Ensemble, Tel Aviv Soloists Ensemble and the Israel Chamber Orchestra. Hochman’s Music was also performed at Heidelberg Biennale for New Music, Aachen International Choir Biennale, Israel Music Fest, in dozens of different concerts and in Music Academies like Sibelius (Helsinki), UDK (Berlin), Guildhall (London), Julliard (New York), Rubin (Jerusalem) and many more. Hochman’s work is supported by funds such as The America-Israel Cultural Foundation, Yehoshua Rabinovich Arts Foundation, Anni-Eisler-Lehmann Foundation, Ronen Arts Fund, Zfunot Tarbut Arts Foundation and private culture funds.
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.