Matan Porat improvises to film hits from years ago

Praised by the New York Times for "the great sound and the breath of expression", the pianist and composer Matan Porat has performed in excellent venues, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall, Wigmore Hall in London, Auditorium du Louvre and Salle Gaveau in Paris and Alte Oper in Frankfurt, with orchestras such as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Helsinki Philharmonic and the Hong Kong Sinfonietta.

As an avid chamber musician, Matan Porat has participated in many renowned festivals, including Marlboro, Lockenhaus, Ravinia, Verbier, Hohenems, Musikfest Berlin and Rheingau Festivals. His chamber performances include collaborations with the Artemis Quartet, Quatuor Ysaÿe, Cuarteto Casals, Pacifica, Modigliani, Schumann and the Jerusalem Quartet.

Born in Tel Awiw, Matan Porat studied with Emanuel Krasowski, Maria João Pires and Murray Perahia, earning a master's degree from the Juilliard School. His composition teachers were Ruben Seroussi and George Benjamin.

He is known for his unique, narrative-based programming. Porat's diverse repertoire includes complete sonatas and partitas by Bach and Schubert, Ives' Concorda Sonata and Ligeti's Concerto. His debut CD for Mirare, "Variations on a Scarlatti" – featuring pieces from Couperin to Boulez that refer to K. 32 Scarlatti's Sonata – has been hailed as "a fantastic album to be heard over and over again" ("Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung") .

His passion for the performing arts prompted him to collaborate with the legendary director Peter Brook. The cooperation affected in a tour during which he was giving the concerts with the production of Mozart's Magic Flute for solo piano and with seven vocalists.

Porat also improvises live music for silent films, recognized by Alex Ross of New York as "an astonishing feat of creative musicality."

Buster Keaton concert by Matan Porat on Wednesday, June 9th at 7:00 PM in the Philharmonic chamber hall. Tickets at the price of PLN 25-35 can be purchased via the website filharmonia.szczecin.pl and at the Philharmonic ticket office.