Dror Binder

Dror Binder is an award-winning composer from the Galilee of Israel, currently based in Vienna, Austria. His music stands out for its deep awareness of its influences, often challenging canonica conceptions or negotiating with the collective memory.

Binder has collaborated with a wide range of notable ensembles, including Multilatérale (France), Wiener Volksoper (Vienna), the Kebyart Quartet (Basel), Meitar Ensemble (Tel-Aviv), the Kandinsky Quartett (Vienna), Ensemble Reconsil (Vienna), the Israel Chamber Orchestra, the Sonus Cordis Quartet (Budapest), the Argo Kollektiv (Vienna), and the Tel Aviv Saxophone Quartet, and many more.

His compositions have been showcased at leading venues and festivals worldwide, such as Wien Modern Festival (Vienna), CEME Festival (Tel Aviv), UNICUM Festival (Ljubljana), ARCo Festival (Salzburg), the Wiener Konzerthaus, and the Tel Aviv Museum of Art.

In recognition of his work, Binder has received numerous honors, including subsidies from the Austrian Ministry of Culture and the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Award for his entire oeuvre, the Centcelles Composition Award for chamber music, the Israeli Composers’ League Klon Prize for young composers, the Israel Conservatory of Music Composition Competition Prize, as well as full fellowships and merit grants from the Aspen Music Festival and the America-Israel Cultural Foundation.

Binder studied at the Jerusalem Academy of Music, the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, and the Music University of Vienna (mdw), under the guidance of distinguished mentors including Judit Varga, Detlev Müller-Siemens, Gyula Fekete, Ayal Adler, and Michael Wolpe.

Having grown up in a small village in the Galilee, Binder’s early experiences encompassed everything from Jewish liturgical music and classical traditions to jazz, rock, and contemporary genres. These eclectic influences converge in his compositions, resulting in a unique persona collage of musical expression.