Ofer Ben-Amots


Ofer Ben-Amots is an Israeli-American composer and teacher of music composition and theory at Colorado College. His music is inspired by Jewish folklore of Eastern-European Yiddish and Judeo-Spanish Ladino traditions. The interweaving of folk elements with contemporary textures creates the dynamic tension that permeates and defines Ben-Amots' musical language.
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Biography

Born in Haifa, Israel, Ofer Ben-Amots gave his first piano concert at age nine and at age sixteen was awarded first prize in the Chet Piano Competition. Ben-Amots would attend the Rubin Academy of Music at Tel Aviv University from 1978 to 1979, where he pursued undergraduate studies in composition and theory with Josef Dorfman, piano with Alexander Volkov, and percussion with Gideon Steiner. Soon after, Ben-Amots was invited to study at the Conservatoire de Musique in Geneva, Switzerland. There he studied composition with Pierre Wismer, and privately with Alberto Ginastera. In 1980, Ben-Amots would begin attending Hochschule für Musik in Detmold, Germany, where he would receive degrees in composition, music theory, and piano upon his graduation in 1986. Following his arrival in the United States in 1987, Ben-Amots studied at the University of Pennsylvania. During his time at Penn, he studied composition under George Crumb and Richard Wernick. He also studied music theory under Leonard B. Meyer. In 1989, Ben-Amots received acclaim by winning First Prize at the Kavannagh Composers Competition for his piece Fanfare. He continued to achieve recognition in 1991, receiving several awards: First Prize at the 1991 Kobe International Competition for Flute Composition in Japan for Avis Urbanus, which features amplified flute ; First Place and Gold Certification at the Roodepoort International Competition in South Africa for Three Love Songs for mixed choir; Finalist in the International Contest “Cuidad Ibagué” in Colombia for Psalm 42. That same year, he was awarded a Creative Artists Fellowship from the Center for Jewish Culture and Creativity and served as a Mishkenot Scholar-in-Residence in Jerusalem. Ben-Amots earned his Ph.D. in Music Composition in May 1993, after completing his M.A. at Penn in December 1990.
Ofer Ben-Amots was the winner of the 1994 Vienna International Competition for Composers with his comic opera, Fool's Paradise (opera). The chamber opera is based on a short story by Isaac Bashevis Singer. Fool's Paradise was premiered in Vienna and subsequently became part of the 1994/95 season of Opernhaus Zürich.
In 1999, Ben-Amots was awarded the Aaron Copland Award and the Music Composition Artist Fellowship by the Colorado Council on the Arts, and would receive a Fulbright Fellowship in 2000, which permitted him to pursue compositional studies at the University of Hradec Králové in the Czech Republic. In 2001, he was selected for the “Mishkan Omanim” Artist Residency in Herzliya, Israel, and in 2003, Ben-Amots was the recipient Honorary Medal from the University of Hradec Králové. The next year, Ben-Amots won First Prize at Festiladino, an international Judeo-Spanish song competition held during the Israel Festival. His opera "The Dybbuk" received the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture Award in 2007. The following year, he was honored with the Colorado State Music Teachers Association Commissioned Composer Award. In 2009, he received a Fulbright Senior Fellowship, returning to the University of Hradec Králové for advanced research. His orchestral work earned 2nd Place in The American Prize National Composers Contest in 2013. He later won First Prize at the Smareglia International Composition Competition in Udine, Italy, in 2015. In 2019, Ben-Amots won First Prize at the SMP Press Composition Competition with The Klezmer Concerto'','' and most recently received two Silver Medals for the Global Music Awards for Music Without Borders in 2023.
Ofer Ben-Amots has been a faculty member of the Music Department at Colorado College since 1994. He was appointed Professor of Music in 2008 and has served as a Professor of music composition and theory. Over the years, he has held several distinguished professorships, including:
  • John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Distinguished Chair
  • Crown Family Professor for Innovation in the Arts
  • Christine S. Johnson Professor in Music
Prior to his tenure at Colorado College, Ben-Amots served as a lecturer at University of the Arts, University of Pennsylvania, and Rutgers University.
Ben-Amots is a co-founder and the director of the International Summer Academy of Music. In addition, he is a member of the Advisory Board and the Editorial Board of the Milken Archive of American-Jewish Music and is a Jerusalem Fellow of the Center for Jewish Culture and Creativity. In 1997, he became the Center for Jewish Culture and Creativity's Artistic Director for North America.
Ben-Amots' music has been published by Kallisti Music Press, Muramatsu Inc., Dorn, Tara Publications, and the Composer's Own Press. It can be heard on Naxos Records, Vantage, Plæne, Stylton, and Music Sources recording labels.
In 2023, the National Library of Israel created the Ben-Amots Archive, a collection spanning 40 years of creative activities. The Archive comprises over 1300 documents, including scores and manuscripts, articles, letter, reviews, video, audio recordings, and more. It is stored at the National Library in Jerusalem.

Discography

Transcontinental: Music Without Borders Four Song Cycles by Ofer Ben-Amots Montage Music Tango for the Road this side up Return Te Laudamus Celestial Dialogues Psalm 81 Armenian Suite Kaddish’ Lament The ''Voice of America''

Compositions

Stage music

Pierrot, ballet Suite for symphony orchestra. 1981 Story Number 2, for small orchestra and Narrator Text written by Eugène Ionesco.1983/88 Fool's Paradise, opera buffa in five scenes. Based on a story by Isaac Bashevis Singer. 1993-94 The Dybbuk: Between Two Worlds, multimedia chamber opera in three acts. 2007

Voice and orchestra

Shirat Israel, cantata for mezzo-soprano and orchestra. Hebrew text by Ch. N. Bialik. 1978 The Joyce Cycle, for middle voice and symphony orchestra Lyrics written by James Joyce. 1984-85 Celestial Dialogues, for voice, clarinet and string orchestra. 1994 The Dybbuk Suite, for chamber symphony and a solo vocalist. 2002 Kantes del Verdgel de Granadas , a Judeo-Spanish cycle for chamber symphony and a mezzo-soprano. 2004/05

Orchestra music

Fanfare for Orchestra, for symphony orchestra, Kavannagh Prize Awarded. 1988 Variations on a French Children's Song, for symphony orchestra. 1992 Mt. Fuji Ceremonial Fanfare, for symphonic band. 1996 The Klezmer Concerto, for clarinet solo, string orchestra, harp and percussion. 2006 Concertino - From Darkness to Light, for clarinet, mandolin, and orchestra. 2012 Enchanted Landscape - for symphony orchestra. Commissioned by the Colorado Springs Philharmonic Orchestra, 2016

Symphonic / Brass band music

  • Mt. Fuji Ceremonial Fanfare, for symphonic band. 1996 The Maccabiah Fanfare, for brass ensemble, timpani, and percussion. 2010 The Queen City Fanfare, for brass choir. 2002

Choir and instruments

Al Naharot Bavel, four part canon for mixed choir, Piano and Percussion Text Psalm 137. 1988 Psalm 81, for mixed choir and Metal Percussion. Text: Psalm 81. 1989 Hashkivenu, for SATB Chorus, organ and mixed percussion. 1989/90 Three Love Songs, for Mixed Choir and Piano Accompaniment. 1991 Mizmor – Ten Degrees of Praise, for soprano solo, clarinet, men's choir, and percussion. 2003 The Heart and the Fountain, for SATB Chorus or for Female chorus with misc. percussion. 2006 A Fool's Errand, for 8-Part mixed chorus, piano and percussion Lyrics written by Süsskind von Trimberg 1996, Rev. 2008 Hanukkah Songs, for Children’s Choir with piano accompaniment

Choir a cappella

Hineh Al Heharim, four to eight part canon for mixed choir a cappella. Text: Nachum 2, 1-3. 1987 Ma Tishtochachi Nafshi, - for mixed chorus. Text: Psalm 42. 1987/88 Yeeheyu Le'ratzon, for SATB Chorus. Text out of the Amidah prayer. 1989/90 Five Hassidic Songs, for SATB Chorus or Female chorus. Arrangements of traditional Hassidic songs with or without piano accompaniment. 1999/2000 Yesusum, Yesusum, an arrangement for SATB Chorus, or SSAA Chorus. 2011 Eliyahu Hanavi – an arrangement for SATB Chorus, or 3-part Men’s Chorus. 2023

Vocal chamber music

The Joyce Cycle, for middle voice and symphony orchestra Lyrics written by James Joyce. 1984-85 Shtetl Songs, for voice and piano 1985/86 Psalm 23, for Soprano, Clarinet and Percussion. 1990 Kinah, for piano and high-voice 1998 Kantes del Verdgel de Granadas , for voice and piano. Based on Judeo-Spanish songs. 2004 Kantigas Ulvidadas, for voice and piano. 2006 The Dybbuk Song Cycle, for voice and piano. Based on the opera. 2008 The Sweet Pain of Love, for violin and voice, to a poem by Nathan Zach. 2008 Re'i Adama for voice & Piano. Hebrew Text by Shaul Tchernichovsky. 2025

Instrumental chamber music

Ceremonial Music, for saxophone, trumpet and piano. 1982 Hashkivenu, for string quartet. 1982 Sonata, for cello and piano. 1982 Five Ancient Dances, for clarinet and piano. 1983 Midnight Dance, for violin and piano. 1996 Cantillations, for clarinet and cello 1997 Prophetic Tropes, for trombone and extended piano. 1989/99 Elemental Drums, Music for Dance. for mixed wind ensemble, 3 percussionists, and guitar. 1997 The Queen City Fanfare, for trumpet and organ 2002 The Queen City Fanfare, an additional version for oboe, piano, and percussion. 2002 The Odessa Trio for violin, cello and piano. 2008-2014 The Inauguration Fanfare for two trumpets, organ, and percussion. 2012 From Darkness to Light, A trio for clarinet mandolin, and piano. 2013 The Curved Road for fl., cl., bn., vln., vla., vlc., and pno. 2015 Bulgariana, for violin and piano. 2016 Montage Music, for clarinet violin, cello, and piano. 2017 Nigun and Hora, for cello and piano. 2018 Echoes of Wilderness, for wind quintet and percussion. 2022 Jubilation: The Inaugural Fanfare, for trumpet, baritone saxophone, and piano. 2022 ColoraDuo, Canzonetta for two clarinets. 2023 Music for Brass Trio, for trumpet, Fr. horn, and trombone. 2024

Piano and organ solo

Toccata 1978Scherzo 1978Etude in C 1984Praeludium and Fuga in C 1984Piano Pieces for Children 1983/89Sonatina 1984
  • :– Praeludium
  • :– Midnight Dance
  • :– Mosquito
  • :– TambourineHaunted Toccata 1990Untitled No. 1 1990Akëda, 2000 The Organ Book of Psalms, for organ solo 1998/2008
  • :– Mystical Procession 1999
  • :– Pastoral Invocation 1998
  • :– The Q Anthem 1999
  • :– Teru'ah 2008 Echi di Pace e Libertá – for trumpet solo. 2018 To the Mountaintop, for piano solo. 2020 La Serena, for piano solo. 2020 The Butterfly Effect, for piano solo. 2021 The Little Klezmer Book, for piano solo, 18 Jewish and Hebrew easy arrangements for young pianists.Sippur, for piano solo. 2024 The Leprechaun’s Dance, for piano solo. 2024 Echi di Pace e Libertá version for Fr. horn solo. 2024
  • :

Other solo instruments

Miniatures et Collage, for flute. 1977 Avis Urbanus, for amplified flute. 1990 I, Jerusalem..., for any size clarinet solo. 1991 A Letter to Avigdor, for violin solo. Commissioned by Avigdor Zamir. 1990/99 The Angel's Lament, for clarinet solo. Commissioned by Guido Arbonelli. 1999 The Red Curtain Dance, for oboe or clarinet solo. 2003

Orchestral arrangements

Armenian Suite, by Richard Yardumian. A reduction of the original score, for small symphonic orchestra. 1992Massada, - Opera in three acts by Fredrick Kaufman. A piano reduction of the original score. 1990

Related Media

  • The Klezmer Concerto, Pastoral Doyna (1st Movement) composed by Ofer Ben Amots. Performed by the Herzliya Chamber Orchestra. Israeli Premiere 2006.
  • Akeda by Ofer Ben Amots (Performed by Susan Grace)
  • Butterfly Effect by Ofer Ben-Amots
  • The Jubilation Fanfare by Ofer Ben-Amots
  • Two Shtetl Songs by Ofer Ben-Amots (Performed by Ido Ariel and Iris Malkin)
  • Celestial Dialogues by Ofer Ben-Amots
  • Der Dibbuk Act 1 by Ofer Ben-Amots
  • Der Dibbuk Act 2 by Ofer Ben-Amots
  • Ofer Ben-Amots - The Odessa Trio
  • Ofer Ben-Amots Spotlight - Milken Archive