Ziv Eitan
Biography
Ziv Eitan is a multifaceted artist whose work is considered groundbreaking. The
combination of boundless talent and innovativeness has made him into an
extraordinary musician. Eitan is a virtuoso as a percussion soloist, having gained
phenomenal mastery of the marimba and percussion instruments. His captivating
on-stage charisma can be attributed to his virtuosity, his mesmerizing playing and his
first-rate technical ability to perform any style of music. Eitan has mastered more
than 50 different kinds of percussion instruments. He is regarded as the ultimate
percussionist artist among classical composers thanks to his unique performance
capacities.
The singular musical language that Eitan has developed integrates a number of
styles: classical music, world music and electronic music. He represents a new and
original musical worldview in the "classical-artistic" sphere.
Ziv Eitan was born in Israel in 1970. He initially studied under Alon Bor, the principal
percussionist of the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra, and continued his studies at the
Rubin Academy of Music in Tel Aviv. After graduation, Eitan took additional courses
at the Royal Academy of Music in Copenhagen, where he studied under Prof.
Bennett Liluff. He also studied under the best classical soloists in New York: Jim
Price, Gordon Stout, Lee Howard Stevens, and William Marsh. During the same
period, Eitan also learned to play Latin percussion instruments under Jerry Gerbel
and a drum set under David Rich.
In 1994, while still engaged in his studies, Eitan began to appear at dance clubs in
New York, combining percussion instruments and electronic music in his
performances. Upon completion of his studies, he began to develop his own musical
language, which integrates a number of musical styles: classical, electronic and world
music.
Ziv Eitan has received numerous grants, including: financial support from the Israeli
Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports for his novel concert "A Journey into the
Rhythm" which he initiated, created and performed in 2002; grants from the Tel-Aviv
Yehoshua Rabinowitz Foundation for the Arts for original music written with the
classical composers Daniel Elshach and Tzach Drory in 2003, 2004 and 2006; scholarships from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation (for 10 years).
Ziv Eitan toured twice as a soloist with the Israel Philharmonic's Choir in Europe, and
also did a concert tour in the Far East with his performance "A Journey into the
Rhythm" (March 2005). He also appeared at a huge event marking Israel's Independence Day in Berlin (May 2006), performing "A Journey into the Rhythm."
He often appears before children and teens on behalf of the Ministry of Education
(under the cultural events allocation) and "Omanut La'am" ("Art for the Nation").
Currently, Ziv Eitan is also active in the contemporary dance scene, in addition to his
classical concerts and large public performances. Israel's best composers write
music especially for him due to his unusual performing technique. His shows are
successful both in Israel and abroad and have won wide acclaim from audiences and
critics alike.
Eitan is presently working on his third album. His first album, "A Journey into
Rhythm", is being distributed by the German company PKS Group in Europe and
North America. His second album, which came out at the beginning of 2007, is
called "No Limits."
Ziv Eitan performed with “ journey into rhythm” at the official opening event of the
Israel Festival, which was televised live on Channel 2 (2002), following an earlier
performance at the Israel Festival (1999). He has appeared at the Israel Prize ceremonies (2003), shown live on Channel 1, and at the Israeli Nobel Prize ceremony (2005).