Duo Gurfinkel

The twin brothers Daniel and Alexander Gurfinkel, two clarinettist, have already established themselves as among today’s most important artists.

Born in 1992, they began their musical education in the year 2000 and by age 12, they were invited by Zubin Mehta to appear as soloists in the annual concert for young musicians with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.

In recent seasons, Duo Gurfinkel were re-engaged with Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic and performed abroad with the Zagreb Philharmonic, Belgrade Philharmonic, Vienna Tonkünstler Orchestra, and in Kiev as well as on tour in France with the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire under Nader Abbassi and with the Moscow Virtuosi and the Israel Symphony Orchestra Rishon LeZion.

In March 2013, the duo won the 3rd prize at the 18th International Chamber Music Competition in Illzach, France. In the same year the duo performed at Gewandhaus, Leipzig (with Leipziger Symphony Orchester), Bolshoi Hall, Moscow (with Heilbronn Chamber Orchestra), Rome and Vatikan.

During 2014, they have performed in many concerts across Europe, including Internationales Musik Festival Kreuth, Pietrasanta International Music Festival and concerts with Berliner Camerata in Germany.

Duo Gurfinkel’s past engagements have included performances in Switzerland (Mendelssohn concerto) at the “Moscow Meets Friends” festival, with the Moscow Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra under Vladimir Spivakov, in Los Angeles under the auspices of Zubin Mehta, and with Yuri Bashmet and the Moscow Soloists at the Tchaikovsky Hall, in Ekaterinburg, and the Capella Istopolitana at the Rheingau Festival. They have appeared as well across the USA (Detroit, New York, and Chicago) as well as in Hong Kong, Slovenia, Italy, Russia, Germany, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, Croatia, Austria, and South Africa.

Daniel and Alexander Gurfinkel preserve a rich family tradition of three generations. Their grandfather Arkady Gurfinkel was a well-known clarinet player, teacher, and arranger, while their father, Michael Gurfinkel, is among the leading clarinet players in Israel as the principal of the Israel Symphony Orchestra and Israeli Opera as well as in chamber music both in Israel and abroad.

Among forthcoming engagements of Duo Gurfinkel there are a series of concerts in Germany with Brandenburger Symphoniker Orchestra, as well as concerts across Russia with La Primavera String Orchestra and Voronezh Academic Symphonic Orchestra, and Estonia (with Glasperlenspiel Sinfonietta). For more information, see the Concerts page.