Amr Okba
*4 May 1972
Works by Amr Okba
Biography
Amr Okba is an Egyptian Austrian composer born in 1972. He started his musical education with piano and music theory lessons at the Institute of Arabic Music and Faculty of Music Education. In 1993, Amr obtained his Bachelor degree in Management and Business Administration in Egypt. Afterwards, he joined the Cairo Conservatoire (Department of Composition and Conducting), where he graduated with distinction. In 1998, Amr obtained his Bachelor in Composition, and short after he was awarded with the Rome Prize-State Prize for Artistic Creation (Composition), which allowed him to spend one year and a half in Italy. This award, which fosters the Egyptian-Italian cultural exchange, provided him the opportunity to get acquainted with European culture. There, he studied Composition with Professor Mauro Burtolotti.
In 2003, through the Egyptian-Austrian Cultural Exchange Programme (ÖAD), Amr obtained a scholarship that allowed him to continue with his musical career. In Austria, he studied Composition at both “Universität Mozarteum Salzburg“ and “Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien“ with Reinhard Febel (Composition) and with Dieter Kaufmann (Electronic and Experimental Composition). In 2006, Amr premiered his first Opera, ”The book of going forth by day“, which was commissioned by ”Musik der Jahrhunderte“, for the ISCM opening concert in Stuttgart. This brought him international recognition, followed by a series of engagements, projects, commissions and concerts with prestigious festivals and organizations, such as ”Salzburg Biennale - 2009“, “Ars Electronica Festival – 2012”, “Bregenzer Festspiele“, “Salzburger Festspiele - 2014”, and others.
In 2008, Amr obtained the Austrian State Stipend for Composition, the Salzburg Annual Stipend for Music, in 2009, and finally the Austrian State Stipend for Composition for the second time in 2016. Amr’s music was performed by several prestigious Orchestras and Ensembles such as, Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra (Conductor, Lukas Vis – ISCM Festival 2006), Mozarteum University Orchestra (Conductor, Dennis Russell Davies), The BBC Symphony Orchestra, Cairo Symphony Orchestra, Bruckner Orchester-Linz (Conductor, Dennis Russell Davies – Ars Electronica 2012), Wiener Collage Ensemble, OENM Ensemble (Conductor, Johannes Kalitzke, Arturo Tamayo), the composer Ensemble, London Sinfonietta (Conductor: Diego Masson - Queen Elizabeth Hall), Ensemble Resonanz, Neue Vocalsoliten Stuttgart and others. Amr’s music has also been broadcasted by several European Radio stations such as SWR (Germany), ORF/Ö1 (Austria), Radio Classica (Spain), Radio Denmark and others.
In 2011 Amr was granted the Austrian citizenship.
About the music
From Egypt's ancient sands to Europe's cultured sphere, As an Egyptian/Austrian composer, I hold both worlds dear. In my musical language, I seek to intertwine, Egyptian and European sounds divine.
Not driven by novelty, but a quest to find my own, A distinct sound that resonates, a musical cornerstone. With each composition, I blend sounds, Creating a harmonious blend, a fusion of unknowns.
