Mihael Paar
*12 April 1980
Works by Mihael Paar
Biography
Clarinetist Mihael Paar is recognised as one of the most versatile Croatian musicians of his generation – soloist, composer, arranger, producer and a teacher, who has developed complex and distinctive artistic expression, becoming one of the most prominent representatives of the Croatian clarinet school. He studied at the Music Academy in Zagreb and at Mozarteum University Salzburg earning his MA cum laude in 2006.
He is a laureate of the Solti Foundation, recipient of the City of Samobor Award, “Milka Trnina” Diploma and the Award of the Croatian Composers’ Society at “Darko Lukić Tribune” as well as a prizewinner at the international competitions in Padua, Ohrid and Barletta. His debut album Premiere has been critically acclaimed and won Croatian Discography Award Porin in 2018. While prolific as an arranger, his composition output consists mainly of works for solo instruments and small chamber groups. His Fantasy for Clarinet and Ballade for Piano have received excellent reviews and accolades both from Croatia and internationally.
Mihael Paar is the founder as well as the artistic director of Camerata Cantilly, a classical Harmonie ensemble, the only ensemble of its kind in Croatia.
About the music
Mihael Paar discovered the world of finding his own music quite early, having started to compose at the age of 13. Briefly afterwards, first public performance of his works followed. By the time he was 20 he wrote intensively, producing considerably mature pieces acclaimed both by his colleagues and the audience alike. Today Mihael focuses primarily on various types of arrangements, adaptations, reworks and transcriptions. The unique arrangements he produces redefine the works to the extent of another musical entity while preserving the very essence of the original.
His music is stylistically diverse and can be characterized as a mixture of postromantic and neoclassical furnished with idioms of jazz and popular music, while simultaneously exploring other genres. Often in a free form, he has composed about twenty solo and chamber works, with clarinet and piano being the most dedicated instruments. His works have been performed throughout Europe and all other continents.