BIOGRAPHY

Sorin was born on May 7, 1985, to a family of accomplished musicians – his grandfather was a renowned violinist and conductor for the Romanian National Folkloric Ensemble, a position he held for decades, and his father is a professional jazz saxophonist. Sorin grew up surrounded by the sound of classical and contemporary music.

At the age of seven, and continuing in his family’s tradition, he studied multiple instruments beginning with the violin and the clarinet. At the young age of thirteen he won the National Music Olympics, shortly after being featured as a soloist with the Romanian Philharmonic Orchestra “Mihail Jora.” In 2009, he graduated from the George Enescu University of Arts with a degree in classical clarinet.

It was during those university years when he started to experiment with, and then fell completely in love with jazz. Beginning as an autodidact, his musical influences shifted to the works of Dizzy Gillespie, Keith Jarret, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Oscar Peterson, and Chick Corea. Sorin found the piano as the sublime instrument to reflect his innermost feelings as a composer and orchestrator. He perfected his technical virtuosity in 2011 by earning a master’s in music degree in Piano Jazz from the Romanian National University of Music.

Sorin’s style is a surprising fusion of jazz, Latin, pop, and classical music, which erupts into a colorful and fascinating repertoire. His talent, revealed by his ability to find new dimensions to existing jazz standards and to create original compositions, gained him instant recognition on the jazz scene.

AWARDS GRANTED

As a fresh Master’s Degree graduate, starting in 2011, his ascension on the jazz scene is reflected through a series of awards he won:

2020 Yamaha Artist

2020 Grand Prize

Euroradio International Jazz Competition, Bucharest, Romania

2019 Honorary Citizen BACAU - ROMANIA

Awarded the City Key for Outstanding National and International Performance

2018 Best Band of the Year Award

Jazz Awards Gala, Muzza Jazz Foundation, Bucharest, Romania Best Band of the Year Award – “Groove Garden” Jazz-Funk Project

2017 Best Jazz Musician Award

Romanian Composer and Musicians Society, Bucharest, Romania

2017 Outstanding International Career AWARD

Jazz Awards Gala, Muzza Foundation, Bucharest, Romania Award for Outstanding International Career – Awarded by the Romanian Cultural Institute

2015 Grand Prize

Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition; Jacksonville, Florida, United States

2015 Best Musician of the Year

Jazz Awards Gala, Muzza Foundation, Bucharest, Romania

2015 Nominee for the Public Diplomacy Award

Nominee for the Public Diplomacy Award and Most Important People of Our Time (Oamenii Timpului), Bucharest, Romania

2014 Special Prize of the Jury

Montreux Jazz Piano Competition, Montreux, Switzerland

2014 Best Jazz Musician of the Year

Romanian Composers and Musicians Society, Bucharest, Romania

2014 Grand Prize

International Jazz Competition – Piano Solo, Vilnius, Lithuania

2014 United States Finalist

2014 International Jazz Competition “Made in NYC”, New York City

2014 United Kingdom Finalist

International Jazz Competition – Piano Solo, Nottingham

2013 Special Prize of the Jury

”Golden Jazz Trophy” International Jazz Competition, Lille, France

2013 Best Band Award

International Jazz Competition Johnny Raducanu, Braila, Romania

2013 Grand Prize

International Jazz Competition, Monaco

2012 Special Prize of the Jury

International Jazz Competition, Hoeillart, Belgium

2011 Grand Prize for Best Solo Performance

International Jazz Competition, Getxo, Spain

2011 Grand Prize

Europafest International Jazz Competition, Bucharest, Romania

2011 Special Prize of the Jury for Outstanding International Performance

Jazz Awards Gala., Bucharest, Romania

2010 Grand Prize

International Jazz Competition, Sibiu, Romania

2010 Confirmation of the Year Award

Jazz Awards Gala, Bucharest, Romania

2010 BEST BAND AWARD

International Jazz Competition, Târgu Mures, Romania

2009 Best New Artist Award

Jazz Awards Gala, Bucharest, Romania

2009 Grand Prize

International Jazz Competition for University Students, Târgu Mures, Romania

Sorin proved to be a promising young musician from the beginning of his performing career. He won the Grand Prize at the 2009 International Jazz Competition for University Students, in Târgu Mures, Romania and the Grand Prize at the 2010 International Jazz Competition, in Sibiu, both while still a student. Starting in 2011, he won top place at several renowned international jazz competitions: Getxo, Spain - Best Solo Performance, Best Band Performance, and Prize of the Public; Monaco - Grand Prize and Prize of the Public (2013); Lille, France - Special Prize of the Jury and Golden Jazz Trophy (2014); Jacksonville, Florida – Grand Prize (2015), just to count a few.

He was also the 2015 Nominee for the Public Diplomacy Award and Most Important People of Our Time (Oamenii Timpului), both in his home country of Romania, and won the Grand Prize in the Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition which took place in Florida, United States.

Sorin appeared in numerous festivals, both nationally and internationally, as a solo performer or with his Trio. Notable festivals include Jacksonville Jazz Festival, Florida, United States, Izmir Jazz Festival, Turkey, Montreux Jazz Festival, Getxo Jazz Festival, Sibiu Jazz Festival, Jazz Napocensis, Cluj Napoca, Bucharest Jazz Festival, Jazz Compass, Terra Festival, Istanbul, Turkey, Jazz Hoeillart, Belgium, and Enter Music Festival, Poland. He had the chance to share the stage with renowned artists such as Kenny Garett, Lee Ritenour, Branford Marsalis, Lee Konitz, Chick Corea, Joey Alexander, Roy Hargrove, Chris Potter, Chucho Valdes, Sonny Emory, Jeff Ballard, Dave Grusin, Ravi Coltrane, and Leszek Mozdzer.

In the summer of 2015, Sorin released his first album, entitled Endurance, a work centered on the power of love and family. The project itself is an attestation to his progression as an artist and to his creative capabilities. The inspiration behind the album came to life with Sorin composing the song Roxane, which is dedicated to his younger sister. His sister, who started battling cancer in 2011, became Sorin’s creative muse. It was from the pain, suffering, and turmoil that arose from those events, that the song was born. Roxane encompasses all those emotions which are masterfully reflected in the melody. With influences from the Latin, flamenco, and classical music styles combined with jazz, each song on Endurance reaches new harmonic and rhythmic depths that leave a lasting impression with the audience.

In October 2016, Sorin took his creativity a step further and premiered his jazz suite symphony at the famous Kings Place in London, United Kingdom, a commission that was funded by the Rimbaud and Verlaine foundation and was very well received by the public and jazz critics. With a new CD in the works and numerous projects ranging from jazz funk, collaborations with philharmonic orchestras, and writing music for film, Sorin continues to expand his creative horizons and constantly bring fresh and exciting material to his audience. In 2020, he had the honor to become a Yamaha Artist, a further testament to his talent. As an artist underwritten by Yamaha Europe and the Romanian Cultural Institute, Sorin can be found performing in jazz clubs both in his country of Romania, as well as around the world.

“ Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent. ”

- VICTOR HUGO -