In 2011 the International Violin Competition Henri Marteau will commission a composition for the first time. Fazil Say will write a piece for violin solo, taking into consideration the obligatory piece of Henri Marteau - Caprice No. 10 "Intermezzo". The Composition will have its world premiere in the semifinals on May 30, 2011.

The Turkish pianist and composer Fazil Say was born in Ankara and studied piano and composition at the state Conservatory of his home city. The seventeen-year-old student was awarded a scholarship enabling him to work for five years with David Levine at the Robert Schumann Institute in Düsseldorf. From 1992 until 1995 he pursued his studies at Berlin Conservatory.

Fazil Say is equally at home as a composer. In 1991 he produced his Concerto for Piano and Violin, followed by his Second Piano Concerto ‘Silk Road’ five years later. Many other compositions, including film scores and music for Turkish and Japanese films followed. The first performance of his Violin Concerto 1001 Nights in the Harem was given in Lucerne by Patricia Kopatchinskaya in 2008.

2008 he was appointed, together with Paul Cuelho among others, Ambassador of Intercultural Dialogue.

March 2010 ends his 5 year Residency at the Konzerthaus Dortmund with a 4 days Festival and with the World Premiere of his First Symphony, „Istanbul“ Symphony. May 2010 Elbphilharmonie Hamburg will host Say as Artist-in-Residence with a 1 week Festival. He will tour worldwide, among others 3 weeks through China and Japan, France and Spain. At the Baden-Baden Festival he will play in February 2010 a Fazil Say Night with 4 piano concertos by Ravel, Mozart, Gershwin and Say, accompanied by the Mahler Chamber Orchestra.