When asked as a young boy if he wanted to play the violin or the cello, young Yoni Gertner picked the cello because “cellists get to sit when they play”. However, he was easily talked into playing the violin... Eighteen years later, he was faced with a similar dilemma and this time–he chose the viola, a faithful partner ever since.

Born in Israel in 1984, Gertner studied at the Kfar Saba Conservatory, the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance and at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. Much credit for the indispensable gifts of inspiration, technique and love of music goes to his teachers and mentors through the years: Atar Arad, Hagai Shaham, Michael Gaisler, Paul Welt and Zachary Chanin. Growing up, Gertner was a member of the Jerusalem Music Center’s Young Musicians Program and served in the Israel Defense Force as an outstanding musician. He won prizes in several competitions and was a recipient of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation scholarship and the Barbara and David Jacobs fellowship at the Jacobs School of Music, where he also held a position of Associate Instructor.

As a chamber musician, Gertner collaborated with Joshua Bell, Atar Arad, Hagai Shaham, Rudolph Koelman, Mihaela Martin, Giora Feidman, Kirill Gerstein, the Rubens Quartet, the Apple Hill Quartet and many more. He took part in major music festivals in Europe and in Israel, collaborated with several ensembles specializing in new music and performed as soloist with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and other ensembles.

A passionate educator, Gertner has led masterclasses in Israel and across the USA and he is on the teaching faculty of Hassadna Conservatory in Jerusalem, the annual chamber music workshop at Brandeis University and at the Apple Hill center for chamber music. Gertner is a member of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and as such he is fortunate to regularly perform across the globe on some of the world’s most prestigious venues alongside its leading musicians.

When not on stage, Gertner is a podcast enthusiast, enjoys watching thought provoking videos and would rarely turn down an invitation to join a lively debate.