Ulrike Merk (concert guitarist, composer, musicologist) was born near Stuttgart and studied guitar with Prof. M. Rennert at the Hochschule der Künste Berlin (soloist examination) and with Prof. A. Gilardino (concert maturity) at the Accademia Superiore di Musica L. Perosi in Biella/Italy. Diploma Music Teacher Studies at the Hochschule der Künste Berlin. Participation in numerous master classes with R. Aussel, A. Pierri, Th. Müller-Pering, D. Russel and others.
Parallel to her guitar training, she studied composition with L. Scharpf and Prof. Dr. H. Fladt in Berlin and attended composition courses with Leo Brouwer and Frangis Ali-Sade. She received her Dr. phil. degree with a musical-analytical thesis at the UdK-Berlin.
As a soloist and chamber musician she gives concerts at home and abroad.
In 2002 she was awarded the prize of the city of Mannheim for her wind sextet “music for six” at the XII. International competition for female composers.
Award at the IX.Torneo Internazionale di Musica in Weimar with the actress Marjam Azemoun for “Platero y yo” by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco.
2005 Publication of the Early French Songs by Fanny Hensel born Mendelssohn as first edition with piano and as arrangement by Furore-Verlag Kassel. In October 2005 premiere of the adapted version at the Konzerthaus Berlin.
2008 CD release of Early French Songs with singer Anne-Lisa Nathan on ARS (Distribution Note1).
The compositions Labyrinth I for guitar ensemble and Vier Miniaturen for guitar trio are published by Neue Musik Berlin. Publication of Sephardic Songs at Doblinger Verlag, Vienna 2013. Lectureship 2003-2015 at the University of the Arts Berlin. Her dissertation “Musik aus Al-Andalus als Erneuerungs- und Inspirationsquelle für die Spanische Moderne” – Kontextualisierungen und Exemplarische Analysen des Gitarren-Repertoires is published by Sierke-Verlag, Göttingen.