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Elana Sasson
Vocalist and composer creating music inspired by traditional mediteranean folk and contemporary jazz
About Me
Elana Sasson is a vocalist, composer, and bandleader creating music at the intersection of Kurdish and
Persian traditions, contemporary jazz, and Mediterranean folkloric influences. She explores themes of identity
and duality: weaving emotive modal melodies, intricate harmonic textures, and diverse instrumentation to
dialogue between tradition and modernity.
Shaped by years of training with master musicians from Iran and Kurdistan and studies at the Berklee College
of Music in Valencia, Elana’s clear voice reflects a fusion of rich tradition and personal expression. Her music
has been celebrated with nods from global press such as Songlines Magazine, who described her voice as
“an arrestingly beautiful focus” and gave a 4 star review to the album ‘Golestan’. Her new album, ’In
Between’ released with PKMusik in April 2025 and received shining reviews from press, including a 4 star
review from Songlines.
She has graced global stages at prestigious venues such as Fundación Juan March (Madrid, Spain), Palau de
Les Arts Reina Sofia (Valencia, Spain), Stone Nest (London, UK), Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (San
Francisco, California), and Fabrica Research Centre (Treviso, Italy). Elana has been featured in several
international festivals such as UPV Jazz Festival, Fronteras Festival, and Festival dels Horts.
Elana’s voice can be heard on Growing Songs, a 2024 album produced by esteemed Iranian vocalist Mahsa
Vahdat, and her music was featured in the 2023 Venice Biennale-premiered film Tatami. She has
collaborated with renowned musicians such as Matthieu Saglio, Mahsa Vahdat, Perico Sambeat, and Hadar
Noiberg.
Elana holds a Master of Music in Contemporary Performance and Production from Berklee College of Music in
Valencia and a BA in Design Media Arts from UCLA. She was a resident at Fabrica Research Centre in 2019
and is a member of the Iranian Female Composers Association (IFCA).
