Itai Kriss

Itai Kriss, a recording artist praised by Jazzwax as “one of the most exciting new flutist-composers” on the scene, commands a variety of musical genres with an eclectic style infused with Jazz, Latin and Middle Eastern sounds.

According to Downbeat Magazine, there is a “tangy, exotic flavor” to the New York musician’s style, which can be heard on his latest album, The Shark. The album features Kriss’ “soaring technique and phrasing that is both aggressive and pastoral,” which displays the versatility of his command of the flute, shifting through genres from funk and reggae to salsa and Arabic stylings with fluid ease.

Kriss is based in New York, where he is vital member of the downtown and Brooklyn Jazz scenes and the Latin Jazz and Salsa music scenes. In 2008 Kriss participated in the prestigious Betty Carter Jazz Ahead residency program for emerging performers and composers, at the Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., working closely with such jazz legends as Curtis Fuller, Nathan Davis and the late Dr. Billy Taylor. He can be heard performing, touring and recording with his own ensemble and some of the most exciting jazz and Latin musicians in town, including Dafnis Prieto, Edmar Castañeda, Yemen Blues, Gregory Hutchinson, Burning Spear, Los Hacheros, Pedrito Martinez, Andy Gonzalez, Omer Avital, Grupo Latin Vibe, Yosvany Terry, Avishai Cohen, Eric McPherson, Jason Lindner, Alon Yavnai, Bianca Wu and Aaron Goldberg, to name a few.

When not touring, Kriss performs regularly at premiere New York music venues including The Blue Note, Birdland, S.O.B.’s, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall and The Copa Cabana. Kriss is currently developing his next project, a challenging expansion of his repertoire, which will bring together sounds of the Caribbean and the Middle East.

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