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Rafi Malkiel

About Me

Composer, trombonist and euphonium player Rafi Malkiel, originally from Jerusalem, has shared his talent with audiences around the world, playing Jazz & Latin music in his unique and captivating style. Leading his quintet, Malkiel plays original compositions, as well as unique arrangements fusing Jazz and Latin-American standards with Afro-Caribbean rhythms. The Rafi Malkiel Quintet performs extensively in venues such as the 92 Street Y, The Corcoran Gallery of Arts in Washington, D.C. and The Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Small's and more. Rafi was cited in the Recommended Jazz Trombonists list in PBS’ website Jazz, a film by Ken Burns, as well as in The Young Guns of Jazz, trumpeting the best of a new generation, by Chip Deffaa in the New York Post, July 2001.

Rafi Malkiel's debut solo album titled My Island will be released in March 2007. The Album also features some of the best Jazz and Latin musicians in New York City, including legendary bassist Andy Gonzalez, percussionist Anthony Carrillo, tuba player Howard Johnson, clarinetist Anat Cohen and many more.

Rafi plays with Willie Colon, Jason Lindner’s Big Band and with Grammy-nominated Colombian singer Toto La Momposina, and he participated in Reggie Workman’s John Coltrane Africa Brass Live project. He has played in New York City in venues such as Madison Square Garden, Radio City, Town Hall, Symphony Space, the Carlyle Hotel with Bobby Short, Sweet Basil, and SOB’s. Rafi has performed in the Broadway shows The Color Purple and in the Tony-award winning musical Urinetown. He has performed in numerous festivals around the world such as the JVC Jazz Festival, Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Summer Stage, WOMAD festivals in Greece, New Zealand, and Australia, the Sydney Festival in Australia, and the Red Sea International Jazz Festival in Israel. Malkiel has recorded over forty Jazz, Latin, and Rock albums with notable artists such as Ray Anderson, Salsa Picante, Toto La Momposina, Loren Schoenberg and Folklore Urbano. He is also featured on several movie and TV theme songs in Israel including “Souvenirs”, winner of the Israeli Oscar for best documentary in 2006.

Rafi also composes for other groups, he wrote an original score for the music and dance collaboration at the Construction Company in NYC.