Carnegie Hall

Grammy-nominated clarinetist and saxophonist Anat Cohen has won acclaim worldwide with her expressive virtuosity and delightful stage presence. She has been named Clarinetist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association every year since 2007, and was named a Rising Star and Jazz Artist of the Year in DownBeat; in 2009, ASCAP awarded her a Wall of Fame prize for composition and musicianship.

Born in Tel Aviv, Israel, Ms. Cohen attended the Tel Aviv School for the Arts, the Thelma Yellin High School of the Arts, and the Jaffa Conservatory of Music. She began clarinet studies at age 12 and played jazz for the first time in the Jaffa Conservatory’s Dixieland band. At 16, she joined the school’s big band and learned to play the tenor saxophone, which she also played in the Israeli Air Force band during her mandatory military service. After attending the Berklee College of Music, Ms. Cohen spent a decade touring with Sherrie Maricle’s all-woman big band, the DIVA Jazz Orchestra; she also worked with such Brazilian groups as the Choro Ensemble and Duduka Da Fonseca’s samba jazz quintet, performed music of Louis Armstrong with David Ostwald’s Gully Low Jazz Band, and collaborated with clarinetist-saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera. In 2017, Ms. Cohen performed at major European festivals as part of the all-female band Artemis alongside Renee Rosnes and Cécile McLorin Salvant. She has toured as a duo with acclaimed pianist Fred Hersch and with iconic Cuban singer Omara Portuondo. She teaches the fine points of jazz and the music of Brazil to budding students across North America, with recent residencies at Stanford University, Oberlin College, Michigan State University, the University of California San Diego, Centrum’s International Choro Workshop, and California Brazil Camp.

Since 2005, Ms. Cohen’s releases on the Anzic Records label have ranged from infectious swingers to lilting balladry and from small groups to larger ensembles and back again, exploring a universe of music along the way. She has recorded four acclaimed albums as part of the 3 Cohens Sextet with her brothers, saxophonist Yuval and trumpeter Avishai. Her newest release, the endlessly colorful Quartetinho, features New York–based, multi-instrumentalist virtuosos who include bassist Tal Mashiach, pianist and accordionist Vitor Gonçalves, and vibraphonist-percussionist James Shipp. For more information, please visit anatcohen.com.