THE ALON NEAR GROUP

Transplanted from Tel Aviv to NYC, this fierce ensemble of hard hitting jazz turks deftly explore and weave all the familiar sounds of jazz — swing, hard bop, free — into their own internationally influenced and unique sound, rhythm and vibe.  Their boundless performance energy and musical prowess is captivating and energizing. Band leader Alon Near is only 25, but he has performed in premier venues and festivals all over the world, including Carnegie Hall, NYC Winter Jazz Fest, Red Sea Jazz Festival, and many more.  Alon has shared stages with many renowned musicians including multi Grammy winning Billy Childs, DownBeat darling Eli Debibri, piano legend Johnny Oneal and vocalist Alicia Olatuja. The group has a weekly gig at the venerable west village jazz hot spot Smalls, where they have finely honed their sound as a band. Group members include:  Alon Near (bass), Hillel Salem (trumpet), Asaf Even Zur (tenor sax), Alon Benjamini (drums) and Guy Moskovich (keys).