JAZZ GALLERY Presents: Amir ElSaffar New Quartet April 15 | Sets at 7 PM & 9 PM

The Jazz Gallery is America’s premier performance venue for emerging artists who challenge convention, take creative risks and lead their field as performers, composers and thinkers.

Ars Nova Workshop presents the boundary-crossing trumpeter, santurist, vocalist and composer Amir ElSaffar with his New Quartet at Solar Myth on Tuesday, April 14, 2026.

Composer, trumpeter, santur player, vocalist, and bandleader Amir ElSaffar has been described by The New York Times as “the celebrated trumpeter and composer who explores vital connections between jazz and Arabic music.” 

His New Quartet features the brilliant Greek pianist Tania Giannoule, playing microtonal and prepared piano, along with longtime collaborators Tomas Fujiwara on drums and Ole Mathisen on tenor saxophone.

Every Saturday in March, Elena Moon Park presents a different artist.

Composer, trumpeter, santur player, and vocalist Amir ElSaffar has been described as “uniquely poised to reconcile jazz and Arabic music,” (the Wire) and “one of the most promising figures in jazz today” (Chicago Tribune).
ElSaffar is an expert trumpeter with a classical background, conversant not only in the language of contemporary jazz, but has created techniques to play microtones and ornaments idiomatic to Arabic music that are not typically heard on the trumpet. Additionally, he is a purveyor of the centuries old, now endangered, Iraqi maqam tradition, which he performs actively as a vocalist and santur player. As a composer, ElSaffar has used the subtle microtones found in Iraqi maqam  music to create an innovative approach to harmony and melody, and has received commissions to compose for large and small jazz ensembles, traditional Middle Eastern ensembles, chamber orchestras, string quartets, and contemporary music ensembles, as well as dance troupes.

Atmospheric explorations of electroacoustic fusion 

At the forefront of electroacoustic experimentation, Lorenzo Bianchi Hoesch and Amir ElSaffar are defining the contours of new musical territories. By exploring microtonal environments, written and improvisational structures, and the fusion of the grammars of Iraqi maqam, jazz, and raga with contemporary music, Inner Spaces crafts modular compositions that are both fluid and complex. Amir ElSaffar, trumpeter, santur player, and singer, and Lorenzo Bianchi Hoesch, composer of innovative electronic music, thus create the captivating narrative of a journey to the far reaches of endless landscapes and into the most intimate of inner spaces. Fascinating

Cité de la Musique, Auditorium
4 rue Bernard du Bois - 13001 Marseille

Thursday, March 19, 2026 at 5:30 PM

ElSaffar is known for his Two Rivers sextet and 17-piece Rivers of Sound Orchestra, both of which blend Middle Eastern and jazz instrumentation. At the outset, this album’s ensemble looks like a traditional jazz setting, except for one anomaly - the absence of a bass instrument. This is by design: with the unique resonances of the microtonal piano, and ElSaffar and Mathisen’s well-honed blend of two instruments into one sound, rich and nuanced timbres and harmonies are able to ring out, unencumbered with pitch information in the low registers. The bass-less context also allows Fujiwara and Giannouli to find interesting polyrhythms and grooves, further encouraged by ElSaffar’s written material that leaves the rhythmic aspects open.

Location: The Stissing Center, 2950 Church St, Pine Plains, NY 12567

Mar 8, 2026 • 3:00 PM

Presented in partnership with Clarion Concerts, this gathering serves as a precursor to his performance with the Amir ElSaffar New Quartet at The Stissing Center on Sunday, March 8th at 3pm. Purchase tickets here.

In this intimate and conversational setting, ElSaffar will reflect on his groundbreaking work bridging jazz with the microtonal Maqam traditions of Iraq and the Middle East, sharing insights into his creative process, musical influences, and the cultural dialogue at the heart of his compositions. Throughout the talk, he will also perform select musical passages, offering a live glimpse into the sounds and ideas that shape his work.

ARTIFACT - An Experimental Music Series

Sleepwalk 251 Bushwick Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11206

Sun, Feb 15, 7:30 PM

Artifact No. 22 showcases an evening focused on instrumental free improvisation and experimental electronic performance. This month's iteration features the performers Deadshrine + Mithboth, Leyya Mona Tawil, and Amir ElSaffar.

Description

The NYC Winter Jazzfest – Manhattan Marathon Lineup:

5:30 PM: Doors

6PM: Arun Ramamurthy

7:15 PM: Amir ElSaffar New Quartet

8:30 PM: New Jazz Underground

9:45 PM: Ekep Nkwelle

11:00 PM: David Murray Quartet

12:15 AM: James Brandon Lewis Trio

——–

This program is part of the NYC Winter Jazzfest Manhattan Marathon, presenting dozens of artists and groups on Friday, January 9 from 5:00 pm to 3:00 am, at eight different venues across lower Manhattan. Marathon tickets grant access to all venues. On Saturday, January 10, the Winter Jazzfest presents the Brooklyn Marathon at various venues throughout Williamsburg. 2-Day Marathon passes giving access to all Manhattan and Brooklyn events are available. For the complete festival lineup visit: https://nycwjf.com/drom

A double bill of vocalist Hamid Al-Saadi and the revered Iraqi Maqam tradition, and trumpeter, composer, santur player, and vocalist Amir ElSaffar’s New Quartet. The performance presents the first two records on ElSaffar’s newly established label, Maqām Records, which highlights music based on the maqam modal tradition of Iraq and the larger Middle East, and is dedicated to bringing both historical and contemporary maqam music to global audiences.

Vocalist Hamid Al-Saadi performs the revered Iraqi Maqam tradition, accompanied by Safaafir, playing traditional instruments of the Chalghi Baghdadi. Al-Saadi (b.1958, Iraq), is the only living singer who has mastered the entire Iraqi Maqam repertoire. Inscribed on UNESCO’s Intangible Heritage list, the Iraqi Maqam is a repertoire of long-form compositions of sung poetry that has been passed down orally for generations. Al-Saadi’s Maqam Al-Iraq (Maqām) is the first Iraqi Maqam release by any artist in over a decade.

Amir ElSaffar’s New Quartet is a meeting between ElSaffar’s longstanding collaborators, Tomas Fujiwara and Ole Mathisen, and Greek pianist Tania Giannouli (U.S. Premiere). The four musicians came together in 2023 in one of Europe’s best sounding halls, the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin. The magic and intuitive ease between the musicians was riveting and powerful, bringing ElSaffar’s unique microtonal compositions to new heights. The recording of that performance will be released on Maqām Records in November 2025. Giannouli, who plays a microtonal piano in the quartet, is one of Europe’s fastest rising stars, performing at all the major jazz festivals and concert halls. This concert marks her first time taking the stage in the U.S., as well as the group’s U.S. premiere.

FSN Presents features a diverse curation of artists from Found Sound Nation’s global network. The series is rooted in FSN’s ethos that encourages the diminishing of boundaries in music-making and music-listening — be they ethnic, cultural, or stylistic. Each concert features an FSN-curated artist who, in turn, invites a guest to share the bill. Each performer will offer an intimate 20-30 min salon style set, inviting audiences to experience a unique, intimate offering of sound and story.

Composer, trumpeter, santur player, and vocalist Amir ElSaffar has been described as “uniquely poised to reconcile jazz and Arabic music,” (the Wire) and “one of the most promising figures in jazz today” (Chicago Tribune).
ElSaffar is an expert trumpeter with a classical background, conversant not only in the language of contemporary jazz, but has created techniques to play microtones and ornaments idiomatic to Arabic music that are not typically heard on the trumpet. Additionally, he is a purveyor of the centuries old, now endangered, Iraqi maqam tradition, which he performs actively as a vocalist and santur player. As a composer, ElSaffar has used the subtle microtones found in Iraqi maqam  music to create an innovative approach to harmony and melody, and has received commissions to compose for large and small jazz ensembles, traditional Middle Eastern ensembles, chamber orchestras, string quartets, and contemporary music ensembles, as well as dance troupes.

Shahzad Ismaily is a Brooklyn-based Pakistani-American multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer known for his extensive work in creative music. Primarily self-taught as a musician, composer, recording engineer, and producer, Shahzad plays electric bass, drums, percussion, guitar, synthesizers, and all manner of sound-makers procured in life's travels. Shahzad is currently based in Brooklyn and works out of the recording studio collective he founded and created, Figure 8 Studios.

4pm
$20 suggested tickets
Pay now online or in person that day. 

Poland’s leading  jazz and improvised music festival will be held in New York for the ninth time. This year, the concerts will feature special projects that are the result of collaboration between Polish and American artists, as well as a commissioned work written specially for Jazztopad. We invite you to the events in the iconic music clubs: Dizzy’s Club at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Atrium at Lincoln Center, Rizzoli Bookstore, Barbes, and private homes.

The American edition of the Jazztopad Festival is presented in partnership with the Polish Cultural Institute in New York.

Performers:

Waclaw Zimpel - alto clarinet, electronics
Arun Ramamurthy - violin
Amir ElSaffar - trumpet
Abhik Mukherjee - sitar
Mir Naqibul Islam - tabla
Sriram Raman - mridangam

Amir ElSaffar presents a captivating solo set for Trumpet, Santur, Voice, and Modular Synths. 

dream brigade is the duo of Phillip Golub (piano) and Lesley Mok (drums). Fresh off the heels of their debut self-titled release on Infrequent Seams, they present a set of original compositions, standards, and improvisations.

Amir ElSaffar (Voice, Trumpet, Santur and Composition)
Lorenzo Bianchi Hoesch (Live electronics and Composition)

Triennale Milano, Teatro Filodrammatici di Milano, Milan, Italy

"Time's Other Side" solo performance in dialogue with the poetry of Etel Adnan

Amir ElSaffar (trumpet, santur, voice, modular synthesizer) part of the symposium, "In the Rhythms of the World"

The Poetry Project at St Mark's Church, New York, NY