| Daniel Zamir | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Born | 1981 |
| Origin | Petah Tikva (Peh-tah Teek-Qwah), Israel |
| Genres | Jazz Klezmer Jewish |
| Labels | Tzadik, Hatav Hashmini |
| Associated acts | Satlah |
Daniel Zamir (born 1981 in Petah Tikva) is an Israeli religious Jewish saxophonist. Having started on alto saxophone, Zamir is mainly known for his soprano playing.[1]
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Zamir was born to a secular family and started playing the saxophone at the age of twelve. He is a graduate of Thelma Yellin high school of arts in Israel. After he finished his studies he was discharged from the Israel Defense Forces due to his low weight and left for New York, where he began showing interest in Jewish, Hasidic and East European music. He completed his studies at New School in 2002. In 2008 Zamir married Hanni Schroeder.
In New York he was discovered by the Jewish composer-saxophonist John Zorn, who signed him to a contract in his recording label "Tzadik".[2]
Under the "Tzadik" label, Zamir recorded three albums with his band, Satlah, with Zorn as a sideman. They recorded two studio albums called "Children of Israel" and "Satlah", as well as a live performance called "Exodus". "Satlah" and "Exodus" contain original materials written by Zamir himself, while "Children of Israel" contains original jazz variations of known traditional Israeli and Jewish compositions. In all three albums, Zamir performs as soloist together with a rhythm section, which includes bass and drums, accompanied by an ensemble of brass instruments.
While staying in New York, Zamir got closer to the Jewish religion and finally decided to go back to live in Israel. In 2006 he recorded his fourth album, "Amen", under the Israeli label "Hatav Hashmini", with Omer Avital on bass, Daniel Friedman on drums and Omri Mor on piano. Avishai Cohen plays trumpet on one of the tracks.
In 2009, Zamir released a second album on the "Hatav Hashmini" label titled "Echad" (One).[3][4]
In September 2009, Zamir participated in the Israel Music Celebration Festival in Be'er Sheva which featured dozens of different artists from a wide variety of musical backgrounds.[5]