Israeli-born saxophone and clarinet player Anat Cohen heads to UNH.

Over the past couple of decades, a steady number of international musicians have been adopting jazz as their preferred means of musical expression. Some work within jazz’s timeless traditions of swing, bebop and blues, while others incorporate aspects of their cultural background into these traditions. Then there are those who have a broader view, where the music of the world serves as a platform for jazz exploration. 

Anat Cohen, a native of Israel now based in New York City, falls into the latter category. An exceptional and tasteful musician, Cohen will bring her diverse abilities to the final concert of the 2010-2011 UNH Traditional Jazz Series on Monday, April 4. Joining her will be Gilad Hekselman on guitar, Joe Martin on bass and Marcus Gilmore on drums, three musicians who have a similar musical view. 

New York Times jazz writer Nate Chinen describes Cohen as “the real deal.” A remarkable clarinetist, saxophonist, composer, arranger, band leader and head of her own record label (Anzic Records), Cohen gives new meaning to the term “multi-tasking.” Her music is firmly rooted in jazz, but branches out to incorporate classical, Brazilian Choro, and Argentine tango, as well as a broad spectrum of Afro-Cuban styles. The Washington Post has said that “Cohen has emerged as one of the brightest, most original young instrumentalists in jazz,” and that she “has expanded the vocabulary of jazz with a distinctive accent of her own.”

In a recent interview with The Wire, Cohen, a soft-spoken and thoughtful person, spoke of her childhood in her native Tel Aviv. 

“I grew up with two musical siblings, my older brother Yuval, who also plays saxophone, and my younger brother Avishai, who plays trumpet.” When asked what inspired her to take up clarinet, she said, “There was no real inspiration beyond the fact that it was an instrument that was available at the time I started musical studies at age 12.” 

Enrolled in the Jaffa Conservatory, Cohen’s first jazz experience came in the school’s Dixieland Band. At age 16, she joined the school’s jazz band, learning tenor saxophone. 

“I was told that learning the saxophone would be more practical for jazz, so I made the move to the instrument at that time,” she said. 

Shortly afterward, Cohen enrolled in the renowned Yelin High School for the Arts, where she majored in jazz. During this time, Cohen explained, there was little opportunity for performing outside of the school. “There really wasn’t much of a gigging scene to partake in,” she said. Upon graduating from high school in 1993, Cohen fulfilled her mandatory service in the Israeli military, playing tenor sax in the Israeli Air Force Band for two years.

Soon after her discharge, Cohen made the move to the United States to enroll at the Berklee School of Music in Boston. She described the school as “a very fertile place to learn music. There were so many unique and strong personalities such as Greg Hopkins, Billy Pierce and Hal Crook, and each of these people, along with the numerous peers I met from around the world, brought a different perspective to the experience.” 

While at Berklee, Cohen met another unique personality, long-time Berklee faculty member and stellar trombonist Phil Wilson. 

“It was Phil who heard something in my clarinet playing and who encouraged me to pursue playing the instrument and to find my voice. It was that push that brought me back to the instrument,” Cohen said. 

During her time in Boston, Cohen worked in a variety of settings, including the Latin oriented bands of Alex Alvear, who led the band Mango Blue, and the various ensembles of Sergio Brandau. In 1999, she took the next step in her journey and moved to New York, where she felt out the city’s rich jazz community. 

“I moved around patiently, getting to know the scene and the people. I came across opportunities to sit in but remained patient in terms of the invitations to do so,” she said. 

Before long, Cohen found herself playing in a variety of contexts, including classical gigs, work in the city’s Brazilian music scene, as well as gigs with the Diva Jazz Orchestra and visits to jazz clubs like Small’s. There she met peer musicians like pianist Jason Lindner and bassist Omer Avital, who have since become a core part of her world. 

Cohen established Anzic Records as another avenue for getting her music out to the public. She has released several recordings as a band leader, including 2009’s critically acclaimed “Clarinet Work—Live at the Village Vanguard.” Cohen is both the first female reed player and the first Israeli to headline a gig at the prestigious New York venue.

What can Seacoast jazz fans expect on Monday evening? Cohen has become known for putting on a diverse show. Unlike many in the current generation of younger jazz musicians, she makes a point of incorporating jazz standards into her gigs. 

“I always like to mix in standards to give my shows more variety,” she said. “But, I also have a broader idea of what standards are, and they really are not limited to the American songbook. So, there may be a Brazilian tune or something in the Afro-Cuban vein, or possibly a soul tune by Sam Cooke.” 

The concert begins at 8 p.m. at Paul Creative Arts Center on the UNH campus in Durham. For more information, contact David Seiler at 603-659-2010. For ticket info, contact the MUB Ticket Office at 603-862-2290.