MATTAN KLEIN - Going The Distance
Mattan Klein was born and raised in Jerusalem. He studied at the Rubin Academy in Jerusalem and graduated with honours from the Berklee College of Music in Boston.
He is the winner of the 1st prize in the 2018 international ‘7 Virtual Jazz Club Web Community Award’ and has performed on various international stages, including the Carnegie Hall in New York and the Kennedy Center in Washington as well as key festivals such as the Tel Aviv International Jazz Festival, Red Sea Jazz Festival, London Jazz Festival, Albania Jazz Festival and the Jazz Education Network Conferences in New Orleans.
He has recorded for a number of record labels, including SONY and Helicon Records, whilst his latest release - The Long Run - is out now on Ubuntu Music and features long time collaborators Toki Stern on keyboards, Yoni Ben Ari on bass and Joca Perpignan on percussion with special guest guitarist Nitzan Bar.
The flute is a relatively underused instrument in jazz; what drew you to that and who were your early inspirations?
I was given a flute when I was 10 years old, and have been playing it ever since, it’s almost a part of the body by now, and definitely a strong feature of my personality.
After starting out in classical music I ran into the music of Israeli flutist Shem Tov Levi, a real innovator here on the progressive music scene. Later on, the main influences were naturally Joe Farrell, and the great Ian Anderson.
I love the sound of the flute in Jazz and world music, it is my ultimate means of expression.
Berklee College of Music where you studied is often seen as a holy grail for jazz education; can you tell us about your experience there?
Berklee was a great driving force because of the diverse origins of students, and the incredible facilities the school has to offer.
I attended Berklee in the 90s, and I’m sure everything has only gotten better ever since…
The greatest thing about Berklee was meeting so many talented people, and creating new music with them. It’s also amazing to be exposed to many new musical styles and fantastic masters of those genres.
What’s been your best live gig experience as a bandleader and why?
I feel that playing last November at the Red Sea International Jazz Festival was a really powerful experience for me as a bandleader.
It was a very emotional and turbulent time on a personal level for the family and for myself, but the music soared high above any hardship. And the result was one of the most powerful moments of my life.
Musically we premiered some of our new material from ‘The Long Run’ album, and the feeling was absolutely fantastic.
He is the winner of the 1st prize in the 2018 international ‘7 Virtual Jazz Club Web Community Award’ and has performed on various international stages, including the Carnegie Hall in New York and the Kennedy Center in Washington as well as key festivals such as the Tel Aviv International Jazz Festival, Red Sea Jazz Festival, London Jazz Festival, Albania Jazz Festival and the Jazz Education Network Conferences in New Orleans.
He has recorded for a number of record labels, including SONY and Helicon Records, whilst his latest release - The Long Run - is out now on Ubuntu Music and features long time collaborators Toki Stern on keyboards, Yoni Ben Ari on bass and Joca Perpignan on percussion with special guest guitarist Nitzan Bar.
The flute is a relatively underused instrument in jazz; what drew you to that and who were your early inspirations?
I was given a flute when I was 10 years old, and have been playing it ever since, it’s almost a part of the body by now, and definitely a strong feature of my personality.
After starting out in classical music I ran into the music of Israeli flutist Shem Tov Levi, a real innovator here on the progressive music scene. Later on, the main influences were naturally Joe Farrell, and the great Ian Anderson.
I love the sound of the flute in Jazz and world music, it is my ultimate means of expression.
Berklee College of Music where you studied is often seen as a holy grail for jazz education; can you tell us about your experience there?
Berklee was a great driving force because of the diverse origins of students, and the incredible facilities the school has to offer.
I attended Berklee in the 90s, and I’m sure everything has only gotten better ever since…
The greatest thing about Berklee was meeting so many talented people, and creating new music with them. It’s also amazing to be exposed to many new musical styles and fantastic masters of those genres.
What’s been your best live gig experience as a bandleader and why?
I feel that playing last November at the Red Sea International Jazz Festival was a really powerful experience for me as a bandleader.
It was a very emotional and turbulent time on a personal level for the family and for myself, but the music soared high above any hardship. And the result was one of the most powerful moments of my life.
Musically we premiered some of our new material from ‘The Long Run’ album, and the feeling was absolutely fantastic.
Click on the album cover to read our review
What influences do you think first-time listeners will be able to hear in your latest release, The Long Run?
I believe that our music contains a personal interpretation of Brazilian music; we have a version of a bossa nova, a funky samba , a modern day choro piece , and a cover version of music by Brazilian master musician Hermeto Pascoal.
It will also resemble modern jazz-harmony-driven music, a lot of what we had are bringing to the table presents a passion for less common and less popular chord progressions which miraculously come together to make the big picture make sense!
The album features a touching interpretation of Hermeto Pascoal’s ‘O Farol Que Nos Guia.’ For anyone wanting to get to know this musician in more detail, what are a couple of his must-have albums?
Hermeto Pascoal is a huge inspiration, a complete musician, in all possible fields. His rhythmic diversity is so broad, his harmonic choices are so clever, and generally his ability to play many instruments, and blend the traditional Brazilian music with modern Jazz and modern music is such a fantastic formula.
I can recommend dozens of albums, I chose 2 titles which one can start exploring, 'Zabumbe bum a' and 'Lagoa da Canoa', but there again there are so many choices…
Your latest album is released on British label Ubuntu; what’s your experience with the UK jazz scene and how does it compare to that of Israel's?
The Israeli Jazz Scene is diverse and based on the various diasporas which blended to create Israeli society.
Working with so many talented musicians on the Israeli scene is a fabulous source of inspiration. There are generations of super talented artists and everyone cross-inspires. It’s a learning experience on stage, in classroom situations, at spontaneous jam sessions and while attending concerts.
It’s a huge honour being signed with Ubuntu, and its global reach is a great asset to the UK Jazz scene. I’m gradually getting to know the scene; I had the honour of playing at the London Jazz Festival and very much look forward to much more playing in the future
You took on the role of artistic director for the Kfar Yona Jazz Festival last year; what did you learn from being on the other side of the fence, choosing musicians to perform?
Producing a jazz festival is a huge joy, a great privilege to be able to support creative artists in jazz. And a great honour to be able to listen to the concerts and learn from incredible colleagues of mine playing fantastic music!
It’s been a humbling experience and made me so happy to get so many good bands together and change the direction in which our scene was going. A fantastic feeling all around!
What album or track have you been listening to on repeat this week?
I listen to music in the car and shuffle 50 albums which are on my phone…. But if it needs to be narrowed down to a few… some of my favorite albums are by Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. They are both complete musicians , the playing is always unique and never boring, the compositions are always super fresh and innovative, always cutting edge and the search never ends….
What’s next for you in 2022?
The Long Run album was written and recorded during times of uncertainty.
I was trying to cling onto the hopes for a better future, after sitting most of 2020 at home…
The result was an album representing some tough moments we had encountered, alongside a glimpse of optimism and an attempt to focus on the ‘Long Run’ and the good times awaiting us around the corner.
I’m hoping 2022 will calm down as far as the pandemic is concerned, I’m really excited to possibly produce another festival, we are still in the planning stages… And very much hoping to be back on the road as soon as possible.
I believe that our music contains a personal interpretation of Brazilian music; we have a version of a bossa nova, a funky samba , a modern day choro piece , and a cover version of music by Brazilian master musician Hermeto Pascoal.
It will also resemble modern jazz-harmony-driven music, a lot of what we had are bringing to the table presents a passion for less common and less popular chord progressions which miraculously come together to make the big picture make sense!
The album features a touching interpretation of Hermeto Pascoal’s ‘O Farol Que Nos Guia.’ For anyone wanting to get to know this musician in more detail, what are a couple of his must-have albums?
Hermeto Pascoal is a huge inspiration, a complete musician, in all possible fields. His rhythmic diversity is so broad, his harmonic choices are so clever, and generally his ability to play many instruments, and blend the traditional Brazilian music with modern Jazz and modern music is such a fantastic formula.
I can recommend dozens of albums, I chose 2 titles which one can start exploring, 'Zabumbe bum a' and 'Lagoa da Canoa', but there again there are so many choices…
Your latest album is released on British label Ubuntu; what’s your experience with the UK jazz scene and how does it compare to that of Israel's?
The Israeli Jazz Scene is diverse and based on the various diasporas which blended to create Israeli society.
Working with so many talented musicians on the Israeli scene is a fabulous source of inspiration. There are generations of super talented artists and everyone cross-inspires. It’s a learning experience on stage, in classroom situations, at spontaneous jam sessions and while attending concerts.
It’s a huge honour being signed with Ubuntu, and its global reach is a great asset to the UK Jazz scene. I’m gradually getting to know the scene; I had the honour of playing at the London Jazz Festival and very much look forward to much more playing in the future
You took on the role of artistic director for the Kfar Yona Jazz Festival last year; what did you learn from being on the other side of the fence, choosing musicians to perform?
Producing a jazz festival is a huge joy, a great privilege to be able to support creative artists in jazz. And a great honour to be able to listen to the concerts and learn from incredible colleagues of mine playing fantastic music!
It’s been a humbling experience and made me so happy to get so many good bands together and change the direction in which our scene was going. A fantastic feeling all around!
What album or track have you been listening to on repeat this week?
I listen to music in the car and shuffle 50 albums which are on my phone…. But if it needs to be narrowed down to a few… some of my favorite albums are by Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. They are both complete musicians , the playing is always unique and never boring, the compositions are always super fresh and innovative, always cutting edge and the search never ends….
What’s next for you in 2022?
The Long Run album was written and recorded during times of uncertainty.
I was trying to cling onto the hopes for a better future, after sitting most of 2020 at home…
The result was an album representing some tough moments we had encountered, alongside a glimpse of optimism and an attempt to focus on the ‘Long Run’ and the good times awaiting us around the corner.
I’m hoping 2022 will calm down as far as the pandemic is concerned, I’m really excited to possibly produce another festival, we are still in the planning stages… And very much hoping to be back on the road as soon as possible.
For more information visit Mattan's website at mattenklein.com
