Arnan Raz

Arnan Raz

Arnan Raz was born in a small village in the north of Israel, Kibbutz Merhavia, to a musical family; his grandfather was a music teacher and a painter. His uncle was a well-known conductor and both his mother and brother are professional guitar players. However, until the age of thirteen, Arnan’s passion was soccer. Suddenly, out of nowhere and without much reason, Arnan decided that he wanted to play the saxophone. Right from the beginning, he would attend his lessons every day with his grandfather: “I knew that I played well when after I finished, I would see tears in his eyes. This image is still a constant reminder for me to what music is about”.
From an early stage of his musical development, Arnan established himself as a serious and dedicated saxophone player in his hometown. His teacher at the time was Albert Beger – a known free jazz artist in Israel and Europe.
At the age of eighteen, Arnan got accepted to the prestigious Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Orchestra. At the army-training base he met all of his current band mates: Eyal Hai, Daniel Meron, Dani Danor and Tamir Shmerling. During his army service, Arnan developed his musical stance on the Tel-Aviv scene through several performances as both a bandleader and sideman.
While his IDF Orchestra colleagues decided to study at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Arnan decided to stay in Israel to study at the Jerusalem Academy Of Music and Dance. While studying with Boris Gammer, Arnan continued to accumulate his popularity as a promising young Saxophonist on the Israeli jazz scene. He performed at many prominent venues and festivals with both local and international bands and musicians.
After graduating, Arnan felt that it was the right time to move to New York to pursue his jazz career: “I felt ready, emotionally, to move to New York after working so hard on my craft”. In New York he reunited with his fellow IDF orchestra members. Arnan formed his quintet and since then, this respected ensemble have garnered attention from numerous performances across the city.
Alongside his quintet, Arnan is a member of other projects such as “The Side Project”- a saxophone quartet, who, last summer (June 2017), opened for the New York Philharmonic, at Prospect Park, Brooklyn. Arnan is constantly performing with a multitude of musicians and bands in New York. Arnan records on a regular basis for a range of bands on the jazz, indie-rock and hip-hop scene.