Avishai Cohen

Born and raised in Israel, Avishai Cohen has often combined Middle Eastern and Israeli music with both electric and acoustic jazz. Cohen began studying the piano at age 11 and was 14 when he became interested in jazz. After playing piano in a high school jazz band, he switched to the electric bass and soon fell in love with the music of Jaco Pastorius. Cohen was 16 when he enrolled in the Music & Arts High School in Jerusalem, and as a young adult, he played a few local gigs before being drafted into the Israeli army. When Cohen's two years in the military ended, he was able t...