He was still very green when Shai Maestro was asked by bassist Avishai Cohen to join his trio with drummer Mark Guiliana. Maestro recorded four albums with the Avishai Cohen Trio, including two on Blue Note, and toured the world and played at some of the world’s most renowned venues and festivals. Maestro quickly developed into a mature pianist and last year he signed to ECM Records for his fifth album. All the while, he has continued to contribute to recordings of Avishai Cohen, vocalist Theo Bleckmann, and Mark Guiliana Jazz Quartet to critical acclaim.

Shai Maestro was born in Israel and started playing jazz as a teenager, while training as a classical pianist. Since day one, Oscar Peterson has been his example. At the Berklee College of Music in Boston he came into contact with other talented jazz musicians. In Cohen’s band, Maestro learned how to improvise and this eventually led to his first album in 2012. Last year marked an important year for Shai, signing wi...

He was still very green when Shai Maestro was asked by bassist Avishai Cohen to join his trio with drummer Mark Guiliana. Maestro recorded four albums with the Avishai Cohen Trio, including two on Blue Note, and toured the world and played at some of the world’s most renowned venues and festivals. Maestro quickly developed into a mature pianist and last year he signed to ECM Records for his fifth album. All the while, he has continued to contribute to recordings of Avishai Cohen, vocalist Theo Bleckmann, and Mark Guiliana Jazz Quartet to critical acclaim.

Shai Maestro was born in Israel and started playing jazz as a teenager, while training as a classical pianist. Since day one, Oscar Peterson has been his example. At the Berklee College of Music in Boston he came into contact with other talented jazz musicians. In Cohen’s band, Maestro learned how to improvise and this eventually led to his first album in 2012. Last year marked an important year for Shai, signing with major jazz label ECM and recording his first album “The Dream Thief” there, featuring his trio, but also him as a solo-pianist. Introspective, lyrical, virtuose and differentiated.

At 32, Maestro is still young but his unparalleled playing is mature and well balanced. Since his debut with his own trio, Shai has shaped a strong and unique personal identity and has portrayed an incredible musical fluidity, making Shai and his trio one of the most powerful and harmonious groups in the jazz today.

“Hearing Shai Maestro is like awakening to a new world.” – All About Jazz...

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