Tomer Cohen (American-Israeli guitar player & composer), was born in the US (1996), but spent his childhood in the countryside in Israel. He picked up the guitar at a young age and from that moment on, he knew that music was his pursuit in life. He studied jazz at the Israeli Conservatory of Music at Tel Aviv; after that, he was granted a scholarship from The New School of Jazz and Contemporary Music, and then moved to New York, where he graduated from the BFA Jazz Program.

 

Over the years, Tomer has steadily become a promising talent in NYC’s jazz scene. He has performed in numerous gigs as a band leader both locally and internationally. He has gained a large amount of performance experience by playing with his trio ensemble at a wide array of venues, from small locations to large festivals. At each show, his project encounters the audience with original materials and compositions which reflect on Tomer’s life moments, emotions and experiences. He collaborated closely with renowned musicians such as Shai Maestro, Obed Calvaire, Ben Wendel, Omer Avital, Matt Penman and more.

 

In December 2021 he finished recording his debut album "Not the Same River" along with the drummer Obed Calvaire and the bassist Matt Penman. You can hear in this album the influences Tomer had over the years - Middle Eastern, Jazz from NYC scene, Folk and Rock. It released by Hypnote Records. The album title, Cohen explained, relates to an expression by the Greek philosopher Heraclitus: No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man. “That’s the sentence that encompasses all the compositions on the album,” he said. “We are constantly in motion, we’re always changing, and we just need to accept that. What I was trying to do on this record is connect some stories, images and life philosophies that I have into one thing.”

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“Not the Same River“, which was released by Hypnote Records was a success, and was followed by over 40 reviews worldwide and 3 international tours in the US & Mexico, Belgium & UK and Israel. In January 2024 he finished recording his second album “Story of a Traveler“ with Shai Maestro, Cyrille Obermüller & Gert-Jan Dreessen, which is set to be released on Hypnote Records on February 7th 2025.