Oded Tzur’s flair for mystery and narrative inspired DownBeat to describe his playing style as “a volcano on the ocean floor.” His background in the Tel Aviv jazz scene of the early 2000s meant rigorous training in a number of styles – none more important, perhaps, than his exploration of the microtonal structures of Indian classical music as a student of the legendary flutist Hariprasad Chaurasia. Through countless sessions, Chaurasia would play a melody on the bansuri (Indian flute) and Tzur would then translate to the saxophone. In 2011, the young aspirant moved to New York and established the Oded Tzur Quartet; its two Enja albums, Like a Great River (2015) and Translator’s Note (2017) have earned extraordinary critical acclaim and established Oded Tzur as a singular voice in today’s jazz scene. Tonight, Oded Tzur Quartet celebrates the release of his new ECM record Here Be Dragons. Oded Tzur – tenor saxophone Nitai Hershkovits – piano Petros Klampanis – bass Johnathan Blake – drums