Saxophone player, clarinetist, composer, Gabriele Coen first studied music at the Scuola di Musica Popolare in Rome’s Testaccio quarter. He attended several seminars at Siena Jazz, and often interacted with prominent saxophone musicians (Steve Lacy and Dave Liebman). Finally, he completed his studies with a degree and diploma in Political Science from the Morlacchi Conservatory in Perugia. Coen was the founder and leader for “Kleroym”, which remains one of the most prominent Klezmer groups in Italy. He has been a great promoter of Jewish folk music, which is reinterpreted in a jazz-style, in Europe. His father Massimo Coen, a violinist and composer, was Gabriele’s mentor. Gabriele also learned to play the contemporary saxophone repertoire from the string quartet “I Solisti di Roma”. From their intense recording and performing activities throughout Europe and Italy, he has five albums that were released by CNI (Klezroym (1998), Sceni ((2000), Yankele nel ghetto ((2003), Yankele nel ghetto ((2003)), ‘Venticinqueaprile (2006)) and his experiences with Klezroym. Coen’s two pieces presented an unprecedented and personal encounter between Jazz and World Music. He took a 360-degree trip in the fusion and interpretation of different musical traditions, including contemporary Jazz, Jewish, Mediterranean and Balkan. Gabriele also increased his didactic and instructional activities simultaneously. One of its most significant moments was the publication of the essay “Klezmer,” a piece on Jewish folk music from John Zorn to the shtetle, published by Castelvecchi in 2000. The essay was followed up with “Wandering Music” in 2009. The article “From Folk to Jazz: Klezmer, Yiddish Music” was published by Stampa Alternative in 2009. Both articles were co-written by IsottaToso. He also expanded his productions by performing and composing dance (Fuciarelli, Patimo) as well as in television (RAI Educational. La Grande Storia. Geo).
