Tradition in Motion – Rhythm, Heritage, and Creative Expression
On the 17th of October Grammy-nominated pianist and composer Yotam Ishay comes to JAM MUSIC LAB Private University for a workshop at Spielraum, Gasometer.
This workshop will explore two main topics:
- Rhythmic exploration – grid as an anchor, accent-shifting and metric modulation as tools to expand improvisational freedom.
- Culture as Creative Source – drawing on folk songs from Yotam Ishay’s upcoming album Singing of the Herbs to show how cultural memory can be reimagined through personal lens shaped by previous experience .
Together, these themes highlight how rhythm, and cultural heritage can serve as foundations for new artistic expression across many contemporary genres.
Yotam Ishay
Yotam Ishay is a Grammy-nominated, Brooklyn-based Israeli pianist & composer. Yotam grew up in Afula, a small town in Israel. His first experience with music was at age five when a song by Naomi Shemer was played in class. He felt a mystical, pleasant sensation as the trumpets in the song were playing mediant 3rds (which he had no idea about). Since then, he has been in constant forage of these harmonic feelings and communicating these musical emotions to others.
Yotam began formal classical piano lessons before his 10th birthday. From his first steps, he started experimenting with composition while listening to CDs of music by Claude Debussy, who later became one of his deepest influences. His first mentor was Gideon Hazor, who mentored him at the pastoral Jezreel Valley Center for the Arts for six years. With Hazor’s advice, he added Jazz piano lessons to his studies, which greatly influenced him musically.
photo credit: Seva Mazurika
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