KatzTollar play the Jewish-Themed Music of Brian Katz
This suite of Brian Katz’s Jewish-themed compositions are inspired by contrasting life events such as meditating in an olive grove outside of Jerusalem; spontaneously creating a Celtic-Klezmer piece in the shower and dreaming a nigun (wordless melody) while staying in a hotel—packed with Rabbi’s— in Elora, Ontario.
KatzTollar (Brian Katz, guitar, voice; Ernie Tollar, sax, bansuri flute, ney) are widely known for their ability to synthesize diverse styles into a voice of their own.
Of “Leaves Will Speak,” Brian Katz, solo guitar, music critic, Stanley Fefferman of Opus 1 Reviews writes: “The whole vibe is Brian’s own blend of classical, medieval, Spanish, Jazz, Blues, finger-picking Folk, Greek, Middle Eastern and Klezmer— you can hear all those threads in the weave of this album’s harmonic fabric. You can enjoy the play of musical intelligence on this album and dig into a rich horde of experience gathered along the way of Brian’s 30-year international career.” Jazz Podium, Germany wrote of Brian: “If you want music that speaks, here it is.”
Ernie Tollar performed his first professional gigs at age 16 and has since toured Europe, India, Egypt, Kapuskasing, U.S.A., Argentina, Mexico, and Canada. He has performed and recorded with an incredible array of distinguished artists including Holly Cole, Kenny Wheeler, Trichy Sankaran, Joe Lovano, Maze Mazé, Space Trio, as well as several bands with his wife, vocalist Maryem Tollar; their collaborative 2009 recording, “Cairo to Toronto,” garnered them a JUNO award nomination.
