Naseem Alatrash

Naseem Alatrash is a Palestinian cellist and composer- his performances include a mix of improvisation and traditional melodies, with a focus on traditional Arabic music with jazz and contemporary classical music influences.

Naseem has appeared at numerous international festivals including the Newport Jazz Festival, the Dominican Republic Jazz Festival, Abu Dhabi Music Festival, Lebanon’s Zouk Mikael International Festival, Lebanon’s Beit Aldeen Festival, Aix-en-Provence Festival, and Jerash Festival. He has performed at such notable venues as the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, the Lincoln Theater, Wigmore Hall, Koerner Hall, University of Michigan Ann Arbor Music Series, NYU Abu Dhabi Arts Center, the Royal Opera of Oman, The Royal Albert Hall, and Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. He has performed alongside world-renowned musicians including Ron Carter, Roger Waters, Terri Lyne Carrington, Eugene Friesen, Kenny Aronoff, Rami Jaffee, Luis Conte, Javier Limon, Jorge Drexler, Alejandro Sanz, Scott Page of Pink Floyd, Carmine Rojas of David Bowie, Mike Garson of David Bowie, and many others.

Alatrash has been awarded String Player of the Year twice from The National Music Competition of Palestine. In addition to his solo career, Alatrash performs with the Turtle Island String Quartet, the Global Messengers ensemble with pianist Danilo Pérez and with Amir ElSaffar’s Rivers of Sound ensemble in addition to teaching at the Berklee College of Music, Tufts University and the Longy School of Music.