Trumpet/composer Amir ElSaffar is a classically trained, experimental performer known for his ambitious blend of post-bop jazz, traditional Iraqi maqam, and other Arabic musical traditions. ElSaffar first garnered attention working with Vijay Iyer and Rudresh Mahanthappa before showcasing his cross-pollinated sound on 2007's Two Rivers and 2011's Inana. Along with collaborations alongside saxophonist Hafez Modirzadeh, he also leads the 17-piece Rivers of Sound ensemble, with which he has released 2017's Not Two and 2021's The Other Shore.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1977 to an Iraqi father and American mother, ElSaffar grew up listening to an eclectic mix of music that ultimately led to his studying classical music at DePaul University. Having developed an avid interest in jazz, ElSaffar competed in and won the 2001 Carmine Caruso Jazz Trumpet Competition and the 2001 International Trumpet Guild Jazz Improvisation Competition. A year later, a trip to Baghdad brought ElSaffar into contact with masters of the traditional Iraqi maqam style of music as well as the santoor -- a type of hammered dulcimer -- which he learned how to play. Leaving Iraq before the war began in 2003, ElSaffar began incorporating Iraqi music into his jazz trumpet playing and jazz compositions. He released his debut album, Two Rivers, on Pi Recordings in 2007, which featured contributions by saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa. Along with his own work, ElSaffar distinguished himself as a sideman, appearing with equally boundary-pushing artists like Cecil Taylor, Vijay Iyer, Marc Ribot, and others.

Following his 2010 collaboration with saxophonist Hafez Modirzadeh, Radif Suite, he returned to Two Rivers with the equally long-form suite Inana, the latter of which found tenor saxophopnist Olie Mathisen taking over for Mahanthappa. A quintet album, Alchemy, arrived in 2013 followed two years later by a third Two Rivers album, Crisis. In 2017, he debuted his 17-piece Rivers of Sound band with Not Two. He also contributed to further projects with Modirzadeh, as well as percussionist/composer Rajna Swaminathan, before releasing his second Rivers of Sound album, 2021's The Other Shore. ~ Matt Collar, Rovi