Faculty

Profile

Called “the next big jazz guitarist” by NPR, hailed by the New York Times as a “whiz kid”, and dubbed “incredible” by the Montreal Gazette, Nir Felder is a new voice in jazz and rock guitar. Growing up right outside New York City, Felder spent his youth playing in rock bands while learning about jazz at the local record store, inspired by icons from John Coltrane to voodoo chile Jimi Hendrix. After attending Berklee College of Music on a full scholarship, Felder moved to New York City in 2006 and quickly became one of the city’s most highly sought after sideman, performing and recording with an eclectic group of luminaries in jazz and other genres including Diana Krall, Brad Mehldau, John Mayer, Ben Platt (with whom he recorded the Netflix special “Live at Radio City Music Hall”), Chaka Khan, Erykah Badu, Common, Anderson Paak, Dave Chapelle, Dave Matthews Band, Terri Lyne Carrington (with whom he recorded the Grammy-winning “Money Jungle”), Vijay Iyer, Blood Sweat and Tears, Jordan Smith, Amy Schumer, Victor Wooten, Shoshana Bean, Jack DeJohnette, Meshell Ndegeocello, Dianne Reeves, the New York City Opera, and many others on tour throughout six continents and at venues including Radio City Music Hall, Austin City Limits and the Village Vanguard and national television stations NBC, ABC, CBS, ESPN, and Fox (Good Morning America, the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Late Late Show with James Corden, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Late Night with Seth Myers, Maya and Marty, the US Open and many more). Seeking a more personal creative outlet, Felder first formed his own quartet in 2010, recording the critically acclaimed major label debut “Golden Age” (Sony/OKeh), called “lyrical and lofty” by The New York Times, “mesmerizing” by The Boston Globe, “a melodic triumph” by the New York City Jazz Record, “mind-boggling” by All About Jazz and "a great record" by Downbeat. Six years after the release of Golden Age, Felder's latest project is a set of two trio recordings featuring bassist Matt Penman and drummer Jimmy Macbride. Using the studio as an instrument and the latest in sound design technology the result is a layered music that blends jazz improvisation with other genres in new ways and stretches the boundaries of what a jazz record is and can be. He is the winner of the 2021 Downbeat Magazine Critics Poll “Rising Star Guitarist” and currently teaches at both Berklee College of Music and The New School in New York City.