MUSIC FOR THE SOUL

Nefesh is a new Paris-based label dedicated to the development of original music rooted in jazz, Jewish music, klezmer and other musical traditions from Eastern Europe

Born in 1984, Jonathan Orland is a French saxophonist and clarinetist whose bold voice is rooted in jazz while shaped by klezmer and free improvisation. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, he studied with George Garzone, Hal Crook, and Joe Lovano before continuing his studies at McGill University in Montreal and establishing himself on the Paris jazz scene. He has performed throughout France and internationally alongside Joe Chambers, Jean-Michel Pilc, Nelson Veras, Peter Peter, and Ibeyi.
As a bandleader, he has released Homes (2012, BeeJazz), Small Talk (2015, PJU), and Something Joyful (2021, SteepleChase), as well as the duo albums Youkali (2022, Cristal), Sait-on jamais (2023, Klarthe) with pianist Jean-Michel Pilc, Serenity Now (2024, Silkn'Sound) and a solo album, Inner Landscape (2024, OddSound Music)More recently, with Citizen X, a quartet co-led with Shimon Gambourg, he brings together four accomplished musicians around a repertoire ranging from original compositions infused with klezmer influences to reinterpretations of Scriabin. The group released an EP followed by its debut album on Silkn'Sound Records in May 2026.In parallel, with Nefesh, a duo formed with Gambourg, he explores hybrid sonic landscapes where acoustic and electronic elements meet, blending saxophone, clarinet, bass, keyboards, and electronic textures while reimagining music connected to their Ashkenazi Jewish cultural heritage. Following the release of the singles Elijah and Dalia, the duo's debut album is scheduled for release in September 2026.

Shimon Gambourg has been called everything good and bad under the sun, but most notably “a prodigious talent” (NYC Jazz Record) and “a formidable musical presence” (Todd Reynolds). His commitment to bringing out the singularity in every musical encounter has earned him a steady stream of activity both in New York and abroad.
Most recently, he arranged Miguel Zenón’s music for the Nordpool Orkest in the Netherlands, and conducted his arrangements at Lincoln Center with the MSM Jazz Orchestra featuring Ingrid Jensen. Since 2022, he writes the ever-evolving book for the supergroup “Something Else!”, comprised of luminaries such as Randy Brecker, James Carter, Vincent Herring, and Lewis Nash.
Shimon is a two-time ASCAP composition award winner, a four-time America-Israel Cultural Foundation “Excellence” grant recipient, and was interviewed by both the Jerusalem Post and Haaretz. In 2023, he appeared as a finalist on the International Society of Bassists Competition. Winning a full scholarship to study at Berklee College of Music, Shimon moved to the U.S. in 2016, later completing his master’s in composition at the Manhattan School of Music.

Friends since meeting at a music session in Israel over a decade ago, Jonathan Orland and Shimon Gambourg have continued to nurture their artistic connection, which has grown even stronger since the latter moved to France. Nefesh duo was born out of this friendship and a shared musical vision, in which innovation naturally grows out of tradition, and emotion and spontaneity take center stage.
Through a repertoire blending Israeli songs, Yiddish melodies, and original compositions, the two musicians explore the many facets of their cultural heritage. The dialogue between their instruments and musical worlds gives rise to distinctive combinations of sound and timbre: alto saxophone, clarinet, double bass, six-string bass, voice, and electronics intertwine and respond to one another with a spirit of freedom and openness.
Nefesh — “soul” in Hebrew — is the guiding thread of this musical journey

Debut album out Fall '26Release Party Sep 16th at Sunset/Sunside