Deborah Benasouli

Deborah Benasouli started her way in theatre after studying at the Nissan Nativ acting studio in Israel and later on decided to focus on jazz singing. 

In 2000, she moved back to France, and after a while Albert Kadouche, the director of the Jewish Cultural Center of Paris and Deborah, created together the Jazz’n’Klezmer Festival, in 2003.

In 2006, she moved to New York, where she studied with Bob Mover and Barry Harris.

With her return to Paris, she performed in many of the famous Jazz venues and in a number of festivals all other the world.

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She won in France, the « Sankofa Soul Contest » in 2009 and « Jazz Diva » competition in 2011.

Her band's first album “ElectricDiva” came out in France and was also distributed in Israel in 2011.

 

The french journalist François Pfeiffer wrote:

« Deborah Benasouli’s powerful and incredibly sensual voice blows you away, like a self-confident Amazon. Her voice will undoubtedly strike you. It will not scratch you, it will scorch you. » François Pfeiffer

 

Deborah lives now in Israel, and is performing with different projects all other the country.

 

One of her projects is called “Woman sings the Blues”, a show dedicated to women songwriters in the Blues and Soul world, like Nina Simone, Big Mama Thornton, Koko Taylor, Cassandra Wilson, Dianne Reeves, Billie Holiday, Janis Joplin and more and also her own compositions.

 

A few years ago, she met Yakov "Yasha" Muravin, a prodigy classical, jazz and blues pianist, arranger and composer from Russia.

They are performing a lot together as a jazz/blues and soul duet in several jazz and blues venues and Festival in Israel and abroad, 

with their rich repertoire which includes works by the greatest composers such as:

Charles Mingus, Aziza Mustafa Zadeh, Charlie Parker, Richard Galliano, Thelonious Monk... and also originals compositions.

In 2017, they won the Israel Blues Competition in the category of Solo/Duo, and went to perform in Memphis at the International Blues Challenge to represent the Israeli Blues Society.

 

Deborah has also a duet with the amazing Brazilian guitarist Marcelo Nami.

They are performing together originals, and also songs by the great Brazilian composers

as Edu Lobo, Egberto Gismonti, Baden Powell, Tom Jobim, Milton Nascimento…

 

Deborah also created a show with the director Patricia Koseleff in honor of the French singer Barbara and performed with it all over Israel in prestigious theatres.

She recently created another show called “Chants de combats et d’espoir”, songs of struggle and hope, by Nina Simone, Boris Vian, Claude Nougaro, Etienne Roda Gil, Chico Buarque, Violeta Parra, Hannah Senesh…