About Efrat
…Efrat is the consummate musician. A classically-trained violinist, she’s comfortable in multiple genres, from jazz to Americana.
John Platt
WFUV Bronx, NY
[Efrat’s] voice is so powerful and the songs are both hits... Looking forward to the others.
Artie Martello
Catskills Cafe, WIOX 91.3
If Chuck Berry would have said, (if he ever heard you play) for the lyrics of his classic, Roll over Beethoven… “Roll over Mischa Elman, cause Efrat's got the News!
David Amram
Composer, Arranger, Conductor
Biography
Efrat started violin at 7 and was immediately drawn to its beauty. Three years later, she was the youngest ever to solo with the Oak Ridge Symphony, and at age 11 was the youngest ever admitted into the Knoxville Youth Orchestra. She learned klezmer and Israeli music from her father, dabbled in folk and rock with a friend down the street, and took every opportunity to learn and play every genre she could. Accepted into and offered full scholarships by top classical violin schools in the country, Efrat settled on Indiana University. While pursuing her BA, she also was a member of the Shira Festival Orchestra in Israel, conducted by Zubin Mehta under the direction of Lorin Maazel. After a forced break from music due to injury, she resumed her studies at the University of Tennessee, from which she received a Master’s degree in Music Performance.
After graduation, Efrat, who grew up in TN and is featured in the book Cumberland Avenue Revisited, an anthology about four decades of music in Knoxville, Tennessee, moved to NYC to continue her career in music. After a stint as concertmaster for Olivia Newton John Orchestras, she re-established the Jade Quartet that has recorded for such notables as Ashanti and Bobbie Eakes (All My Children, One Life to Live soap operas). During this period she also performed onstage with many jazz notables such as Joe Magnarelli, Saul Rubin (Roy Hargrove), Dennis Davis (David Bowie, Stevie Wonder) and more, including a few performances as member of the Harry Whitaker (Miles Davis, Roberta Flack) sextet. She worked closely with Harry Whitaker to produce quartet and band concerts with his jazz quartet and her string quartet, The Jade Quartet. The quartet concurrently held a residency at FatCat Music Hall for most of 2007 and 2008. which continued until she left for a tour of 47 states and Canada as the onstage violinist in the Broadway touring company of Oliver, for which she received rave reviews
After her return from tour Efrat pursued her love of jazz and song with No Strings Attached, her debut CD. The title track and the song Serenade were included in the movie soundtrack for How To Seduce Difficult women and No Strings was featured in its trailer that garnered more than eight million views worldwide. At this point, Efrat became a new mother, took a break from being a bandleader, and then was recruited into the alt-roots ensemble Spuyten Duyvil which brought her into the Northeast Folk Community.
Her sophomore release, The Silver Lining, was #14 on the International Folk Charts in its debut. Its’ a blend of many styles – including folk, jazz, pop, klezmer, swing, and blues. Their lyrics and structure are a testament to finding strength during the trials of life and leaning on those around you for help.
Efrat’s latest album, We Just Need Love, was #10 on the International Folk Charts with 2 songs, Which Side Are You On, and We Just Need Love also in the top 10! (#4 & 7). She continues to impress. Upon hearing only the title track and the other large production song on the album “Let Go,” Artie Martello (Catskills Cafe, WIOX 91.3) was moved to write, “[Efrat’s] voice is so powerful and the songs are both hits… Looking forward to the others.“ David Amram later said, “If Chuck Berry would have said, (if he ever heard you play) for the lyrics of his classic, Roll over Beethoven… “Roll over Mischa Elman, cause Efrats’ got the News!”