The paradox is undeniable – a classically trained, Israeli-born violinist tearing it up with the likes of Kanye West, Jay-Z, Scarface, and Lil’ Wayne. Never before and never so powerfully has a classical instrument and hip hop come together to form such a perfect union. The result is mind-blowing, extending the cultural parameters of what we know as hip hop and all thanks to the Hip Hop Violinist. Hip Hop Violinist 11 young today • rich tomorrow [MAKING IT] THE WRITTEN BY BERNADETTE HOUSTON PHOTOGRAPHS BY COLLEEN CHRZANOWSKI
Transcript
The paradox is undeniable – a classically trained, Israeli-born violinist tearing it up with the likes of Kanye West, Jay-Z, Scarface, and Lil’ Wayne. Never before and never so powerfully has a classical instrument and hip hop come together to form such a perfect union. The result is mind-blowing, extending the cultural parameters of what we know as hip hop and all thanks to the Hip Hop Violinist.
HipHopViolinist
11young today • rich tomorrow
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WrITTeN by berNadeTTe HouSToNpHoTograpHS by coLLeeN cHrZaNoWSKI
As you listen to Miri Ben-Ari’s newly released album, The Hip Hop Violinist, you realize just how powerful the paradox is in her first hip hop album. The beauty and grace of the violin paired with edgy beats and urban rhymes is unprecedented, affirming Miri’s place in music as a pioneer. Her vision, tal-ent, and perseverance have already earned her much acclaim, including a Grammy in 2004 for co-writing Kanye West’s hit, “Jesus Walks.”
In addition to an undeniable presence on Kanye’s College Dropout CD (accompanying Kanye on 90% of the album), the 26 year-old violinist has collaborated with a diverse grip of A-list artists, including Wyclef Jean, Alicia Keys, Jay-Z, Janet Jackson, Maroon 5, Twista, Britney Spears, Akon, Lil’ Mo, Patti LaBelle, Scarface, Anthony Hamilton, Fatman Scoop, John Legend, and the list goes on. She’s also made appearances at Carnegie Hall, on Showtime at the Apollo, MTV, and BET’s 106 & Park. In 2001, she took the stage with Jay-Z in New York for the Summer Jam – a performance that elevated Miri’s presence considerably in hip hop.
However perfect this union has come to be between hip hop and a classical instrument, it hasn’t come easy for the visionary artist. It has proven more than challenging, substantiating that the two highly distinct genres of music can exist in accord, and understandably so. They are two different worlds, classical and hip hop. Old versus new, refined versus edgy – they have come to symbolize two different perspectives on life and two very different lifestyles. But Miri’s vision has worked to break down those ster-eotypical conceptions of the two genres as she merges them with unparal-leled success.
As if bringing two totally different worlds together isn’t enough, Miri is also changing the future for solo instrumentalists in the United States. She points out that in the U.S. the live instrument tradition doesn’t exist as it does in Eastern Europe. Rather, in much American music, live instru-ments are viewed as a distant secondary to the vocals. However, as part of her vision to revolutionize music, Miri set out to “make it the main act,” to create a solo instrumental-ist career for herself in one of the last places one would expect to find it – hip hop.
Miri is quick to point out that she is not self-taught, nor did she make it this far without considerable training and mentoring. Not afraid to follow her vision, Miri made some bold moves to get herself out there. One of the boldest and most rewarding moves came one night as she was about to perform and noticed turntables on the stage. A self-proclaimed improviser, Miri approached the DJ and asked him to flip records for her while she
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IT WaS a cuLTuraL SHocK HearINg bIggIe & Tupac for THe fIrST TIme IN my TWeNTIeS.
cHecK ouT mIrI’S WebSITe: WWW.mIrIbeN-arI.com
got on stage with her violin. The DJ was puzzled but Miri assured him that she had done it many times, when in fact she had never tried it before. The audience was astounded when Miri got on stage, closed her eyes and played over songs by Biggie and Tupac. The synthesis mesmerized the audience and some very influential powers in music.
Her talent and confidence comes from a substantial background in music. From a very early age, Miri knew that music would always be her life. Growing up in Ramat-Gan, Israel, in what she terms a “classical bubble,” her father (a violinist and opera singer) and mother (a pianist and guitarist) only listened to classical music at home and that’s all Miri remembers being exposed to as a child. Taking violin lessons at a very early age, by the time
Miri was just six years old she was playing the violin with incredible proficiency, even regarded as a prodigy by classi-cal great, Isaac Stern.
Miri first came to the U.S. in high school to complete a summer course and immediately knew that she would return but only after serving the mandatory two years in the Israeli Army – an experience that taught Miri so much about life and humility. Miri was placed among the prestigious musicians of the Israeli Army String Quartet and it was during her service in the army that she became increasingly exposed to other genres of music, particularly American jazz. Listening to jazz artists like Charlie Parker
inspired Miri. She became consumed with learning jazz, returning to the U.S. at the age of 19, after fulfilling her military obligation, to study at the esteemed Mannes School of Music.
Just one year after starting at Mannes, Miri released her debut jazz album, Sahara with two more to follow – Song of the Promised Land featuring her jazz mentor Wynton Marsalis, and Live at the Blue Note. However, despite her classical and jazz training, hip hop was in Miri’s soul and it was only a matter of time before it unleashed itself and in a big way. Interestingly, Miri had never heard hip hop until coming to New York. “It was a culture shock,” Miri says animatedly, “hearing Biggie and Tupac for the first time in my twenties.” However, she was immediately drawn to hip hop and points out that even amidst her previous jazz work, hip hop would always emerge, with-out her realizing what genre it was that she was instinctively playing.
In 2001, an executive from Atlantic Records heard Miri perform and arranged for her to meet Wyclef Jean, an association that brought Miri and Alicia Keys together for Keys’ hit “Fallin’.” It was Wyclef that dubbed Miri “the Hip Hop Violinist” and in the same year the two met, Wyclef included
THe beauTy aNd grace of THe VIoLIN paIred WITH edgy beaTS aNd urbaN rHymeS IS uNprecedeNTed, affIrmINg mIrI’S pLace IN muSIc aS a pIoNeer.
She Can’t Live Without her violin (are we surprised?)
Places She Wants To See Barcelona, Japan, Brazil
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HIp Hop WaS IN Her SouL aNd IT WaS oNLy a maTTer of TIme before IT uNLeaSHed ITSeLf.
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Some of our favoriTe CuTS from miri’S reCenTLy reLeaSed aLbum, The hip hop ViolinisT:
fly away featuring Fabolous, Kanye West, and Musiq
i’ve been Waiting on you featuring Consequence and John Legend
Sunshine to the rain featuring Anthony Hamilton and Scarface
CoLLaboraTion WiTH oTHer arTiSTS feaTuring miri:overnight Celebrity by Twista [from the album: Kamikaze]
The new Workout Plan by Kanye West [from the album: College Dropout]
fallin’ by Alicia Keys [from the album: Songs in A Minor]
THe quINTeSSeNTIaL mIrI
Miri in his Carnegie Hall concert. In the following year, Miri’s presence really began to erupt in hip hop, bringing numerous collaborative projects her way and elevating her place within the genre.
However, Miri wanted more. She wanted to release her own solo hip hop album but was repeatedly told that despite her undeniable talent, people just weren’t sure what to do with her, especially in a realm where she was the main act. Given her unusual place in hip hop and the lack of any prec-edent assuring success, Miri continued to plug away at performances and other vocalists’ albums. In 2003, her perseverance paid off. Asked to per-form the National Anthem at the music industry’s T.J. Martell Foundation charity dinner, Miri took the stage just as Universal Records president, Doug Morris, was leaving. As the crowd stood and Miri did her thing, Morris stopped at the door, amazed by what he was hearing. Days later, Miri had her album deal with Universal.
Yes, her life reads like a fairytale, but it is only because of the perseverance and hard work that accompanies her vision and talent. “It is the hardest thing in the world,” she says of her pursuit with hip hop and establish-ing a solo career in this unlikely genre. If you consider what she’s accom-plished so early in her life, the difficulty becomes readily apparent. She has created a niche in the music world, where two distinct sounds come together in amazing harmony.
Clearly not a conformist, the visionary hip hop violinist says she will only continue to stretch boundaries and, as she so fervently classifies, to “step up the music game even more.” She’s someone that doesn’t wait around for opportunity to find her, she creates opportunities and some pretty sizable ones at that. She is changing music as we know it and just like that, two worlds collide at the hands of Miri Ben-Ari. b
