Yoshie Fruchter

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Yoshie Fruchter

| image = 250px

| caption =

| birth_name = Yehoshua Fruchter

| alias =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1982|2|1}}

| birth_place = Silver Spring, MD

| death_date =

| instrument = Guitar, bass, oud, mandolin

| genre = Jazz rock, jewish rock, folk rock, rock, heavy metal

| occupation = Musician

| years_active = 2001–present

| label = Tzadik Records
Blue Thread Music

| associated_acts = Pitom
Schizophonia
Asefa
Willamette
Jon Madof
Deveykus
Yiddish Princess
Moshav
Shanir Blumenkranz
Soulfarm
Eitan Katz
Joey Weisenberg

| website = [http://www.yoshiefruchter.com yoshiefruchter.com]

}}

Yoshie Fruchter (born February 1, 1982)Matthue Roth, [http://www.jewcy.com/jewish-arts-and-culture/jazz_new_klezmer_interview_yoshie_fruchter “Jazz Is the New Klezmer: An Interview with Yoshie Fruchter,”] Jewcy, January 27, 2009. is an American guitarist, bassist, oud player and composer.

Early life and education

Fruchter was born and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland, in an Orthodox Jewish household,Mordechai Shinefield, [http://forward.com/articles/135976/the-secret-history-of-jewish-metal/ “The Secret History of Jewish Metal,”] The Forward, March 18, 2011. singing and playing Jewish music in his youth.Christopher R. Weingarten, [http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/2009/09/yes_in_my_backy_18.php “Yes In My Backyard,”] Village Voice, September 22, 2009. His father is a musician, and his sister Temim is the former drummer of the indie punk band The Shondes. He studied jazz in the music department at the University of Maryland,Paul Wieder, [http://www.oychicago.com/blog.aspx?id=9074&blogid=142 “E-pitom-izing Jewish Rock,”] Oy! Chicago, March 22, 2011. and moved to Brooklyn, New York, in 2005.Matthue Roth, [http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-arts-and-culture/music/1158/genre-benders “Genre Benders,”] Tablet, November 6, 2008.

Music career

=Pitom=

Fruchter's debut solo album as composer and guitarist, Pitom, was released in 2008.Jim Fusilli, [https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB123005281362230443 “They Don’t All Sound Familiar,”] Wall Street Journal, December 26, 2008. The Wall Street Journal called it "a dazzling debut" and JazzTimes called the debut "audacious," describing it as klezmer music with a punk sensibility.Bill Milkowski, [http://jazztimes.com/articles/21375-pitom-yoshie-fruchter-s-pitom “Yoshie Fruchter’s Pitom,”] JazzTimes, March 2009. "Pitom" is Hebrew for "Suddenly,"Jason Bivins, [http://www.dustedmagazine.com/reviews/4934 “Dusted Reviews: Yoshie Fruchter – Pitom,”] Dusted, April 15, 2009. and the album was named after his band, which, along with Fruchter on guitar, includes Jeremy Brown (violin), Shanir Blumenkranz (bass) and Kevin Zubek (drums).

Pitom's second album, Blasphemy and Other Serious Crimes, was released in 2011. Fruchter again composed and played guitar, with the album further exploring Jewish music along with surf and sludge metal influences. The album was chosen by The Forward as one of the newspaper's 2011 Forward Fives, an annual list honoring five of the most important Jewish music releases of the year.[http://blogs.forward.com/the-arty-semite/148182/forward-fives--in-music/ “Forward Fives: 2011 in Music,”] The Forward, December 19, 2011.

Fruchter's music combines elements of jazz, klezmer, rock, surf and heavy metal, while exploring themes of God, religion, repentance and redemption.Sean Murphy, [http://www.popmatters.com/review/138328-pitom-blasphemy-and-other-serious-crimes/ “Pitom: Blasphemy and Other Serious Crimes,”] PopMatters, April 13, 2011. Both Pitom albums have been released on John Zorn's Tzadik Records label. Fruchter has been described as a member of the "Radical Jewish Culture" scene, a term coined by Zorn.

=Schizophonia=

In December 2014, Fruchter released Cantorial Recordings Reimagined, an album with a new band called Schizophonia, in which he arranged Jewish cantorial recordings for a progressive rock quintet, with world music influences.Jake Marmer, [http://forward.com/articles/211557/-albums-to-pick-up-in-/ “5 Albums To Pick Up in 2015,”] The Forward, December 31, 2014. Also in the band are Shanir Blumenkranz (bass), Brian Marsella (keyboards), Yonadav Halevy (drums) and Rich Stein (percussion).[http://www.nyblueprint.com/golem-schizophonia-doppelskope-brian-marsellas-imaginarium “Golem / Schizophonia / Doppelskope / Brian Marsella’s Imaginarium,”] NY Blueprint, October 23, 2014.

=Other projects=

In 2006, Fruchter collaborated with his father, Chaim (Harold) Fruchter on Beyond the Book, an album of songs they co-wrote and produced that explore critical moments in the lives of various Biblical personalities.[https://web.archive.org/web/20160417183547/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P3-1024380571.html “Biblical characters come alive in song; Father-son team creates ‘Beyond the Book’ CD,”] Washington Jewish Week, February 23, 2006.

Fruchter is a member of Jon Madof's 13-piece afrobeat group Zion80, playing guitar on the group's self-titled 2013 debut. In April 2014, Zion80 released its second album, Adramelech, an interpretation of John Zorn's Masada Book 2: The Book of Angels, on which Fruchter again played guitar.Sean Murphy, [http://www.popmatters.com/review/187659-zion80-adramelech-book-of-angels-volume-22/ “Zion80: Adramelech: Book of Angels Volume 22,”] PopMatters, November 14, 2014.

Fruchter is also a frequent substitute with the instrumental rock quartet Abraxas, which also performs the music of Zorn's Masada;[http://www.nyblueprint.com/eyal-maoz-abraxas “Eyal Maoz’ Abraxas,”] NY Blueprint, July 15, 2014. a member of Pakistani/American collaboration Sandaraa;[http://www.montrealjewishmusicfest.com/artist/sandaraa/en Sandaraa], The Montreal Jewish Music Festival, August 27, 2014. doom metal band Deveykus; and Frank London's Shekhina Big Band,George Robinson, [http://www.thejewishweek.com/arts/music/frank-londons-latest-project-really-big-0 “Frank London’s Latest Project Is Really Big,”] The Jewish Week, February 2, 2013. among other projects, many of which explore the relationship of Jewish culture, identity and music.

Personal life

Fruchter resides in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife, journalist Leah Koenig, and their son. He is an observant Orthodox Jew.

Discography

=Albums=

class="wikitable"

!rowspan="1"|Year

!rowspan="1"|Title

2006

|Beyond the Book

By: Yoshie Fruchter and Chaim Fruchter
Released: February 2006
Label: Self-released
Formats: CD

2008

|Pitom

By: Yoshie Fruchter
Released: September 16, 2008
Label: Tzadik Records
Formats: CD, digital download

2011

|Blasphemy and Other Serious Crimes

By: Pitom
Released: February 22, 2011
Label: Tzadik Records
Formats: CD, digital download

2014

|Cantorial Recordings Reimagined

By: Schizophonia
Released: December 15, 2014
Label: Blue Thread Music
Formats: CD, digital download

=Appears on=

class="wikitable"
style="width:55px;"\| Year ! style="width:255px;"\| Album ! style="width:290px;"\| Artist ! style="width:255px;"\| Credits
rowspan=1 style="text-align:center;"\|2004 \| Shemspeed Alt Schule \| Juez \| Bass
rowspan=1 style="text-align:center;"\|2007 \| Eitan Katz Unplugged \| Eitan Katz \| Bass
rowspan=1 style="text-align:center;"\|2008 \| Monkey Dance \| Soulfarm \| Guitar, bass
rowspan=1 style="text-align:center;"\|2009 \| Boruch Hu \| Eitan Katz \| Guitar, bass
rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;" \|2010 \| Holy Ground \| Soulfarm \| Bass
Yiddish Princess \| Yiddish Princess \| Guitar
Have No Fear \|Breslov Bar Band \|Bass
rowspan=3 style="text-align:center;"\|2011 \| Eitan Katz Unplugged 2 \| Eitan Katz \| Bass
Resonance \| Asefa \| Guitar, oud
Joey's Nigunim: Spontaneous Jewish Choir \| Joey Weisenberg \| Vocals
rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;"\|2012 \| Joey's Nigunim Vol. II: Transformation of a Nigun \| Joey Weisenberg \| Mandolin, vocals
Willamette \| Willamette \| Guitar
rowspan="5" style="text-align:center;" \|2013 \| Shuvu \| Eitan Katz \| Bass
Pillar Without Mercy \| Deveykus \| Guitar
Joey's Nigunim Vol. III: Live in the Choir Loft \| Joey Weisenberg and the Hadar Ensemble \| Bass, vocals
Zion80 \| Jon Madof \| Guitar
Happy Hour \|Breslov Bar Band \|Bass
rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;"\|2014 \| Joey's Nigunim Vol. IV: Brooklyn Spirituals \| Joey Weisenberg and the Hadar Ensemble \| Upright bass, vocals
Adramelech: Book of Angels Volume 22 \| Zion80 \| Guitar
rowspan=1 style="text-align:center;"\|2017 \| Cat Toren's HUMAN KIND \| Cat Toren's HUMAN KIND \| Guitar, Oud
rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;" \|2020 \| Scintillating Beauty \| Cat Toren's HUMAN KIND \| Oud
Ruthless Cosmopolitans EP \|Ruthless Cosmopolitans (Eprhyme, Jon Madof) \|Bass
2022 \|Holy Chutzpah \|Breslov Bar Band \|Bass

class="wikitable"

style="width:55px;"| Year

! style="width:255px;"| Album

! style="width:290px;"| Artist

! style="width:255px;"| Credits

rowspan=1 style="text-align:center;"|2004

| Shemspeed Alt Schule

| Juez

| Bass

rowspan=1 style="text-align:center;"|2007

| Eitan Katz Unplugged

| Eitan Katz