S

ince her time as an elemen-
tary school student in Newe 
Shalom, a multi-ethnic vil-
lage on the Latrun hilltops in Israel, 
Sivan Arbel has tried to live in a 
world without parameters. 
And that’s particularly true of the 
now Brooklyn-based singer, pianist 
and composer’s music — including 
her new album, “Oneness.”
“I’ve always been very interested 
in different sounds and rhythms 
from around the globe,” Arbel 
explains via Zoom. “I just soak in 
whatever I’m interested in within 
that time. You study it; you think of 
the technicality of it and the com-
position and everything that comes 
with it. I call it the sponge; you just 
squeeze the sponge, with everything 
I’ve cultivated and soaked in, and 
then whatever comes out comes out.
“I really try not to judge it or have 
an agenda for it. Whatever came in 
came in, and whatever comes out 
comes out.”

A NEW SOUND
The nine-song “Oneness” came 
out of Arbel’s experience during 

the pandemic. Unable to perform 
live to continue promoting her sec-
ond album, 2019’s award-winning 
“Change of Light,” she decided to 
immerse herself in studying classi-
cal Indian music, a style Arbel says 
was always a bucket-list endeavor. 
She also moved during that time 
and wound up, coincidentally, in 
the same building as Jay Gandhi, a 
bansuri flute master and member of 
the Brooklyn Raga Massive — and 
an enthusiastic tutor in her new 
pursuit.
“We really dove into basically him 
sharing a lot of that knowledge with 
me,” recalls Sivan, who recruited 
Gandhi to join her and her regular 
trio on the new album’s expansive 
opening track, “Dreamland.” She 
was also inspired by Shakti, a jazz 
fusion band that incorporated 
Indian elements into its sound.
“Diving into that world created 
a big shift in how I sing and my 
creation of music. The singing tech-
nique of the classical Indian music 
is very different than what I’m used 
to; I’m used to moving and a lot of 
standing, and in classical Indian 

music you sit, and each note is like 
its own universe, not a culmination 
of notes like a scale. So, it was very 
different than learning ‘do, rei, mi...’ 
“So that, and also the rhythmic 
approach to how you play around 

with the rhythm when you sing, that 
was different.” 
And, Arbel is quick to note, 
her study hasn’t stopped since 
“Oneness” was recorded.
“I still immerse myself in it,” she 
acknowledges. “I’m still meeting 
with Jay and I’m still in it, and it’s 
just a dream come true ’cause I was 
always interested in it. I feel like I 
need five more lifetimes in order to 
get a deeper understanding of it.”

ARTISTIC INSPIRATION
Arbel’s artistic interests began 
young, even though hers was a 
household of appreciators more than 
practitioners. However, she says, “I 
think that if my dad would pursue 
music, he would be an amazing 
musician. When I play him some-
thing, he hears everything, and I 
don’t know how. I think he has real-
ly good ears.” 
Her siblings also learned to play 
musical instruments, while music 
videos on MTV inspired Arbel “to 
want to learn how to sing and dance 
like some of the artists I saw.” 
She took voice and dance lessons 
as a youth and taught herself piano, 
finding a pathway into jazz via 

ARTS&LIFE
MUSIC

Israeli artist 
Sivan Arbel 
releases new 
album.

GARY GRAFF 
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

50 | DECEMBER 19 • 2024 
J
N

Sivan Arbel has 
toured the world 
as a singer.

DANIEL GAN