Combining jazz and classical elements with hints of her Middle Eastern background, pianist and composer Anat Fort has shown an early ability to move easily in all of those musical worlds. Born in Israel, she began studying classical music at the age of five, and a lifelong fascination with improvisation led to her enrolling in the jazz program at William Paterson University in New Jersey. Following her graduation from the program in 1996, Fort moved to New York to study improvisation with Paul Bley and composition with Harold Seletsky. Her first album, the atmospheric Peel, appeared in 1999 from Orchard Records. A session recorded with drummer Paul Motian, bassist Ed Schuller, and clarinetist Perry Robinson in 2004 was eventually released in 2007 as A Long Story by ECM Records. An active composer and arranger, Fort continues to make her home in New York while touring with her Anat Fort Trio, which includes bassist Gary Wang and drummer Roland Schneider. ~ Steve Leggett, Rovi