Shahzad Ismaily is a Brooklyn-based multi-instrumentalist, producer, composer, and engineer, as well as one of the most sought-after collaborators in contemporary creative music. A master of electric bass, guitar, drums, percussion, synthesizers, and found sound instruments, Ismaily has a reputation for creating immersive, improvisational, deeply human music. It’s a career shaped in part by a lifetime with ectodermal dysplasia: a rare genetic disorder that profoundly influenced his relationship with sound and his approach to making music.
Since arriving in New York City in 2000, Ismaily has collaborated with an extraordinary range of artists, including Laurie Anderson, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Feist, Vijay Iyer, Arooj Aftab, Marc Ribot, Colin Stetson, Yoko Ono, and Bonnie “Prince” Billy. Beyond music, his work extends into film, installation, and performance art, including contributions to the Oscar-nominated Frozen River and Ragnar Kjartansson’s acclaimed installation The Visitors.
