XANDER NAYLOR
Xander Naylor is an American guitarist and composer whose music brings together jazz, rock, Hindustani classical music, and experimental sound.
A student of tabla maestro Samir Chatterjee since 2008, Naylor has developed a distinctive approach to adapting the melodic and rhythmic traditions of North Indian classical music to the guitar, creating a sound that moves fluidly between Eastern and Western musical forms.
His work is grounded in an ongoing exploration of sound, energy, and emotion, with music that embraces both meditative stillness and improvisational intensity. Naylor has performed at venues and festivals including the Montreal International Jazz Festival, Umbria Jazz Festival, NH7 Weekender, Central Park SummerStage, Lincoln Center, the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival, and the Perelman Performing Arts Center, and has shared the stage with artists including Angélique Kidjo and Laurie Anderson.
He leads his own projects, including Cross Stitch and Breathwork, and regularly performs with Mwenso and the Shakes and The Sound of (Black) Music.
“RIDICULOUS GUITAR WORK.”
— Rolling Stone
“A LANGUAGE ALL HIS OWN.”
— The Critical Masses
“WITHOUT A DOUBT, NAYLOR KNOWS HOW TO CREATE MUSIC THAT IS NOT ONLY HEARD, BUT FELT.”
— Expansion Radial
“THAT SIGNATURE NAYLOR SOUND.”
— Rolling Stone
NEW ALBUM
NEW ALBUM
OUT NOW
Children of Sound explores the meeting point between contemporary jazz and North Indian Hindustani classical music, drawing on Xander Naylor’s fifteen-plus years of study with tabla maestro Samir Chatterjee. Featuring Chatterjee alongside Utsav Lal (piano), Raphaël Pannier (drums), and Birsa Chatterjee (tenor saxophone), the album brings together raga-inspired melodies, jazz improvisation, and intricate rhythmic interplay.
Made possible by a Vermont Arts Council Creation Grant, the project brought these musicians together as an ensemble for the first time, resulting in a recording rooted in deep listening, collaboration, and discovery.