Israel Tanenbaum
Israel Tanenbaum-Rivera, known as Izzy Tanenbaum, is an American pianist, music producer, composer, arranger and audio engineer. Born on March 7, 1961 in the Bronx, New York, he has produced more than 50 albums and contributed to over 100 recordings. He has performed with many classic salsa artists and bands and served as musical director for Roberto Roena starting in 1986.
In 1988, after building a successful career as a pianist, Tanenbaum moved to Colombia and joined Guayacán Orquesta as producer, pianist and arranger. He helped shape their sound and reach new audiences in the United States and Europe, earning a Platinum and two Gold Records. In Colombia he also worked with many other artists and supported all-female salsa bands as director, arranger and producer.
In 1992 he produced Alfredo De La Fé’s album Con Toda la Salsa for Discos Fuentes. The album included Tanenbaum’s Latin Jazz piece Hacha y Machete, which became popular in Europe and opened doors for tours there, where he performed as Alfredo’s pianist and musical director. In 1995 he produced La Salsa de los Dioses. When Alfredo moved to New York in 2002, Tanenbaum formed a band and toured the United States with him.
In 2018 Tanenbaum settled in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he performs with his Latin music ensemble Latinbaum and with other renowned West Coast musicians in venues such as Yoshi’s and Angelica’s. He released a solo project in 2023, Impressions, on Zoho Music, as Israel Tanenbaum & The Latinbaum Jazz Ensemble.
Beyond performance, Tanenbaum has written music for film, theater, radio, television and video games, earning nominations and awards. His work on the film Swing won Best Soundtrack at the 2003 Latin USA Film Festival and he received recognition at the 2004 Park City Film Music Festival for Best Impact of Music. He has also created jingles for brands and designed and built sound studios, including Bogotà’s first rehearsal studio in the 1980s and several professional studios for artists in Colombia.
Tanenbaum has a strong interest in Afro-Caribbean rhythms and folklore, and he often blends these elements into his compositions. He has taught music and audio production in the United States and Colombia, developing curricula and university courses on jazz history, harmony and Latin ensembles. He created the Audio Recording Technician Program at Roxbury Community College in Boston in 2004, collaborated with WGBH on Music and Words, and taught Latin and jazz ensembles at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá. He also led workshop programs and cultural initiatives in Colombia, including ViveLab Huila’s Building the Digital Future project.
Today, Israel Tanenbaum continues to perform, compose and arrange, drawing on a career that spans salsa, jazz, pop and sound design, with a focus on education and collaboration across the Americas.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 15:08 (CET).