Acclaimed for performances rendered with passion, authentic musicianship and spirituality, Eliyahu & Qadim plays music from throughout the Near East. Qadim, or 'Eastern wind,' is a word found in both Arabic and Hebrew meaning 'ancient' as well as 'that which will come.' The group specializes in music inspired by ancient mystical music of the Near East. Since first forming in 2006, the group has quickly built a standing room only following throughout the Bay Area and beyond by bringing together Jewish, Arabic, Indian, Moroccan and Iranian musicians to celebrate the common musical and spiritual heritage of the now troubled region's ancient cultures.

A native of Boston, Eliyahu Sills has been studying and performing music for over 20 years.

In the early 1990s, he studied the upright bass at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City. Deeply influenced by teachers Makanda Ken McIntyre, Arnie Lawrence and Reggie Workman (bassist who played with John Coltrane and Art Blakey), Eliyahu began performing as a sideman and bandleader in renowned jazz clubs such as The Village Gate and Small's.

In the years that followed, Eliyahu fell in love with the flute and applied the musical theory that he learned through his jazz studies to teach himself this most ancient of instruments. After falling under the spell of the Sufi music of Turkey, he became a devoted student of both the ney, the reed flute of the Middle East, and the bansuri, the bamboo flute of India. He has since continued to study and perform these magical instruments under the guidance of masters Steve Gorn and his teacher G.S. Sachdev, to whom he is a devoted student.

In 2006, Eliyahu went on a 4-month pilgimage to Turkey in search of a local living master to take him in and teach him the nuances of the nay. During his journey, he fell in love with Istanbul and had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study under masters Neyzen Omer Erdogdular and Neyzen Ahmet Kaya.

Eliyahu's mastery of musical styles spans the globe. He has performed and recorded tradtional spiritual music of the Middle East with Za'atar, West African folk music with the Palm Wine Boys, soul roots reggae with the Original Intentions, acoustic soul with Sparlha Swa and revolutionary Hip-hop with Rebels Advocate. Recently, he has been making music with Ethiopian born jazz/soul vocalist Meklit Hadero, recorded devotional music with Shimshai and with m.j. greenmountain of Hamsa Lila, toured with Rupa & the April Fishes, and with oudist/composer Yuval Ron.

Eliyahu also works with young people, primarily mentoring teenage young men. He has taught at The Mosaic Project, an educational program that helps children from all backgrounds celebrate diversity as well as Omega Teen Camp. He currently teachers at WCCHS a high school in Richmond, CA, and for the rites of passage program at Stepping Stones Project.