The Chassidic Jazz Project was formed in 1998 to fill a void in Jazz and World Music and is dedicated to bringing the music of the Jewish people to a larger audience by using jazz as a vehicle for musical expression. The Chassidic Jazz Project is comprised of seven musicians, including its leader, veteran jazz drummer and composer Reuben Hoch and internationally renowned percussionist Robert Thomas. CJP has an interesting and unusual instrumentation that includes, viola and cello, creating a gorgeous chamber music effect, and blends elements of jazz, fusion and new world, to create a multi-cultural sound that can be described as liturgical music at its best.

Drummer and composer Reuben Hoch was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1959. He was raised as an Orthodox Jew, attended Yeshiva, and prayed in the synagogues of various Chassidic Sects, including Munkatch and Satmar. He began playing the drums at the age of 12 and became interested in jazz while in high school. He began playing professionally at the age of 16. By the time he was a senior in high school, Reuben was quite active on the New York jazz scene and recorded with his first group, Repercussions. Heavily influenced by Art Blakey, Tony Williams, Jack DeJohnette and Elvin Jones, by age 19, Reuben was playing with Art Blakey sidemen Valery Ponomaerov, David Schnitter and Lonnie Plaxico. He remained musically active throughout college and while attending medical school in Tel Aviv from 1984 to 1988, became a member of the Israeli jazz quartet Zaviot. The Chassidic Jazz Project, Reuben's most recent effort, combines traditional Chassidic melodies with contemporary jazz arrangements. For Reuben, this project is the realization of a lifelong dream and a vision for the future.

The birth of the Chassidic Jazz Project occurred in conjunction with the celebration of Israel's 50th anniversary at the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood, Florida in 1998. This performance featured guitarist Tom Lippincott and Reuben Hoch. In the years prior to this performance, Reuben Hoch, the group leader and drummer, was urged by Dizzy Gillespie's manager, Charles Fishman, and bassist Jeff Andrews to unfold his heritage by applying his jazz abilities to his religious background. After relocating to South Florida in 1996, Reuben was commissioned by the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood in 1998 to hold a performance in celebration of Israel's 50th anniversary. Reuben chose to perform Chassidic melodies set to jazz arrangements, as these melodies are close to his heart and part of his Jewish Orthodox upbringing.