 The Ethnic Clarinet
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Author: Jimmy
Date: 2004-01-17 17:08
Here is a question I have wanted to have an answer to for a while.
Benny Goodman played the clarinet. He was also Jewish, and he even played some of his first gigs at synagogs, acording to what I have heard. So here is the question: Why didn't he ever play any Klezmer? Or did he? If he did are there any recordings?
Post Edited (2004-01-17 19:28)
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2004-01-17 21:46
I don't profess to be an authority in music history, but I have read things (sorry, can't recall citations) to the effect that the immigrant musicians (as well as their children born in the US) regarded klezmer as an old-fashioned and low-paying art. Jazz was what they wanted to play, that was where the audiences were, that was where the money was, that was what would assimilate them into the larger society. Actually, many, including Benny, I believe, aspired to play classical music, but "settled" for the practicality of playing jazz. Playing klezmer, or any other ethnic music, would have limited them to playing for affairs in their immigrant communities, limited their exposure and recognition. We'd never have heard of them - how many people have heard of Sid Beckerman, as opposed to Benny Goodman? If Benny and other jazz greats played klezmer, it was probably forgotten; there would have been no reason to publicize it or recall it. Remember, we know and love klezmer today because of the klezmer REVIVAL, which came long after klezmer.
Steve Epstein
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Author: Ralph Katz
Date: 2004-01-18 23:10
Steve,
Kids of immigrants wanted to fit in, and playing ethnic music was not the ticket for this. My parents, not musicians, were tremendously embarassed by their parents' and grandparents' old-world ways. They wanted more than anything to appear mainstream.
But theirs was also a different age, one that was not as friendly. There was a tremendous amount of racial and ethnic hatred in the U.S. Think that lynchings didn't really disappear until the 1950's, if that soon. They were still prevalent in the south when my parents were kids. Father Joe Coughlan was spouting anti-semitism on the radio each week. In Detroit, Crystal (swimming) Pool had a sign that said "No Jews Allowed". The environment was not tremendously conducive to fostering ethnic pride. Things are a lot different now, which may make it difficult to fathom all of peoples' motivations 60 years ago.
Ralph
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Author: Christian Dawid
Date: 2004-02-11 14:47
Still, Goodman was interested at some point.
One of his hits, 'when the angels sing', is a klezmer standard known as 'der ziser bulgar'. The arrangement even has some pretty straight klezmer parts. Goodman couldn't play klezmer, but his trumpet player could. (Forgot the name, sorry.)
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2004-02-12 05:39
Ziggy Elman, I believe. Lots of stuff about him if you plug his name into a search engine.
Steve Epstein
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Author: Christian Dawid
Date: 2004-02-12 06:22
Yes, Ziggy Elman, thanks, Steve. He could play both styles brillantly.
Clarinetists who could play klezmer and swing well were Max Epstein, Sammy Musiker, Mickey Katz, Ray Musiker, Paul Pincus, Howie Leess, and certainly many more.
Ray and Paul are still active at KlezKamp.
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Author: larryb
Date: 2004-03-25 18:41
didn't Goodman record "bei mir bist du schoen?"
another interesting swing era yiddishkeit:
Barney Bigard/Duke Ellington: Utt-da-zay (sings the tailor/singt der Schneider)
Cab Calloway did a few good cantorial imitations
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Author: klarinetist
Date: 2004-07-15 22:15
I think the composer of "And the Angels Sing", as well as the trumpeter, was Ziggy Elman, with Martha Tilton on the vocal.
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Author: ChrisC
Date: 2004-07-16 00:17
The melody to And the Angels Sing is traditional, known as The Quiet Bulgar. Before recording it with Goodman, Elman did it under his own name as "Freilach in Swing."
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Author: Christian Dawid
Date: 2004-07-16 12:56
>known as The Quiet Bulgar
That's 'Der Shtiler Bulgar' in Yiddish.
A variation of that tune is known as 'Der Ziser Bulgar', the sweet Bulgar.
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Author: allencole
Date: 2004-09-07 06:37
Yes, Benny recorded "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen" and it had a klezmer section in the middle. I believe that there were some other ethnic-type numbers as well.
Allen Cole
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