Ben Goldberg

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Ben Goldberg
Ben Goldberg 2018 by Justus Nussbaum.jpg
Background information
Born (1959-08-08) August 8, 1959 (age 65)
Denver, Colorado, United States
Genres Jazz, free jazz, klezmer
Occupation(s)Musician, composer
InstrumentClarinet
LabelsBAG Production
Website bengoldberg.net

Ben Goldberg (born August 8, 1959) is an American clarinet player and composer.

Contents

Career

In the early 1990s, Ben Goldberg performed alongside electric bassist Dan Seamans and percussionist Kenny Wollesen as the New Klezmer Trio. [1] They went on to produce three albums and the free improvisation on "Masks and Faces" was described as having "kicked open the door for radical experiments with Ashkenazi roots music." Goldberg's musicality has influenced and inspired local musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Goldberg is also the founder of the music label BAG Production. [2]

Recently Goldberg has branched out into songwriting. [3] His "Orphic Machine" project, largely commissioned by Chamber Music America, was performed in Los Angeles. [4] The song-cycle is based on the writings of Allen Grossman and, for one critic, "the piece's thoughtful, sprawling compositions course through such a variety of styles and open-ended impulses that it would be tempting to dub this a new kind of world music". [4] Regarding songwriting and composing, in a 2010 profile piece in All About Jazz, Goldberg said, "I don't just want to give people something that they can appreciate or understand, or that makes them think, or something like that. I used to kind of feel that that's what I wanted to do, but that's not what I want anymore. I want to give people something that they can love." [5]

In 2011, Goldberg was named the No. 1 Rising Star Clarinetist by the Down Beat Critic's Poll. [6]

Discography

As leader

As sideman

With Nels Cline

With Kris Davis

With Allison Miller's Boom Tic Boom

With Jamie Saft

With Myra Melford

References

  1. Whitehead, Kevin (July 5, 2006). "Ben Goldberg's Homage to Steve Lacy". NPR.org. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  2. Goldberg, Ben. "BAG productions". Archived from the original on September 4, 2011. Retrieved June 18, 2012.
  3. "Clarinetist Ben Goldberg ventures in new direction". San Francisco Chronicle . March 29, 2012.
  4. 1 2 Barton, Chris (March 6, 2012). "Jazz Review: Ben Goldberg's Orphic Machine at the Blue Whale". Los Angeles Times .
  5. Allen, Warren (March 30, 2010). "Ben Goldberg; Clarinet Communion". All About Jazz.
  6. "2011 DownBeat Critics Poll". Down Beat . August 31, 2011. Archived from the original on April 14, 2012. Retrieved May 20, 2012.

Further reading