Andy Statman is the virtuoso klezmer clarinetist that violinist Itzhak Perlman chose to lead his klezmer album, In the Fiddler's House. Statman’s virtuosity is “stunning.” He considers himself lucky, as he is “from the last generation that had a chance to learn from the greats.” He is a disciple of the legendary master klezmer clarinetist Dave Taris, “the most successful immigrant-era Yiddish musician." Tarras, who died in 1989, bequeathed his clarinets to Andy, his greatest protégé – and made him the next link in the chain. Hence, Statman became known primarily as one of the key klezmer revivalists of the '70s and early '80s, among the musicians who launched a great wave to reclaim the music of the Old World.

Much more than a one-genre performer, Statman thinks of his own compositions and performances as "spontaneous personal, prayerful Hasidic music, American-roots music and by way of avant-garde jazz." He is a modest man that takes for granted that a performer might embody several worlds in his art and seems humbled by the fact that his music, like his own story, is extraordinary.

Join the American Society for Jewish Music and YIVO for this year's Hanukkah concert featuring The Andy Statman Trio.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.