Post tag: Eugene Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble
2024 Upcoming Events
  2024      
  November 16     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s original composition “Flight II” performed by pianist ArcoIris Sandoval on Marlow’s “Obrigado Brasil” (MEII Enterprises 2016) is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  November 15     “JAZZ IN CHINA” documentary screening: Dr. Eugene Marlow’s award-winning, feature-length documentary “Jazz in China,” based on his 2018 book of the same name, screened at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York (34th Street and Fifth Avenue) starting at 4 p.m. Room TBA.
  October 15     The Jazz Journalists Association (JJA) publishes The Jazz Omnibus: 21st Century Photos and Writings (Cymbal Press).  The works of 90 JJA members are represented in this volume of approximately 600 pages (with two dozen b&w images). It is available in hardcover, paperback and e-book formats, and sold online (typically. through Amazon). Dr. Eugene Marlow’s essay on jazz pianist great Bill Evans is among those chosen for this volume. 
  August 30     JAZZ IN ARABIC CULTURE BOOK: Eugene Marlow signs a contract with the University Press of Mississippi (UPM) to deliver a manuscript dealing with “Jazz in Arabic Culture” based on his formative documentary. The volume is due for publication in 2026. UPM published Dr. Marlow’s Jazz in China in 2018.
  August 28     Eugene Marlow, MBA, Ph.D. begins his 73rd semester (37th year) teaching courses in media and culture at Baruch College (City University of New York). Dr. Marlow was on fellowship leave in the spring 2024 semester to work on a “Jazz in Arabic Culture” feature-length documentary.
  August 9     DR. EUGENE MARLOW’S “JAZZ IN CHINA” BOOK AND DOCUMENTARY is mentioned in an article by Bruce Munro titled “Shanghai, Shanglow” originally published in odt.co.nz on 3 Aug 2024 and republished on the web site of the New Zealand China Council. Dr. Marlow was interviewed for the article.
  July 11     MARLOW PRIZE 2023-2024 WINNER: David Milch, Director of the MA Program in Arts Administration at Baruch College (City University of New York), informed student Mary Schwab she was the 2023-2024 recipient of the Marlow Prize for her consultancy Building Membership for a Copyright Management Organization: A Consultancy for Artists Rights Society. The honor, including a check for $500, will be presented at a ceremony in early September 2024. Elena Freijeurdaneta was selected for an Honorable Mention for her consultancy Exodus on Odyssey: Touring Strategies for Start-Up Theatre Companies.
  June 7     MEII Enterprises launches its re-constructed, multi-genre indie label web site
  May 24     NEW ALBUM RELEASE: MEII Enterprises releases “Me, Alone,” a nine-track album of original compositions for solo piano performed by Eugene Marlow. These tracks were recorded by the composer in 1971 in his Merced, California apartment following a four-year stint in the United States Air Force.  
  May 13     NEW MARLOWSPHERE BLOG: Eugene Marlow posts a blog book review of Erica Ginsberg’s Creative Resilience.
  May 1     “ZIKKARON/KRISTALLNACHT” AWARD: Eugene Marlow’s documentary short “Zikkaron/Kristallnacht: A Family Story” is an official selection semi-finalist of the CLIMAX Festival Internacional de Cinema Independiente 2024 in the “Best Achievement in Documentary Editing & Sound” category. There were 537 submissions to this film festival. 
  April 30     INTERNATIONAL JAZZ DAY DOCUMENTARY SHOWING: Documentarian Dr. Eugene Marlow shows excerpts from his formative documentary “The Influence of African American Jazzers in the Diaspora: China & Russia” for the 24 hours of International Jazz Day. Link provided on April 30, 2024. Click Here.
  April 15     NEW MARLOWSPHERE BLOG: Eugene Marlow posts a blog about his High School of Performing Arts classmate Charlie Smalls, composer and lyricist of the 1975 Broadway show “The Wiz”. 
  April 13     BIG BAND PERFORMANCE: Bobby Sanabria’s Grammy-nominated “Multiverse” Big Band performs Eugene Marlow’s transcription and arrangement of James Reese Europe’s 1914 recording of “St Louis Blues” as part of a celebration of the music of Rafael Hernandez and James Reese Europe’s Harlem Hellfighters, Bronx Music Hall, 438 East 163rd Street, Bronx, New York City.
  March 30     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s free jazz-styled arrangement of  “Adon Olam” with vocalist Rachel Kara Perez, performed by Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble, is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  March 23     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s Bolero-styled composition “Sin Mi” (Without Me) with lyrics by Rachel Kara Perez, performed by Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble with multi-lingual vocalist Jenn Jade Ledesna, is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  March 22     MARLOW PRESENTATION: Dr. Marlow gives a short talk on his “Jazz International” research project (documentaries and books) PechaKucha style for staff, professors, and students at Baruch College’s (City University of New York) Third Annual Cross-College Faculty Research Symposium. 
  February 17     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s Latin jazz original “Flight II,” performed and recorded by Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble with ArcoIris Sandoval at the piano, is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  February 15     NEW MARLOWSPHERE BLOG: Marlow’s newest blog is “In Recovery from the Pandemic–APAP 2024 Faces: Familiar, New & Absent.” 
  February 9     NEW ALBUM RELEASE: MEII Enterprises proudly releases a second album from the Ben Sutin Quartet. Titled “Mr. Inevitable,” the seven-track album consists of all Sutin originals. The album is available on all major digital platforms and Bandcamp. Watch an album video hereSutin’s first album with MEII Enterprises was “Hard Bop Hanukkah” (2020). 
  February 8-11     JAZZ IN CHINA DOCUMENTARY SHOWING: Eugene Marlow’s award-winning, feature-length documentary “Jazz in China” is an “official selection” of the “Third Annual (2024) Spotlight on Academics Film Festival.” It is shown via ResearchTV.ca. This is the 12th film festival to officially select the documentary. So far, it is the recipient of an “Award of Excellence” from the 2022 Depth of Field International Film Festival and was the first place winner of the 2022 American Insight “Free Speech Film Festival.”
  January 13-14     APAP 2024: Eugene Marlow, Ph.D. attends the annual meeting of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters (New York City) as a journalist. Marlow will write an article about the international exhibitors attending the multi-day event at the New York Hilton (midtown).  
  January 12     “BOARDED AND BROKEN” DOCUMENTARY SHOWING: The New Plaza Cinema (scroll down a bit) shows “Boarded & Broken,” a documentary short photographic essay by Glenda F. Hydler with  a music underscore composed by Dr. Eugene Marlow (who also produced and directed the work). The photographs represent some of the businesses that covered up during and after the vandalism around New York City in the spring of 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Temporary structures were created in the name of “security.” They were boarded and broken, but not forgotten.  The short film festival is organized by filmmaker Michael Jacobsohn. New Plaza Cinema is located at 35 West 67th Street in Manhattan, New York. Starts at 7:30 p.m. General seating: $15; Seniors: $12. 
  January 6     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s Afro-Caribbean original “El Ache de Sanabria,” an homage to friend and colleague Bobby Sanabria, performed and recorded by the Grammy-nominated “Multiverse Big Band” on the Jazzheads label, is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  January 1     Dr. Marlow begins a one-semester fellowship leave from Baruch College to work on his nascent new documentary “Jazz in Arabic Culture”. He returns to teach courses in media and culture at Baruch College on August 28, 2024.
  2023      
  December 16     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s Afro-Caribbean arrangement of “Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel,” performed by his Heritage Ensemble,  is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  November 26     Dr. Eugene Marlow is informed his blog “Remembering Bill Evans: A Personal Account,” originally published in 2013, was to be included in an anthology of “best writing by jazz journalists.” The volume, sponsored by the Jazz Journalists Association, will be published by Cymbal Press in 2024. 
  November 7     MEII ENTERPRISES ARTIST PERFORMANCE: Violinist/Composer Ben Sutin’s fourth album “Mr. Inevitable” is performed by the quartet at a pre-release show at Shapeshifter Lab in Park Slope (New York City) on Tuesday, November 7th starting at 6pm! Shapeshifter Lab is located at 837 Union St, Brooklyn, NY 11215. Sutin’s album will be officially released on February 9, 2024. 
  November 1     GRAMMYU: GrammyU, the mentor/mentee arm of the Recording Academy (the Grammys) has paired Dr. Eugene Marlow (mentor) with French-born Amelia Rolland (mentee), a recent singer-songwriter graduate of the renown Berklee College of Music (Boston, MA).  This is Marlow’s fifth turn in the GrammyU program. He is a voting member (since 2006) of The Recording Academy.
  October 21     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s Latin-jazz arrangement of “Hatikva” (The Hope), the Israeli national anthem, performed by Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble, is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  October 15     RADIO PLAY: Francisco Manuel invites composer/producer Eugene Marlow to spin “Blue in Green Remix” (MEII Enterprises 2023) on Radio Despi out of Barcelona, Spain.
  October 2     Dr. Eugene Marlow participates in the American Insight “Speak EZ” program which showcases award-winning directors, artists. authors, and scholars. Marlow’s feature-length documentary “Jazz in China” won first place in American Insight’s 2022 “Free Speech Film Festival.” He is interviewed by Karen Curry, former NBC and CNN journalist. 
  August 29     The Annual Marlow Prize in “Arts Consulting” is presented at a ceremony organized and hosted by the MA Program in Arts Management (David Milch, Director) at Baruch College (City University of New York) (starts at 6.p.m.). Dr. Marlow is in the process of establishing a $25,000 fund so that the annual prize can be awarded in perpetuity. 
  August 28     Dr. Eugene Marlow begins his 71st semester (36th year) teaching courses in media and culture at Baruch College (City University of New York).
   July 3     MARLOW PRIZE AWARDEES: Matthew Sullivan is the recipient of the Marlow Prize in Arts Leadership for the 2022-23 academic year. His consultancy, Children’s Orchestra Society: Succession Planning for Community Arts Organizations was an exceptional paper utilizing a very high level of research and an analytical approach. His review of succession planning – specifically in a transition within a founder-led organization will serve the Children’s Orchestra Society very well, but also provides an excellent resource for any similar institution. The Committee also awarded an Honorable Mention for the Marlow Prize this year to Jessie Kardos for her consultancy, Re-envisioning a Multinational Dance Nonprofit Through a Program Budget Model: Springboard Danse Montréal & Friends of Springboard Danse. Jessie’s consultancy stood out in its ability to provide excellent research and analysis, managed across two organizations, working internationally and with budgets in multiple currencies. Sullivan and Kardos are students in the MA Program in Arts Management at Baruch College, City University of New York. The annual Marlow Prize is funded by Dr. Eugene Marlow, Senior Professor in Baruch College’s Department of Journalism.
  June 30     ZIKKARON/KRISTALLNACHT SHOWING: Eugene Marlow’s award-winning documentary short “Zikkaron/Kristallnacht: A Family Story” is shown at the New Plaza Cinema (New York City) on June 30. This short (previously an official selection at 18 domestic and international film festivals) is among several shorts shown on June 30. The short film festival is organized by filmmaker Michael Jacobsohn. New Plaza Cinema is located at 35 West 67th Street in Manhattan, New York. General seating: $15; Seniors: $12.
  May 27     PERFORMANCE: Dr. Eugene Marlow’s piece “Aspetta Ancora Qualche Minuto” (“Wait a minute!”) is performed by the Namaste Trio (Natalia Benedetti, clarinet, Guido Arbonelli, clarinet, and Vincenzo De Filpo, pianoforte) in Montecchio Emilia, Italy.  The concert is organized by composer Andrea Talmelli, Presidente of SIMC, the Contemporary Music Italian Association. 
  April 30     JAZZ IN CHINA (DOCUMENTARY): The folks at the UNESCO sponsored International Jazz Day invited Dr. Eugene Marlow to present his multi-award-winning feature documentary “Jazz in China” as an “official event” on April 30, 2023. The documentary is shown free of charge globally via UNESCO’s International Jazz Day web site for 24 hours on April 30, 2023.
  April 21     MEII ENTERPRISES ARTIST PERFORMS: MEII ENTERPRISES artist classical oboist Virginia Chang Chien performs with a trio at Klavierhaus, 790 11th Avenue, New York City. Concert entitled “Revival Romanticism” starts at 7 p.m. Ms. Chien performs with violist April Jiwon Kim and pianist Daniel Colalillo. Tickets $26.
  April 6     JAZZ IN CHINA (DOCUMENTARY): Dr. Eugene Marlow’s award-winning, feature-length documentary is shown at the Brooklyn Heights branch of the Brooklyn Public Library, starting at 6 p.m. in the Multi-Purpose room on the basement level. Dr. Marlow participates in a Q&A session following the showing. The library is located at 286 Cadman Plaza West, Brooklyn NY 11201.
  April 1     ARTICLE: Dr. Marlow is featured in the Baruch College Fund Annual Report 2021-2022 because of his commitment to his Marlow Prize in Arts Leadership, awarded annually to a student in the Graduate Program in Arts Administration.
  March 31-April 2     JAZZ IN CHINA (DOCUMENTARY) ON CUNY-TV: Dr. Eugene Marlow’s award-winning feature-length documentary “Jazz in China” is shown on CUNY-TV. CUNY-TV reaches 7.3 million homes. “Jazz in China” looks at the influence of African American jazz musicians on Chinese artists, and the music’s appeal to Chinese youth. Embark on a captivating journey as this documentary takes you through exclusive interviews and incredible performances that capture the magic of jazz culture in China throughout history, and today. Produced by Baruch College journalism professor Eugene Marlow. Friday, 3/31, Saturday, 4/1, and Sunday, 4/2, at 3:55 PM. CUNY TV | Antenna 25.3 | Spectrum/Optimum 75 | RCN 77 | Verizon FiOS 30
  March 7     MEII ENTERPRISES ALBUM PRODUCTION: MEII Producer Eugene Marlow goes into the studio (Samurai Hotel) in Astoria, Queens (New York City) to oversee the recording of virtuoso violinist Ben Sutin’s forthcoming album, featuring acclaimed drummer Johnathan Blake. The album is due for release in late summer 2023.  
  March 1     JAZZ IN CHINA (DOCUMENTARY) ARTICLE: DOWNBEAT, the leading jazz publication, publishes “Jazz in China: A Cultural Conversation,” authored by John McDonough. The full-page feature article includes comments by producer-director Dr. Eugene Marlow.
  February 27     JAZZ IN CHINA (DOCUMENTARY): Dr. Eugene Marlow talks about his award-winning, feature-length documentary as part of the Northwest China Council’s “Movie Chat” program. Starts at 7 p.m. PST. Register here.
  February 25     MARLOW BIG BAND CHARTS: Composer/Arranger Eugene Marlow adds three more Latin big band charts to 3-2 Music’s catalogue: “Resolution,” “Sin Mi,” and “Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel.” Marlow’s first big band chart with the Fresno, California company that markets to colleges and universities music departments was “El Ache de Sanabria (en moderacion),” Marlow’s musical homage to multi-Grammy nominee drummer/percussionist and big band leader Bobby Sanabria. This chart appears on Sanabria’s Grammy-nominated “Big Band Urban Folktales” (Jazzheads 2007) 
  February 24-26     JAZZ IN CHINA (DOCUMENTARY) ON CUNY-TV: Dr. Eugene Marlow’s award-winning feature-length documentary “Jazz in China” shown on CUNY-TV’s 7.3 million homes. “Jazz in China” looks at the influence of African American jazz musicians on Chinese artists, and the music’s appeal to Chinese youth. Embark on a captivating journey as this documentary takes you through exclusive interviews and incredible performances that capture the magic of jazz culture in China throughout history, and today.  Produced by Baruch College professor Gene Marlow. Friday, 2/24, Saturday, 2/25, and Sunday, 2/26, at 3:35 PM. CUNY TV | Antenna 25.3 | Spectrum/Optimum 75 | RCN 77 | Verizon FiOS 30
  February 15     GRAMMYU MENTEE: Recording Academy voting member Dr. Eugene Marlow is chosen to serve as a mentor to mentee Nora Ann Jn Louis (a.k.a. Koryna), a first year BA in Music Production student at Rider University, Lawrenceville, New Jersey. This is Dr. Marlow’s fourth turn as a mentor in the Recording Academy’s mentorship program.
  February 15     JAZZ IN CHINA (BOOK) TALK: Dr. Eugene Marlow gives a talk (via Zoom) organized by the Northwest China Council (Portland, OR) starting at 7 p.m. (PST). The talk is free and open to the public.  Register here to participate in the one-hour presentation.
  February 11     PERFORMANCE: Dr. Eugene Marlow’s “Aspetta Ancora Qualche Minuto” (“Wait a minute!”) is performed by the Namaste Trio (Natalia Benedetti, clarinet, Guido Arbonelli, clarinet, and Vincenzo De Filpo, pianoforte) at the Camera del lavoro, Association Secondomaggio, in Milano, Italy.
  January 25     Dr. Eugene Marlow begins his 70th semester (35th year) teaching courses in media and culture at Baruch College (City University of New York).
  January 21     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s original Latin composition “Sin Mi” (Without Me) with lyrics by Rachel Kara Perez, performed by Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble with multi-lingual vocalist Jenn Jade Ledesna,  is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  January 2     Dr. Eugene Marlow submits a positive review of The Supreme Nonfiction: An Anthology of Literary Nonfiction in the Digital Age book proposal to publisher Bloomsbury.
         
  2022      
  December 24     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s Afro-Caribbean arrangement of “Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel,” performed by his Heritage Ensemble,  is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  December 15     REVIEW OF THE “JAZZ IN CHINA” BOOK: “BEST JAZZ BOOKS OF 2018.”
  December 15     REVIEW OF THE “JAZZ IN CHINA” DOCUMENTARY: A review of the documentary in “The Feedback Society” by Robert Barry Francos from May 2021.
  November 21     ARTICLE  PUBLISHED: Dr. Eugene Marlow’s article “Jazz in China: The Book, The Documentary, the Journey,” appears in the November 2022 issue of School Band and Orchestra, pp. 16-19.
  November 21     SINGLE TRACK RELEASE: Anruo Cheng’s electroacoustic composition “She Says,” an anti-violence against women protest piece, is released on Eugene Marlow’s indie MEII Enterprises label.
  November 19     “JAZZ IN CHINA” DOCUMENTARY AWARD CEREMONY: American INSIGHT’s annual Free Speech Film Festival Award Ceremony takes place at Cliveden in Philadelphia on Saturday, November 19th, 2022. The Free Speech Film Festival Award Ceremony Moderator is American INSIGHT Board member, Karen Curry, former NBC and CNN Bureau Chief. She will be joined onstage by Bob Craig, longtime WRTI Jazz host, and Dr. Eugene Marlow, the director of the 2022 Free Speech Award winner.
  November 10     “JAZZ IN CHINA” REVIEW: Renowned jazz journalist Nate Chinen pens review of Eugene Marlow’s award-winning, feature-length “Jazz in China” documentary.
  November 10     “ZIKKARON KRISTALLNACHT” DOCUMENTARY PRESENTATION: Dr. Eugene Marlow’s award-winning 2015 documentary short “Zikkaron/Kristallnacht: A Family Story” has been selected by 17 domestic and international film festivals. It also earned the 2016 John Culkin Award for Outstanding Praxis from the Media Ecology Association. The documentary short will be presented as part of The Sandra Kahn Wasserman Jewish Studies Center in the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences at Baruch College on November 10. A talk by Dr. Marlow will follow the showing. The presentation takes place in 14-270 starting at 6 p.m. at Baruch College (New York City).
  November 7     SINGLE TRACK RELEASE: Eugene Marlow’s piece for string orchestra “Undminished” as performed by the North/South Chamber Orchestra is released by MEII Enterprises on cdbaby to 150+ digital platforms. 
  November 3     GUEST SPEAKER/BLUE IN GREEN: Three tracks from Eugene Marlow’s “Blue in Green: Original Compositions Inspired by the Jazz Poems of Grace Schulman” are played at an “event” honoring Dr. Grace Schulman’s retirement from Baruch College. The event takes place in Engelman Recital Hall, Baruch College (New York City) at 6 p.m. Dr. Marlow honors Dr. Schulman with an impromptu recounting of their collaboration, calling her “the Mozart of poets.”
  October 12     JAZZ IN CHINA DOCUMENTARY AWARD: Eugene Marlow’s 2022 feature-length documentary “Jazz in China” is the winner of the 2022 American Insight “Free Speech Festival.” An award ceremony will take place in Philadelphia on November 19.
  September 26     Recording Academy voting member Dr. Eugene Marlow is chosen to serve as a mentor to mentee Ms. Amelia Rolland, a French-born, multi-talented musician-composer (currently studying at the Berklee School of Music in Boston). This is Dr. Marlow’s third turn as a mentor in the Recording Academy’s mentorship program.
  September 25     Marlowsphere Blog: Dr. Marlow publishes Blog #156–Anruo Cheng’s electroacoustic composition “She Says,” an anti-violence against women protest piece. 
  August 31     JAZZ IN CHINA AWARD INTERVIEW: Dr. Eugene Marlow, Producer/Director of the award-winning documentary “Jazz in China,” is interviewed by Karen Curry, a member of the board of American Insight (via Zoom), regarding his documentary. The feature-length documentary (which has also received an “Award of Excellence” from the Depth of Field International Film Festival) is the winner of the 2022 American Insight “Free Speech Film Festival.”
  August 30     The Annual Marlow Prize in “Arts Consulting” is presented at a ceremony organized and hosted by the MA Program in Arts Management (David Milch, Director) at Baruch College (starts at 6.p.m.). Stephanie O’Brien received the award for 2021-22, and both Jose Alvarado and Rob Maitner received Honorable Mentions. Dr. Marlow is in the process of establishing a $25,000 fund so that the annual prize can be awarded in perpetuity. 
  August 29     Dr. Eugene Marlow begins his 69th semester (35th year) teaching courses in media and culture at Baruch College (City University of New York).
  August 13     JAZZ IN CHINA DOCUMENTARY AWARD: Eugene Marlow’s feature-length documentary “Jazz in China” is the recipient of an “Award of Excellence” from the “2022 Depth of Field International Film Festival.” The festival received close to 400 entries from 23 countries. 
  August 9     JAZZ IN CHINA ZOOM PRESENTATION: Dr. Eugene Marlow is interviewed on Zoom by the University of Chicago/Hong Kong about his feature-length documentary “Jazz in China.” Dr. Marlow shows a 15-minute portion of the documentary followed by a Q&A session. The full-length, 60-minute documentary is an official selection at 11 domestic and international film festivals.
  August 3     JAZZ IN CHINA IN-PERSON PRESENTATION: Dr. Eugene Marlow gives a talk on “Jazz in China: The Documentary” at the Basalt (Colorado) Public Library. He shows the feature-length documentary in its entirety followed by a Q&A session. Presentation starts at 5:30.
  August 1     JAZZ IN CHINA IN-PERSON PRESENTATION: Dr. Eugene Marlow gives talk on “Jazz in China: The Book/The Documentary” at the Aspen Composers Conference, Aspen, Colorado. Dr. Marlow shows a 15-mi nute portion of the documentary followed by a comparison of writing the book vs. producing the documentary.
  July 8     PERFORMANCE: Eugene Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble provides music for Baruch College’s Executive MBA Reception at the St. Regis (New York City).
  July 2     RADIO PLAY: Eugene Marlow’s “El Ache de Sanabria” performed by the Grammy-nominated “Multiverse Big Band” is spun on WBGO’s “Latin Jazz Cruise,” hosted by Bobby Sanabria. WBGO is the most listened to jazz radio station on the planet.
  June     JAZZ IN CHINA DOCUMENTARY REVIEW: International Piano (UK) publishes a review of Eugene Marlow’s documentary, p. 62.
  May 22     MANUSCRIPT REVIEW: Dr. Eugene Marlow submits review of “Locating Burial Mound: Naamyam, Free Jazz, and Chinese American Voices” draft manuscript for Music Theory Spectrum, University of Ottawa.
  April 30     JAZZ IN CHINA DOCUMENTARY: Eugene Marlow’s revised feature-length documentary about “Jazz in China” (based on his 2018 book) is an “official event” of International Jazz Day. The documentary is available for viewing free of charge globally for the 24 hours of International Jazz Day.
  April 15     THE MARLOWSPHERE BLOG: Eugene Marlow publishes “Part II: It’s Suffocating: When Young Women From South East Asia Hit A Cultural Wall.” 
  April 8     THE MARLOWSPHERE BLOG: Eugene Marlow publishes Part I: “It’s Suffocating When Young Women From South East Asia Hit A Cultural Wall” 
  April 2-8     NPR RADIO PLAY: Judy Carmichael re-broadcasts her March 2019 interview with Dr. Eugene Marlow about his book Jazz in China: From Dance Hall Music to Individual Freedom of Expression (University Press of Mississippi 2018). Marlow will release a feature-length documentary version of the book on the MEII Enterprises label on April 30, 2022, International Jazz Day.
  February 28     ZIKKARON/KRISTALLNACHT OFFICIAL FILM FESTIVAL SELECTIONS: MEII Enterprises announces that Dr. Eugene Marlow’s 2015 documentary short “Zikkaron/Kristallnacht: A Family Story” has been selected for showing at 18 domestic and international film festivals, as follows: 2022 Stockholm Short Festival, 2022 FlickFair Film Festival, 2022 Arthouse Festival of Beverly Hills, 2021 Tokyo Shorts Film Festival, 2021 San Francisco Indie Short Festival, 2021 Rotterdam Independent Film Festival, 2021 Phoenix Shorts Film Festival, 2021 Paris International Film Festival, 2021 Niagara Falls International Short Festival, 2021 London Indie Short Festival, 2021 Florida Short Film Festival, 2021 Berlin Shorts Award, and 2017 New York Short Film Tuesdays.
  February 7     GRAMMYU: Grammy U, the educational outreach arm of the Recording Academy, has paired Dr. Eugene Marlow (voting member since 2006) with Jonah Abrams, an upper level student at Stevens Institute of Technology (New Jersey) for the Spring 2022 semester.
  January 31     Dr. Eugene Marlow begins his 68th semester teaching courses in media and culture at Baruch College (City University of New York).
  January 28     Dr. Eugene Marlow interviews Baayork Lee, Co-Founder and Executive Artistic Director of the National Asian Artists Project, as part of the MA in Arts Administration Spring 2022 Semester Welcome @ Baruch College (starts @ 5 p.m.) Dr. Marlow and Ms. Lee both graduated from The High School of the Performing Arts: Marlow as a drama major, Ms. Lee as a dance major. Of note, Lee created the role of Connie in the 1976 Tony-award winning Best Musical A Chorus Line.
  January 11     THE MARLOWSPHERE BLOG: Eugene Marlow publishes his newest blog: “Update: The Max Borak Story.”
  January 10     ALBUM RELEASE: MEII Enterprises releases “C.I.T.I.Z.E.N.” the inaugural album from Ghananian rapper Pope Nst. The five-track album has been distributed worldwide to all digital platforms. 

Please check back often as updates with new dates and more details will be added to the schedule.

Click here to learn more about Eugene Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble

EMHE

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18 Film Festival Honors for Eugene Marlow’s “Zikkaron/Kristallnacht: A Family Story” DVD

Zikkaron/Kristallnacht Remembrance of Kristallnacht DVD by Eugene MarlowOFFICIAL SELECTION-Paris Independent Film Festival-2021Nominee-London Indie Short Festival-September 2021Dr. Eugene Marlow’s documentary short “Zikkaron/Kristallnacht: A Family Story” has been an official selection of 17 domestic and international film festivals, including the October 18-24, 2021 Paris Independent Film Festival and the London Indie Short Festival. It was awarded the 2016 John Culkin Award for Outstanding Praxis in the Field of Media Ecology by the Media Ecology Association. CUNY-TV aired the documentary in March 2020 as part of its “Short Docs” series.

Professor Marlow is a faculty member of the Department of Journalism and the Writing Professions at the Weissman School of Liberal Arts & Sciences, Baruch College, City University of New York (since 1988).

In addition to the above, Dr. Marlow is the recipient of several dozen awards for video programming excellence from numerous domestic and international video/film competitions.

About “Zikkaron/Kristallnacht: A Family Story”

This nine-minute documentary short describes the events of November 9-10, 1938 all over Germany and parts of Austria when, on the pretext of the assassination of a German diplomat in Paris, the Nazis destroyed thousands of Jewish-owned stores, buildings, synagogues, and homes.

The word “Kristallnacht” means “The Night of Broken Glass,” a reference to the shards of broken glass, a result of the destruction. “Kristallnacht” is considered the beginning of what resulted in the Holocaust.

The events of Kristallnacht” are told from producer Dr. Eugene Marlow’s maternal family’s perspective. They were present in Leipzig, Germany, during the event.  His Aunt Ruth (nee Landesberg) who was a child at the time of Kristallnacht, narrates the video. The video contains dozens of historical photographs and film. An original music score was composed and performed by Dr. Marlow and his quintet The Heritage Ensemble.


Generous support for this was project was provided by a PSC-CUNY Award, jointly funded by The Professional Staff Congress and The City University of New York.

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What Is Jewish Music?

CantorMarlowsphere Blog (#144)

What is Jewish music? At its essence, Jewish music, like music of any identified culture, reflects Jewish values and experiences.

For example, an obvious, partial answer to the question “What is Jewish music?” is music of the synagogue, the schul: cantorial music, liturgical music, and cantillation. Melodies such as “Halleluyah,” “Heine Ma Tov,” “V’Taher Lebeinu,” “Yis Ma Chu,” “L’Cha Dodi,” “Avinu Malkeinu,” and “Kol Nidre.”

Then there are melodies sung and played at various Jewish celebrations—Chanukah, Passover, and Purim—in the synagogue and in Jewish homes, such as “Moaz Tsur,” “Chanukah, O, Chanukah,” “Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel,” “Sevivon,” “Mishenichnas Adar Marbim Be-Simecha,” “Layehudim Haitah Orah Ve-Simechah, Ve-Sasson, Ve-Yakar,” “Adon Olam,” “Mah Nishtanah Halaylah Haze,” and “Eliyahu Hanavi.”

And there are countless folk melodies, for example “Ata Hu Hashem,” “Lahadam,” and “Erev Shel Shoshanim.” This catalog of Jewish music must also include Israel’s national anthem “Hatikva” and the most covered Jewish melody of all “Hava Nagila.”

There is also Klezmer: a musical tradition of the Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern Europe. Played by professional musicians called klezmorim in ensembles known as kapelye, the Klezmer Musicgenre originally consisted largely of dance tunes and instrumental display pieces for weddings and other celebrations. In the United States the genre evolved considerably as Yiddish-speaking Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, who arrived between 1880 and 1924, came into contact with American jazz.

And there is nigunim: A nigun (singular of nigunim) (Hebrew: meaning “tune” or “melody”) is a form of Jewish religious song or tune sung by groups. It is vocal music, often with repetitive sounds such as “Bim-Bim-Bam”, “Lai-Lai-Lai”, “Yai-Yai-Yai” or “” Ai-Ai-Ai” instead of formal lyrics. Nigunim are especially central to worship in Hasidic Judaism.

In the 20th and 21st centuries the advent of Jewish music and music based on Jewish culture and themes extended beyond the synagogue and Jewish home, as in Broadway musicals, such as:

Fiddler on the RoofAmerike—The Golden Land (1982), Cabaret (1966), Falsettos (1992), Fiddler on the Roof (1964), I Can Get It For You Wholesale (1962), Milk and Honey (1961), Ragtime (1998), The Immigrant (2004), The People in the Picture (2011), The Zulu and the Zayda (1965), and War Paint (2017).

Films with Jewish “sounding” music and Jewish culture and themes are just as numerous, and include most famously “The Jazz Singer” (1927), “The 10 Commandments” (1956), “Ben Hur” (1959),  “Exodus” (1960), “Funny Girl” (1968), “Oliver” (1968), “Fiddler on the Roof” (1968), “Yentl” (1983), “Schindler’s List” (1993), “Eight Crazy Nights” (2002), “Munich” (2005), and “Defiance” (2008).

In the genre of jazz, the inventory of “jazz Jews” inspired British author and radio show host Mike Gerber to pen a 656-page volume titled Jazz Jews (published in 2009). Some of these Jews wrote a treasure trove of Yiddish music that found its way into the popular culture, such as Sholem Secunda’s “Bay mir bistu sheyn”

The list of Jewish composers and performers who contributed to the “Great American Songbook” is very long and includes such notables as Aaron Copland, George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Leonard Bernstein, Neil Sedaka, Carole King, and Bob Dylan. Berlin, who wrote close to 2,000 Neil Sedakatunes, famously wrote the most popular Christmas song ever, “I’m Dreaming of A White Christmas.” And Neil Sedaka, who wrote, among many others songs, “Stairway to Heaven” and “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do,” is aptly named. In Hebrew Sedaka means “righteousness” or more popularly “charity.”

Clearly, while Jewish music has its origins in religious observance in the schul and in the Jewish home and is a significant cultural glue that bounds the Jewish community in the diaspora, Jewish music as a reflection of Jewish culture and themes has spread globally thanks to information, communications, and transportation technologies in the 20th and 21st centuries..

So, what then is Jewish music in contemporaneous terms? Is it strictly the music of the synagogue, Jewish melodies sung in the home, or Israeli folksongs, et al? In the context of globalism these definitions, while correct, are too constrained. Can we not define Jewish music as music based on Jewish sounds, culture, and themes?

A.Z. Idelsohn We must now also define Jewish music in the current cultural context, which is: no culture is pure; all cultures are a mixture. And it has been this way for thousands of years. Cultures are influenced by other cultures. No less than the father of Jewish musicology A.Z. Idelsohn in his seminal work Jewish Music in Its Historical Development (1929) in the very first sentence of Chapter I “The Song of the Synagogue,” states: “In surveying the development of music in ancient Israel it is essential to consider the music of Israel’s ancient neighbors.” In other words, no culture, let alone musical culture stands alone. Outside influences have an impact.

For the Jews in the diaspora and even now in Israel, outside musical cultures must be taken into account. And the cultural flow goes both ways. Earlier I referenced “Hava Nagila,” the most covered Jewish melody ever. Quite apart from Harry Belafonte’s rendition, Machito, one of the progenitors of Latin-jazz in New York City, also covered this same melody. On a 1951 recording he called the tune “Mambo Holiday.” My own Heritage Ensemble Quintet has taken two dozen Hebraic melodies and morphed them into arrangements using various jazz, Afro-Caribbean, Brazilian, and classical genres.

All in all, Jewish music—while born in religious observance—has clearly evolved and incorporated the cultural diaspora into its musical catalog.

© Eugene Marlow 2019

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Eugene Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble CD “A Not so Silent Night” Earns Four Stars from Downbeat Magazine

Eugene Marlow’s Heritage Ensemble’s “A Not So Silent Night” album (2016) has earned four stars in the December 2017 issue of Downbeat Magazine. It’s featured in Frank-John Hadley’s “Stellar Stocking Stuffers” article, p. 87.

 

The review is as follows:

 

Downbeat cover & review of Eugene Marlow's Heritage Ensemble's "A Not So Silent Night" December 2017 issue

 

"A Not So Silent Night" Eugene Marlow's Heritage Ensemble

 

“A Not So Silent Night” is the eighth album from The Heritage Ensemble featuring multi-Grammy nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria, saxophonist Michael Hashim, bassist Frank Wagner,  percussionist Matthew Gonzalez, and Leader/pianist Eugene Marlow.

 

“A Not So Silent Night” along with other Heritage Ensemble albums can be found at can be found at www.cdbaby.com/artist/eugenemarlow

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Book Review: “Letters to Yeyito: Lessons from a Life in Music” by Paquito d’Rivera

The Marlowsphere Blog (#134)

Letters to Yeyito: Lessons from a Life in Music

Letters to Yeyito (Restless Books, Brooklyn, NY, 228 pages, softcover, 2015) by world renowned reed player Paquito d’Rivera has the sub-title “Lessons from a Life in Music.” Fact is the book is much more than that.

It is more than a litany of lessons from a life in music for one major reason: Paquito d’Rivera. If this book had been written by less than an accomplished jazz/classical musician than Maestro d’Rivera, it would have less meaning. Fact is Cuban-born clarinetist and saxophonist d’Rivera is celebrated for his artistry in Latin jazz and achievements in classical composition. He has received 14 Grammys, the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master Award, and the National Medal of the Arts.  He is the only artist to have won Grammys in both classical and Latin jazz categories.

But it is not this wall of awards that gives Letters to Yeyito its literary heft. Not only does the author offer a highly descriptive account of life in Cuba under Fidel Castro, he also provides a detailed account of the many people who have crossed his musical path and the family and friends who have surrounded him. More than the lessons, the page after page mention of people in his career is what gives the book its life.

The list of musical mentors and colleagues is lengthy. And it is not just name-dropping. Many are familiar in their own right; many others are less well known, but nonetheless important to his evolving career.

Here’s a partial list: “Charanguero” flutist Jose Fajardo, pianist Rafael Somavilla, guitarist Carlos Emilio, trumpeter Arturo Sandoval, bassist Carlitos Puerto, trap drummer Enrique Pla, trumpeter John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie, pianist Mike Longo, composer Lalo Schifrin, the twins Placido and Domingo Calzadilla, Stan Getz, Earl Hines, David Amram, Mario Bauza (an old friend of Paquito’s father), alto clarinetist Rudy Rutherford, bassist Ron McClure, drummer Billy Hart, Ray Mantilla, John Ore, Mickey Rocker, Ben Brown, Paquito d'Riverapianist Joanne Brackeen, Rodney Jones, Bruce Lundval, jazz event entrepreneur George Wein, pianists Bill Evans and McCoy Tyner, bassist Israel Cachao, local guitarist Carlo Emilio, saxophonist Phil Woods, saxophonist and flautist Frank Wess, soprano Martina Arroyo, trumpeter Claudio Roditi, bass guitarist Lincoln Goines, drummer Portinho, pianist Michael Camilo, trombonist Conrad Herwig, Argentinian saxophonist Oscar Feldman, and cellist Yo Yo Ma. Again, this is a partial list.

There’s also Uncle Ernesto, Jesus Canon the grocer, and old lady Cheché, among many other family members, friends, peers, and Castro-ites from his native Cuba.

If there’s a life lesson in this book it is that talent and high musical accomplishment attracts like talent and accomplishment.

Paquito d’Rivera’s  Letters to Yeyito: Lessons from a Life in Music offers the reader a first- hand account of life in Castro’s Cuba from a musician’s perspective. But more than this, it underlines the importance of family, friends, mentors, and peers in the development of a musical career.

Eugene Marlow
September 19, 2016

© Eugene Marlow 2016

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