New Orleans Klezmer All Stars

Biography

The New Orleans Klezmer All Stars are a pioneering New Orleans, Louisiana–based klezmer ensemble that formed in the early 1990s and have remained an active performing group for more than three decades.[1][2][3] Coalescing on the Crescent City club circuit around 1991–92, the band emerged when guitarist and composer Jonathan Freilich, accordionist Glenn Hartman, and clarinetist Ben Schenck began experimenting with tunes from around the world—including swing, Caribbean material, and traditional klezmer—within the city’s dance-oriented nightlife.[1] Rooted in the centuries‑old Eastern European Jewish folk idiom, they set out to treat klezmer as living social music rather than museum folklore, absorbing the rhythmic drive and improvisational spirit of New Orleans jazz, funk, and street-parade traditions.[2][3]

From the start, the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars built a reputation as a high‑energy dance band, playing long club sets and festivals with a lineup that typically featured reeds, accordion, guitar, bass, and drums.[1][8] Their approach blends traditional klezmer modes and melodies with second‑line grooves, rock backbeats, Afrobeat touches, and free‑wheeling collective improvisation, creating what the band has called a kind of “Yiddish Impressionism”—music that keeps audiences dancing while also probing deeper cultural memories.[3][6] Over the years they have released multiple recordings, toured nationally and internationally, and even collaborated with poet Andrei Codrescu on a dedicated project, helping to expand the possibilities of contemporary klezmer.[5] Their intermittent but enduring activity into the 2020s, including the 2023 album Tipish, has secured them a place as key innovators linking traditional Jewish music with the broader creative ferment of New Orleans.[1][3][5]

Fun Facts

• The band’s 2023 album Tipish was recorded almost entirely live in a room over just two days, with most tracks captured in only two takes to preserve a raw, social‑music feel.[1]
• Early on, when the group urgently needed a drummer for a big gig, Neville Brothers drummer “Mean” Willie Green volunteered on the spot, underscoring how fluidly New Orleans musicians move between projects.[1]
• Saxophonist Ben Ellman was working as a cook when he first came to New Orleans, and he once cooked chicken for Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti; a later New Orleans Klezmer All Stars tune titled “King Fela’s Chicken Soup” playfully nods to that story and blends Afrobeat with klezmer.[1]
• By 2011 the band was already at least five records into its catalog and marked its 20th anniversary, including a sixth project made in collaboration with poet Andrei Codrescu.[5][7]

Members

• Ben Ellman
• Jonathan Freilich - original
• Glenn Hartman - original
• Arthur Kastler
• Kevin O'Day
• Rick Perles
• Rob Wagner

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• New Orleans jazz, funk, and social dance traditions - The band explicitly draws inspiration from the social, dance‑driven nature of New Orleans music, modeling their long, high‑energy sets and rhythmic feel on local club and parade culture. (General influence heard across their repertoire and recordings, including albums released on Shanachie and later projects like Tipish.) [1991–present]
• Traditional Eastern European klezmer and Yiddish secular music - They build on the centuries‑old klezmer folk tradition and the idea of klezmer as Yiddish secular, often instrumental, social music, using it as the core idiom they then stretch and rework. (Traditional tunes adapted in live sets; original compositions in klezmer style throughout their discography.) [1991–present]

Key Collaborators

• Jonathan Freilich - Co‑founder, guitarist, and principal composer/arranger; long‑time core member shaping the group’s sound and repertoire. (Multiple albums with the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars, including early Shanachie releases and the 2023 album Tipish.[1][3][5]) [1991–present]
• Glenn Hartman - Co‑founder and accordionist, often described as a leader of the group; central to the band’s melodic voice and connection to traditional klezmer. (All core band recordings and performances; ongoing duo work with Freilich during periods when the full band performed less frequently.[1][2][3]) [1991–present]
• Ben Ellman - Saxophonist and long‑time member who later became known for his work with Galactic; key horn voice linking the band to the broader New Orleans funk scene. (Multiple albums and live performances with the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars; later role as saxophonist/producer in Galactic.[1][2][3]) [1990s–present]
• Stanton Moore - New Orleans drummer who held the drum chair in the band for many years; his time in the group helped forge connections that fed into the formation and development of Galactic. (Live performances and recordings with the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars during his tenure as drummer.[1][3]) [1990s]
• “Mean” Willie Green - Neville Brothers drummer who stepped in when the band needed a drummer for an early major gig, exemplifying the cross‑band collaboration typical of the New Orleans scene. (Early live performances with the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars, including a significant early engagement mentioned by Freilich.[1][3]) [Early 1990s]
• Doug Garrison - Drummer (known from The Iguanas) who has performed and recorded with the group, including on later projects. (Tipish sessions and other live work with the band.[1]) [2000s–2020s]
• Aurora Nealand - Saxophonist (Royal Roses, The Monocle) who joined the expanded all‑star configuration on more recent sessions. (Saxophone contributions to Tipish and associated performances.[1]) [2020s]
• Dan Oestreicher - Saxophonist (associated with Trombone Shorty) appearing with the ensemble in its contemporary lineup. (Work on Tipish and live shows with the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars.[1]) [2020s]
• Nick Ellman - Clarinetist (from the band Naughty Professor) brought into the group by his cousin, saxophonist Ben Ellman, as part of a new generation of collaborators. (Clarinet on Tipish and recent performances.[1]) [2020s]
• Joe Cabral - Bassist and long‑time New Orleans musician who has been part of the band’s rhythm section. (Bass on Tipish and other live and studio projects.[1][3]) [1990s–2020s]
• Andrei Codrescu - Poet who collaborated with the band on a dedicated recording project blending spoken word and klezmer‑inflected music. (A collaborative album described by Freilich as the group’s sixth recording, made with Codrescu.[5]) [By 2011 (exact recording date not specified)]

Artists Influenced

• Galactic (via Stanton Moore and Ben Ellman) - The New Orleans Klezmer All Stars provided the setting where drummer Stanton Moore and saxophonist Ben Ellman deepened their musical relationship; Ellman went on to become Galactic’s horn player and producer, and this constellation of collaborations is described as pivotal in Galactic’s development. (Galactic’s later funk and jam‑band recordings featuring Ben Ellman, whose role in the group emerged from connections forged in the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars.[1]) [Mid‑1990s onward]

Discography

Albums

Top Tracks

1. Mr. 9 O'Clock (Fresh Out The Past)
2. Klezmer Defiance (Fresh Out The Past)
3. Hartman Pick Up Your Accordion And Play (Fresh Out The Past)
4. Dr. Lizard (Fresh Out The Past)
5. Not Too Eggy (Fresh Out The Past)
6. The Unholy Chazir (Fresh Out The Past)
7. Struttin' With Some Doner Kabob (Fresh Out The Past)
8. Coney Island White Fish (Fresh Out The Past)
9. Aging Raver's Personal Hell (Fresh Out The Past)
10. Casablanca To L.A. (Fresh Out The Past)

External Links

• Spotify
• MusicBrainz

Tags: #klezmer