Real Music & Real Estate . . .

Yiddishe Cup’s bandleader, Bert Stratton, is Klezmer Guy.
 

He knows about the band biz and – check this out – the real estate biz, too.
 

You may not care about the real estate biz. Hey, you may not care about the band biz. (See you.)
 

This is a blog with a gamy twist. It features tenants with snakes and skunks, and musicians with smoked fish in their pockets.
 

Stratton has written op-eds for the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Washington Post.


 
 

NICHE OF NICHES

by Bert Stratton

Bob Berkman lectured on the roll of the player piano roll in Jewish music. Berkman used to work at a player piano company in Buffalo, New York. The company made piano rolls until 2009. The last Jewish piano roll rolled out in 1980. It was “The Theme from Exodus” by Ferrante and Teicher. Berkman said there are about 800 Jewish piano-roll titles out there. He has 256.

Berkman’s mother was at the lecture, in Cleveland at a temple sisterhood. His mother lives in Cleveland. Bob had a power point and had rented a grand piano. He hooked up his Pianola player piano to the grand piano. I bet Bob took a financial bath on that presentation. (I know about sisterhood budgets.) I think he did the presentation just for his mom. Bob played everything from “The Shtiler Bulgar” to “Bay Mir Bistu Sheyn.” He asked me where might he perform next. I wasn’t sure.

Niche of niches.

piano roll muffins

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5KMKuD6b2M

Bob Berkman

(Bob’s website is here. Book him!)

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Yiddishe Cup plays the Medina (Ohio) International Fest 2:30 p.m. Saturday (Aug. 22). Free.

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6 comments

1 Ted { 08.19.15 at 9:08 am }

Power point.

2 Bert Stratton { 08.19.15 at 9:53 am }

To Ted:

Thanks. Corrected to read “power point” [had been “point power” / (dybbuk).]

3 adrianne { 08.19.15 at 10:46 am }

Fascinating as usual!! Had me wondering if the musicality of Berkman was in the roll itself.

4 Seth B. Marks { 08.19.15 at 12:14 pm }

Loved Berkman’s Tango piece. Hey, I’ve got to get work done.

5 marc { 08.19.15 at 3:47 pm }

I heard his presentation at Klezkamp a number of years ago.

6 Dave Rowe { 08.24.15 at 7:24 am }

Good thing Jerry Lee Lewis didn’t show up.

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