Todd Marcus at Strathmore Music Center

Baltimore bass clarinetist, composer, and bandleader Todd Marcus is one of the few jazz artists worldwide to focus their work exclusively on the bass clarinet.

Marcus’ straight-ahead playing has carved out a unique voice for the instrument in modern jazz. His music swings hard with both a fiery and introspective intensity but also maintains a strong lyrical sensibility.

Self taught in jazz theory and composition, Marcus’ compositions draw largely on straight-ahead jazz and classical influences but over recent years have increasingly explored Middle-Eastern sounds from his Egyptian-American heritage. ...

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Baltimore bass clarinetist, composer, and bandleader Todd Marcus is one of the few jazz artists worldwide to focus their work exclusively on the bass clarinet.

Marcus’ straight-ahead playing has carved out a unique voice for the instrument in modern jazz. His music swings hard with both a fiery and introspective intensity but also maintains a strong lyrical sensibility.

Self taught in jazz theory and composition, Marcus’ compositions draw largely on straight-ahead jazz and classical influences but over recent years have increasingly explored Middle-Eastern sounds from his Egyptian-American heritage.

Special guest clarinetist Don Bryon has been a singular voice in an astounding range of musical contexts for over three decades, exploring widely divergent traditions while continually striving for what he calls "a sound above genre." As clarinetist, saxophonist, composer, arranger, and social critic, he redefines every genre of music he plays, be it classical, salsa, hip-hop, funk, rhythm & blues, klezmer, or any jazz style from swing and bop to cutting-edge downtown improvisation. Byron has a recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, and been consistently voted best clarinetist by critics and readers alike in leading international music journals since being named “Jazz Artist of the Year” by Down Beat in 1992.

More at toddmarcusjazz.com
"This is music that is smart, heartfelt and alive with ardent conviction."
--- The New York City Jazz Record, January 2016

"Marcus...is clearly what the jzz polls call a "rising star" - as a composer-arranger and as a bass clarinetist. In Marcus' hands, the bass clarinet is no longer a specialty instrument. Its unique timbral richness becomes incisive, fully capable of forceful expression."
--- JazzTimes, August 2015

"Listeners won't have any trouble recognizing Marcus's compelling gifts for composing and arranging."
--- The Washington Post, May 2015
"Baltimore-based Todd Marcus, the virtuoso bass clarinetist and composer, is a master of straight-ahead jazz.”
--- Baltimore Sun, January 2014

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