Album Notes

About the Artist

Harmonica virtuoso Sandy Weltman's talents are diverse to say the least. While at home in the jazz realm, he is equally skilled in blues, Celtic, Klezmer, Latin and more. Sandy learned much of his harmonica styling while under the tutelage of harmonica wizard Howard "Flecktone" Levy and he gained international recognition in the World Harmonica Competitions. Sandy has also won numerous awards and is equally skilled on the banjo, the mandolin and a wide variety of percussion instruments. Sandy has performed on dozens of albums nationally and has released four albums of his own: "Banjo Magic" (1987), "Escape Velocity" with his band The SanDROIDS (1996), "New World Harmonica Jazz" with The Carolbeth Trio (1998) and "The Klezmer Nuthouse" (2002). He is also a member of Farshid Etniko a world music group that has been called "the Persian Grateful Dead".

Sandy has performed with: Howard Levy, Richard Hayman, Brewer & Shipley, Bela Fleck, Bluegrass Alliance and others. Sandy has opened for: Norman & Nancy Blake, Beau Soleil, Peter Ostrushko, Cassandra Wilson, Trio Globo, Hot Rize, Leon Redbone, Victor Wooten, John Hartford and many others.

"Weltman deserves Praise as a soloist; his harmonica playing leaps out into inventive melodic territory while expressing the emotions inherent in the song."
- St. Louis Post Dispatch

"Sandy Weltman is the most versatile harmonica player in St. Louis - bar none."
- The Bluesletter

"Weltman stretches the limits of the instrument by following his mentor Howard Levy as a pioneer of the basic 10-hole diatonic harmonica."
- The Riverfront Times

About the Project

SANDY WELTMAN has again stretched his musical boundaries with this foray into Klezmer music. Klezmer music can be described as Jewish Gypsy Jazz and originated in Eastern Europe. Long an integral part of Jewish community celebrations, Klezmer (derived from the Hebrew "instruments of song") gained elements of Romanian, Russian and Gypsy cultures to add to the uniqueness of it's sound. He spent over 3 years researching and recording this project, as he filtered the music through his own unique consciousness. The use of the banjo and harmonica as lead instruments results in a beautifully unique tapestry of music.

"The Klezmer Nuthouse" ranges from the traditional "Mazel", where Sandy is joined by the cello and violin, to the original "Dancing Sheik To Sheik", with Sandy playing ALL the instruments - including Middle Eastern percussion, to the "Bulgar Breakdown" with help from bluegrass band "The Lonesome Pines". Also joining Sandy on the CD are some of St. Louis' (and the Midwest's) premier musicians including: Carolbeth True, Dave Black, Farshid and Ali Soltanshahi, Beth Tuttle, Janis Rieman, Bill and Tom Murphy, Mike Tiefenbrun, and others.

"Sandy Weltman, eccentric master of the banjo & harmonica, reinvents the music of his ancient tribe."
-Roy Kasten

"Good as Sandy Weltman is, he stands out mostly because his instruments are distinctive! ....The Klezmer Nuthouse should be good listening for klez addicts and of interest to any acoustic music connoisseur."
-Columbia Gypsy

"There have been lots of original approaches to Klezmer in recent decades, and this is another worthy addition to the growing list of progressive recordings in that genre."
-Dirty Linen - January 2003