Fri Nov 28
Todd Marcus is one of the few artists worldwide to focus on the bass clarinet as a main instrument in modern jazz with his small and large ensembles. His straight-ahead playing and compositions swing with fiery intensity balanced with delicate introspection. His music offers a strong melodic sensibility, draws from elements of his community work, and often incorporates the Middle Eastern influences of his Egyptian-American heritage.
“Mr. Marcus is probably the most inventive bass clarinetist working in straight-ahead jazz today…[and] lives in Baltimore, where he is a guiding light on the city’s jazz scene who doubles as an activist and organizer.” --- The New York Times
“Listeners won’t have any trouble recognizing Marcus’s compelling gifts for composing and arranging.” – The Washington Post
"Marcus...is clearly what the jazz polls call a "rising star" - as a composer-arranger and as a bass clarinetist." --- JazzTimes
"Baltimore-based Todd Marcus, the virtuoso bass clarinetist and composer, is a master of straight-ahead jazz.” --- Baltimore Sun
Voted a Rising Star annually since 2013 in the Critics Poll. ---Downbeat Magazine