Muriel Havenstein

Muriel Havenstein (born May 4, 1923 in New York City , New York as Muriel Ritchie , † March 1, 2009 in Nobleboro , Maine ) was an American jazz pianist .

Havenstein, who grew up in the Bronx , came from a musical family and had piano lessons at home. At the age of 16, she became a member of Estelle and Her Brunettes , a women's swing band, with whom she toured along the entire east coast to Florida until 1945. After their marriage in 1947, she raised three children in Old Greenwich (Connecticut) and therefore gave up her musical career. When the children were out of the house, she worked again as a musician in Maine and "has since played an important role in the local and regional jazz scene" ( Jazzinstitut Darmstadt ). Among other things, she was a member of the Noel Kaletsky Quartet, recorded a first album in 1987 and accompanied singers such as Melissa Hamilton, Carole Stone and Leila Percy. With Percy she founded the Sirens of Swing (CD 1999). She performed nationwide at all relevant jazz festivals in the New England states . On the occasion of her 80th birthday, the album Muriel in Concert was created , on which she can be heard in various groups with exponents of the New England jazz scene.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Wolfram Knauer : Obituaries 2009 ( Memento of the original dated February 7, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
2. ↑ Concert announcement  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
3. ^ New England Traditional Jazz: Muriel in Concert

Web links

• Obituary at WCSH6
• Review: Sirens of Swing