Jeremiah Cymerman

“A clarinetist and an ace sound designer, Cymerman crafts aural worlds of rare detail.”

— Hank Shteamer, Rolling Stone

Based in New York City since 2002 and active across a broad range of musical activity, Jeremiah Cymerman (b. 1980) is composer, clarinetist, producer, and podcaster. Noted for his prolific output, with an ever expanding body of work, Cymerman’s music stands uniquely at the nexus of contemporary classical, electroacoustic experimentation, free improvisation and dark ambient soundscapes. With multiple releases on his own 5049 Records, as well as labels like Tzadik and Astral Spirits, Cymerman’s recorded output has been described by Bill Meyer of the Wire as “blown out studio creations that merge extended reed techniques with the crushing, airless sonics of black metal." Since 2007 much of his focus has been creating an unique and idiosyncratic approach to solo electroacoustic clarinet performance, which has resulted in over one hundred concerts across twenty countries and four full length solo releases. With recent releases, Cymerman’s work for solo clarinet & electronics has become more seamless and refined, resulting in more intimate and personal explorations of tonal and atonal language, causing Lars Gotrich of NPR to remark "Jeremiah Cymerman can simultaneously coax mourning and terror out of a clarinet like no one else. Electronics gurgle and scrape throughout, but he captures the ache and the screaming quietude of his instrument with eerie intimacy."

As a tirelessly active participant in New York’s music scene, as both a performer and recording engineer, at the heart of Cymerman’s work is collaboration, fortifying longstanding and deeply personal musical relationships with many of the city’s most distinctive musicians. Frequent collaborators include Mario Diaz de Leon, Toby Driver, Brian Chase, Charlie Looker, Nate Wooley and Christopher Hoffman. Additionally he has performed and recorded with many legends of underground music including Evan Parker, Jandek, Butch Morris, Otomo Yoshihide and John Zorn. As a recording engineer, Jeremiah Cymerman has recorded and/or mixed albums for artists such as Fred Frith, Zeena Parkins, John Zorn, Evan Parker, Ken Vandermark, Jessica Pavone, Nate Wooley, Sylvie Courvoisier, and dozens more.

In addition to his musical output, from 2013-2019 he produced the widely popular 5049 Podcast, a weekly program of long-form conversations with many of contemporary music’s most daring artists. Praised for its ability to present musicians in engaging and honest conversations, the podcast revealed deep insights into the minds and working methods of contemporary musicians. With an archive of over 200 episodes with artists such as Oren Ambarchi, Susie Ibarra, Bill Frisell, Claire Chase, Craig Taborn, Evan Parker, Trey Spruance,Tyshawn Sorey and hundreds more, the podcast continues to exist as an irreplaceably valuable resource for music lovers the world over.