Re: how many hands has Joseph Moskowitz?

[Paul M. Gifford <PGIFFORD...>]

Incidentally, my friend Nicolae Feraru, the Gypsy tzambalagiu from 
Bucharest who lives in Chicago, recognized one section of "Buhuser 
Chusid" as part of a hora from Dobrogea. As Moskowitz was from 
Galati, which is not too far from Dobrogea, this is probably not too 
surprising. Nick's grandfather was a clarinet player in Galati at 
the turn of the century, and I wonder whether he had any contact with 
Moskowitz's family. 

Moskowitz learned to read music from his father and clearly wrote out 
his arrangements. This had to be very unusual for Romanian cimbalom 
players at the time (and still is unusual today, as formal 
instruction is by rote memorization, not through published methods, 
as in Hungary). I think his "Hungarian Rag" is in E flat, the hardest 
key on the cimbalom to play, so he obviously wanted to make it hard 
on himself.

Paul Gifford

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