four questions
Kenny Wolin chats with Platinum.
The rhythm and beat of Barack Obama's historic
WHAT BOOK, CD,
OR OTHER MEDIA
DO YOU LONG TO
SHARE?
I'd share the book What
Happy People Know: How
the Science of Happiness Can
Change Your Life for the
Better by Dan Baker. It's an
antidote for Jewish guilt.
I'd rather not say much
about the book because it's
personal. I'd rather let peo-
ple discover it for them-
selves if they choose to. But
one thing I will say is that
reading it will save you lots
of money on therapy.
presidency is, in part, in the hands of percussionist
KENNY WOLIN. The Oak Park native, who now lives in
Virginia, is a gunnery sergeant with "The President's
Own" United States Marine Band, America's old-
est professional musical organization. "We basically
provide musical support for the White House and
the commandant of the Marine Corps as well as
ceremonial duties, from the inauguration to parades
and funerals," Wolin explains. He first auditioned and
won a place in the band in 1997, but Wolin's musical
pursuits go back to his childhood. He's a graduate
of Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio and the University of
Michigan, where he earned a master's degree in per-
cussion performance. Wolin, 41, also played with the
Rhode Island Philharmonic and has freelanced as a
marimba soloist. He has two children, Sarah, 10, and
Ben, 6. While the talented musician has not had the
chance to speak with President Obama, he's humbled by his own
place in American history. "Because I play some unusual instru-
IF YOU COULD HAVE BRUNCH WITH
ONE BIBLICAL OR HISTORICAL JEWISH
FIGURE, WHO WOULD IT BE?
Saul Wahl (according to legend, he was the king of
Poland for a single day). This is my original family
name before Wolin(ski). My dad and grandpa used to
ments, I've found quite a niche with the band," Wolin says. "I may
be the first concertina [an accordion-like instrument] and bones
player to ever perform in the White House." Here, we ask Kenny
Wolin our version of the Four Questions.
—Robin Schwartz
tell me this story that we're his descendants; and that
in the late 1500s, [Wahl] was the first and only [tem-
porarily] elected king of Poland who had passed laws
that helped the Jewish people. Even though there's not
a lot of historical data to support the story, it would
be interesting to learn more about this and meet my
ancestor.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE JEWISH FOOD?
During Passover, it's gefilte fish and Grandma Fink's
brisket. I was very fortunate to grow up with both sets
of grandparents and all of my aunts and uncles and
cousins living in the same area. Passover brought and
kept us all very close so those are my "comfort foods."
WHAT WOULD PEOPLE BE SURPRISED TO
KNOW ABOUT YOU?
I'm one of the few professional Anglo concertina [an
accordion-like instrument with bellows and buttons on
both ends] and rhythm bones [a pair of animal bones
or pieces of wood held between one's fingers] players
in the world, as well as the first in the history of the
Marine Band. I've also performed on these instru-
ments for the past four years at Mystic Seaport's Sea
Music Festival in Connecticut.
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