Bernie Kaufman

Jazz woodwind player. Born December 17, 1914, Brooklyn, New York. Died April 22, 2013, New York. Mr. Kaufman was a noted studio and session musician who started playing professionally in dance bands and society bands at age 15. A virtuoso woodwind player, he worked and recorded with the most important musicians of his generation, including Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, Billy Eckstine, Billie Holiday, Bing Crosby, Tony Bennett, Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan, with whom he recorded “Black Coffee” in 1949. For over 60 years, Mr. Kaufman was a mainstay of radio, television and recording studios. He played the CBS Radio Show, the Perry Como Show, the Ed Sullivan Show, the Tonight Show and the Jack Paar Show, among many others. Bernie was admired by fellow musicians for his warm yet big sound and his impeccable sense of humor.