To our Friends and Fans,
We have sad news. Our friend Stacy Phillips, a man who was many, many things, including a Grammy award winner, a bluegrass legend, and a founding member of the Nu Haven Kapelye, died Tuesday, June 5, 2019 around 9:30pm. He was 74 years old. He experienced a massive heart attack on Sunday and from then on it was just a matter of time. He was surrounded by his family, his sister and his niece and nephew.
Stacy was his own person and that was reflected in the life he led as a musician. He was a part of the Nu Haven Kapelye from the very first December 25 concert ever held. Stacy wrote arrangements of old Klezmer songs for us. He mentored everyone, whether we wanted it or not!! And he was an incredible teacher for our newbie members. Whenever someone wanted to learn more about Klezmer and Eastern European Jewish music Stacy would send them YouTube videos or little charts. He brought something to this group that we are never going to forget and that we will sorely miss. It is hard to believe he is dead. There is a wonderful obituary about Stacy in the New Haven Independent.
On Sunday, June 10, we participated in a musical memorial for Stacy at Café 9 in New Haven. We were joined by so many other musicians, bands, students, and fans who all paid tribute to him. There’s a great article about that event in the New Haven Independent.
Zichronoh l’vrachah.
May his memory be a blessing.