Joseph Frankel

Lieutenant Joseph Frankel (1882–1956) was an American klezmer musician, clarinetist and military band bandleader of the early 20th century.

[3] In 1904, Frankel toured the United States as the head of the Russian 14th regiment military band.

[3] He decided to become an American citizen and enlisted in the U.S. Army, becoming bandmaster of the 1st Field Artillery Regiment in New York City.

[7] Some of these recordings incorporated elements of popular American music, with titles such as Yiddelach Shimmy Tantz (1919) or Yiddishe Blues (1919).

[9] In 1928 Frankel volunteered his time as a bandleader to train a 25-person band at the National Farm School.