Dan Anderson’s interest in music emerged at the age of nine with the discovery of his uncle's trumpet in the attic. Dan subsequently started playing the tuba in the fifth grade band and also enjoyed playing the baritone and trombone during his earlier years. He studied further at the Interlochen Arts Academy, University of Illinois and Northwestern University. Before finishing college, Dan spent two years living in Germany. There, his freelance work took him from the Oktoberfest Bands to the Nuremberg Philharmonic. In addition to the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band, he has played string bass with the Chicago Brass Quintet, Von Freeman Quintet and the Chicago Jazz Ensemble. On occasion Dan is also a guest with the Chicago Symphony and many other musical organizations in Chicagoland. He teaches jazz bass at Columbia College Chicago and tuba and euphonium at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. 

Natasha Bodansky has been singing with Maxwell Street Klezmer Band since 2014. A native of Ukraine, she came to the U.S. in 1995 and holds a BA in Choral Conducting from Kharkov State Institute of the Arts as well as a Masters of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. Her performance credits include singing with UIC Opera Theater, The Savoy-Aires, and Northwestern University Music Academy Chorus. She has served as a Cantorial Soloist with UIC Hillel Foundation for over a decade, and sings with North Suburban Synagogue Beth El professional choir. Devoted to the revival of Jewish music, and to introducing Yiddishkeit to the local Russian-Jewish community, she has taught Jewish music at several congregations and directed Jewish children's choirs, and is a freelance Cantorial Soloist in the Chicago area.

A native of Prague, Czech Republic, Ivo has played with Maxwell Street since 1993, including at Carnegie Hall and the Barbican Center in London, several European tours, and can be heard on three of the band's recordings. Ivo's performance experience includes Ringling Bros/Barnum & Bailey Circus, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, the Irving Symphony in Dallas, and cruise ships for both Carnival and Royal Cruise Lines. In addition to performing, Ivo has taught music appreciation at Triton College as well as serving as the trumpet instructor for schools in the Chicagoland area. In his spare time, Ivo enjoys studying and performing improvisational comedy and is a graduate of both Second City's Training Center and the Improv Olympic Theater in Chicago.

Jim Cox graduated from the University of Illinois in 1979 and has played and recorded with Maxwell Street since 1993. He toured with Earl "Fatha" Hines from 1979-82 and played with Marian McPartland for almost 20 years. Jim is equally comfortable playing jazz, klezmer, bluegrass, pop, cabaret, and classical genres. Some of the artists he has played and recorded with include Rosemary Clooney, Michael Feinstein, Debbie Boone, Liza Minelli, Ann Hampton Callaway, Christine Ebersol, Wesla Whitfield, Phil Woods, Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Chicago Sinfonietta, and jazz mandolinist Don Stiernberg, among others. He collaborated with Chicago's Goodman Theatre, providing music for Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard" in 2023. He has made four recordings with Maxwell Street.

Marian Concus was a member of the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band in the 1980s. She is a member of Fremont Symphony/Opera/Ballet and Santa Cruz Symphony. In addition to performing on Maxwell Street Klezmer Band’s first album, Maxwell Street Days, she has recorded in Paris with Adama, with the Windy City Slickers, and with Laudamus Choir and Ohlone Chamber Singers.

Singer, actress, and recording artist Lisa Fishman has performed throughout the U.S. and Europe in a diverse career that has spanned TV, musicals, and music from pop and jazz to her own originals. In 2023, Lisa played Yente the Matchmaker in Off-Broadway production of “Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish” directed by Joel Gray. Lisa appeared with Maxwell Street Klezmer Band in Carnegie Hall in 1998, and is the featured vocalist on their 1995 album, You Should Be So Lucky!  Lisa has shared the stage with many Jewish luminaries including Itzhak Perlman, Mandy Patinkin, Theodore Bikel, Claire Barry (of the Barry Sisters), Zalmen Mlotek, Fyvush Finkel, Bruce Adler, Mike Burstyn, Seymour Rechzeit, as well as Debbie Friedman and Peter Yarrow (of Peter, Paul, & Mary).

Donald Jacobs has played with the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band from its founding. Don recorded on three of Maxwell Street’s CDs, and performed with other Maxwell Street musicians in the first klezmer opera, The Property, in Lyric Opera of Chicago's production. He has also arranged many pieces for the band. Don's touring career has included two trips to Jewish festivals in London, Vienna and Germany with Maxwell Street, three Danish tours, and many festivals in the U.S. and Canada. He graduated cum laude from Washington University in St. Louis, and has studied with clarinet masters Sid Beckerman, Richard Corpolongo, George Silfies and James Stoynoff. Now a resident of Houston, Texas, Don is the assistant band director at Lanier Middle School. He plays with “The Best Little Klezmer Band in Texas,” and also plays gypsy jazz and Balkan music. 

Jeff has been playing with Maxwell Street since 1987. He received his Bachelor of Music Degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and lives in Wisconsin. He has played and recorded since the 1960s with Balkan and other international music ensembles, and founded the group “Festival European.” Jeff is featured on three of Maxwell Street’s albums, and has performed twice with Maxwell Street in Europe.

Irina Kaufman received her Master’s degree from the Conservatory of Minsk. From 1983-1995, she toured and performed around the world with Belorussian Symphony Orchestra, the Belorussian Chamber Orchestra, and the Concert Orchestra of Belarus across Eastern and Western Europe and in the U.S. She joined Maxwell Street Klezmer Band after her immigration in 1995, and has appeared with the band on stages across the US as violinist and vocalist. She has recorded two albums with her own band, The Irina Kaufman Orchestra. In addition to performing with other groups, Irina teaches violin, piano, and vocal education.

See "Leadership" above.

Gail Mangurten is musical director of many professional and community ensembles and accompanist of musicals. Gail is on the teaching staff at Cappelli Institute of Music in Oak Park, IL and accompanies services at several congregations. A master of many styles, she is in demand as an accompanist of musicals, wedding ceremonies and as a congregational and theater accompanist. She and members of Maxwell Street collaborated with Chicago's Goodman Theatre, providing music for Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard" in 2023. She has made four recordings with Maxwell Street and is composer and arranger of the show, "Jewish Songbirds of Tin Pan Alley." She graduated from Indiana University in Bloomington, where she honed her classical and jazz skills. Gail has toured with Maxwell Street Klezmer Band, including in Europe and at Carnegie Hall.

Justin has a degree in Percussion Performance from the University of Illinois (1992). He went on to play in many ensembles around the Chicago-land area including The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band (since 1993) and the progressive Jazz group Spazztet, including guitarist Aaron Weistrop and violinist Zach Brock. After a two-year stint in New York City, Justin returned to Chicago and currently enjoys playing with many ensembles, especially Maxwell Street, and teaching high school English in the Western suburbs of Chicago.

A member of the band since 1998, Dana is in demand as a freelance musician and clinician. As an educator, he serves as the band director at the Milwaukee School of Engineering. In addition to Maxwell Street, he has played with many legendary jazz musicians, and toured with the Guy Lombardo and Buddy Rich Orchestras, and has performed in a dozen different countries and nearly every state. His own professional big band, The Dana Legg Stage Band, is entering its fourth decade, and can often be seen in the Chicago area or heard on jazz radio stations.

See "Leadership" above.

Bibi Marcell began her singing career at a young age as a vocalist in her father’s band. In 1991, Bibi began singing with the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band, and appears on three of the band’s albums. In addition to performing extensively on the stage, Bibi works as a freelance Cantorial Soloist, and is the Education Director at Congregation Hakafa in Glencoe.

Mark Ponarovsky was born in Kiev, Ukraine, and received his BA from the Kiev College of Music. He toured with various show orchestras in the former Soviet Union and became the percussionist of the Kiev State Circus Big Band. After his immigration in 1989, Mark performed in Milwaukee until relocating to Chicago in 1991, when he joined Maxwell Street Klezmer Band. He has recorded four albums with Maxwell Street.

Hailing from Nikolaev, Ukraine, Cantor Pavel Roytman of Beth Hillel Bnai Emunah has toured throughout Russia, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. Immigrating to the U.S. in the 1990s, he obtained his Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance and Master of Music in Musicology. He is a member of the American Conference of Cantors and the Cantors Assembly. In addition to singing with the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band since the mid-1990s, Cantor Roytman has performed in festivals from Chicago to Israel. He has appeared on stage, solo and with Chicago Acapella, members of Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Howard Levy, and Corky Siegal and Chamber Blues. He has composed liturgical and secular compositions for voice and choir.

Learn more about Cantor Pavel Roytman in this article.

Bob received his BA in Music Education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Bob was honored as Best Soloist at the Governors State University Jazz Festival. Bob has performed with Elvis Presley, Glen Campbell, Mel Tormé, Cab Calloway, Sonny & Cher, Les Elgart, Roger Pauly, Jack Kramer, Anita O’Day, Si Zentner, Warren Covington, Pat Boone, Gloria Morgan, The Temptations, and the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Bob has played and recorded with Maxwell Street since 2007, and appears on two of their albums. He also plays piano, string bass, and percussion.

Marcia Sterling, classically trained violinist, vocalist, violin teacher, cantorial soloist, yogini, and leader of “The Best Little Klezmer Band in Texas,” makes her home in both Houston and Chicago. Marcia was born into a Yiddish speaking household where her love for the culture was nurtured. She further cultivated that spirit in Chicago when she became a member of Maxwell Street Klezmer Band in 1985. Since 1994, she and her husband, Dan Strba, have continued presenting this vibrant musical style with The Best Little Klezmers taking the lead in community events and in the schools through Young Audiences of Houston.

Bartek graduated from the Music University in Lodz, Poland in 2002. After playing clarinet and piano in the Sudecka Symphony in Wałbrzych, Bartek became entranced with klezmer music and founded the band “Klezmerado,” which entertained throughout Poland. He has also played with Anashim (“The People”) in Poland and with “The Supertonic Orchestra” in Ireland. As a conductor and composer, Bartek conducted two woodwind orchestras in Strzegom and Zarow, and composed music for a children’s theater in Walbrzych. On his way to Chicago as an immigrant in 2018, Bartek performed on a Japanese cruise ship, and with the Las Vegas Philharmonic. Besides being Maxwell Street’s newest musician, he also plays in the Chicago City Wide Symphony Orchestra. 

Shelley Yoelin (tenor saxophone, clarinet and flute) is one of the original founding members of the band. Formerly Chair of the Fine Arts Department and Director of Bands at Triton College in River Grove, Illinois, Shelley has been playing with Maxwell Street since 1983. Shelley regularly performs in the Palm Springs area and was nominated in the Coachella Valley Weekly magazine for Best Jazz Instrumentalist. He is a long time instructor at the Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshop and with the International Federation of Jazz in London. Shelley leads jazz bands in Chicago and Palm Springs, California.