Description
Totah, N. More double bass, p1997. (double bass)
New Grove, 2nd ed., WWW site, Mar. 31, 2003: jazz (Totah, Nobby (Nabil (Marshall)); b. Apr. 5, 1930, Ramallah, Transjordan (now Jordan); American double bass player; his nickname is often misspelled Knobby.
International Society of Bassists, In memorium, 2013-11-23: Nabil Totah died June 7, 2012. He was 82 years old. Born in Ramallah, Jordan, ‘Nobby’ Totah played violin and piano as a child. He relocated to the U.S. in 1944 and studied political science before deciding on a career in music. Taking up the bass in 1953, he played in army bands and with Hampton Hawes and Toshiko Akiyoshi in Japan. Upon his return to the U.S. following his military service, he played briefly with Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker and then began long-time, intermittent spells in groups led by Gene Krupa and by Johnny Smith. Also during the 1950s and 1960s, Totah played with a wide range of artists including Eddie Costa, Tal Farlow, Bobby Jaspar, Herbie Mann, Zoot Sims and Phil Woods, and worked in bands led by Benny Goodman, Bobby Hackett, Max Kaminsky, Lee Konitz and Hazel Scott. In addition, Totah led his own small groups with a distinguished array of sidemen. A memorial concert was held on August 20th in New York City for Totah featuring performances by Toshiko Akiyoshi, David Amram, Don Friedman, Lee Konitz, Mike Longo, Lew Tabackin and many others.