Nathan Gershman, born Nathan Gerschman (November 29, 1917, Philadelphia – September 13, 2008, North Hollywood) was an American cellist and

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

who played in popular music, jazz, and classical idioms. Gershman was the brother of violinist Paul Gershman, and received classical training at the

Curtis Institute of Music The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on full scholarship. Hi ...

, graduating in 1940. From 1940 to 1947 he played with the Cleveland Orchestra, then moved to New York City to work as a studio musician, working in the same capacity in Los Angeles after 1954. In 1957 he replaced

Fred Katz Frederick Carl Katz (21 May 1877 – 13 December 1960) was an Australian trade unionist and politician. He had a long association with the Australian labour movement, holding senior leadership positions with the Federated Clerks' Union, Feder ...

as cellist in

Chico Hamilton Foreststorn "Chico" Hamilton (September 20, 1921 – November 25, 2013) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He came to prominence as sideman for Lester Young, Gerry Mulligan, Count Basie, and Lena Horne. Hamilton became a bandleader, ...

's band, playing with Hamilton until 1961. As a jazz musician, he also worked in the 1970s with Nat Adderley, Gábor Szabó, and Ronnie Laws. He was frequently active as a session player and studio musician for television, theater, and recordings in and around Los Angeles from the 1960s into the 1990s, and played on albums by David Axelrod, The Beach Boys, Geronimo Black, David Bromberg,

Neil Diamond Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adul ...

, Lee Hazlewood, Wayne Henderson, Van Dyke Parks, Esther Phillips, and

Pleasure Pleasure refers to experience that feels good, that involves the enjoyment of something. It contrasts with pain or suffering, which are forms of feeling bad. It is closely related to value, desire and action: humans and other conscious anima ...

References

*"Nat Gershman". '' The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz''. 2nd edition, ed.

Barry Kernfeld Barry Dean Kernfeld (born August 11, 1950) is an American musicologist and jazz saxophonist who has researched and published extensively about the history of jazz and the biographies of its musicians. Education In 1968, Kernfeld enrolled at U ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gershman, Nathan 1917 births 2008 deaths American jazz cellists American male jazz musicians American session musicians Musicians from Philadelphia Curtis Institute of Music alumni Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century cellists