Arthur Goldstein, ‘pillar’ of central Pa. music scene, to be remembered at weekend events

When local musician, composer, scholar and educator Arthur Goldstein died on Feb. 27, 2020, just before the coronavirus pandemic swept across the nation, his close friends and Archie Blue bandmates were unable to organize a proper memorial — until now.

This weekend, the well-known pianist’s life and music will be commemorated through two events, which will be open and free to the public.

“Celebrating Arthur Goldstein: An Immersive Experience,” starting at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at The Workshop in Centre Hall, will include images and film of past performances and Goldstein’s life.

Though there’s no charge, reservations are required for the second event, “Remembering Arthur Goldstein: An Evening of Musical Performance,” which will run from 6-8 p.m. Sunday at Pine Grove Hall and include performances by the Archie Blue band and numerous musical guests.

“This is about people coming together, connecting and remembering and celebrating Arthur,” Jerry Zolten, who helped organize the concert, said.

Goldstein’s longtime jazz collaborator and friend Rick Hirsch will perform Sunday during the tribute concert with his jazz quartet. The set will include the tune “Dreamboat,” which Hirsch, 52, of State College, said is his favorite piece Goldstein composed.

Hirsch said he met Goldstein for the first time in 1999, and as a saxophone player, the duo played together “countless times,” with Goldstein on the keys. They put together the “folkjazz project,” Hirsch said, and even played at The Rex, a famous jazz club in Toronto.

“Arthur and I had a few jazz heroes that we had in common, and we would just get together over breakfast at The Corner Room,” Hirsch said. “He was so knowledgeable about so much music ... I don’t know how to describe it ... I just loved hanging out with Arthur and talking shop.”

Hirsch said he believes Goldstein lived a “very rich life.”

“He was a stalwart,” Hirsch said. “He was always there through his tenure in State College and was really kind of a pillar of the (music) scene, particularly of the jazz scene locally.”

Impact on musicians, students

Goldstein impacted the local music scene not only as a performing pianist, but also as a teacher. He taught jazz and classical performance art and history at Penn State and offered personal piano instruction through the Music Academy.

“He had a ton of artistic integrity,” Hirsch said. “He was always striving just to make everything beautiful.”

Barbara Neumuller, an original member of the Arthur Goldstein Group, which evolved into the band called Archie Blue, said she first met Goldstein when she was a freshman at Penn State in 1971.

“He was a grad assistant in the music department, and I took a music theory class, and he was my grad assistant for that class,” Neumuller, 71, of Port Matilda, said.

Goldstein had a “pretty profound influence” on many musicians due to his broad appeal in multiple musical genres, according to Neumuller. She taught with him at the Music Academy for around 20 years, where he was fluent in both jazz and classical piano. He also loved rock ‘n’ roll, Zolten said.

“Everyone knew him,” Neumuller said, noting that he was painted into one of State College’s oldest murals — the “Inspiration” mural near the corner of Hiester Street and College Avenue.

Zolten, a professor of communication arts and sciences and integrative arts at Penn State, first met Goldstein in the late 1960s or early 1970s.

Hailing from Pittsburgh like Goldstein, Zolten said he met Goldstein’s parents at an event in Butler, and they encouraged him to “look up” their son at Penn State, which Zolten did.

“Back in those days, he was already a highly regarded musician in the State College area, (the) go-to piano player for impressive jazz groups,” Zolten said.

Their friendship evolved over the years, and around 1980, Zolten said he “began to see something special in Arthur.” Though Goldstein wasn’t singing much during performances, when he did, Zolten said “he had an amazing voice.”

“I thought he could make it on a national level,” Zolten said. “He was writing songs that were unique and catchy.”

Goldstein was “kind of a beacon of what one could accomplish,” according to Zolten, since other local musicians could look up to “that kind of caliber in (their) own backyard.”

“Many a young musician with aspirations to make serious music looked to Arthur as an influence,” Zolten said. “Many of the people playing in State College now, some of them can cite Arthur as their former piano teacher.”

Getting back to Archie Blue

Zolten’s partnership with Goldstein resulted in the group Archie Blue — “Archie” coming from Goldstein’s own nickname for himself.

Neumuller played keyboard in the band, usually a type of synthesizer or electric piano to go along with Goldstein’s preferred acoustic piano or Wurlitzer.

“I would help trying to come up with countermelodies,” Neumuller said. “He always took the main piano parts — I just kind of filled in with the organ or some other kind of instrument sounds that would complement what he was doing.”

She explained that Archie Blue played mostly at local bars, concerts and arts festivals, with some gigs across the state, like in Pittsburgh, for example.

Goldstein released the album “Archie Blue: New Day Comin’” in 1981 through Red Dog Records. The production was a collaboration with Van Dyke Parks, who’s known for his influence on The Beatles and his partnership with Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys.

“Here (Parks) comes all the way to State College from California to produce Arthur’s Archie Blue album, I think that says something about the quality and merit of Arthur’s work at that time,” Zolten said. “He was that kind of person — very rare, very special.”

However, there was about a 20-year gap when the band disbanded, coming back together around 2010, according to Neumuller.

“It was just like old times,” Neumuller said. “We hadn’t forgotten anything.”

Though Chris Younken met Goldstein in the early ‘80s at a show in Penn State’s Kern Building and played cello for the original Archie Blue album, it was after the band got back together that they became close friends by hanging out frequently and trying to write some music together.

When he first auditioned for the band, Younken, of Bellefonte, said he believed his guitar playing wasn’t at the right caliber to make it in.

“To my surprise, they said, ‘OK, can you make the next rehearsal?’” Younken said. “(I) went home and learned a bunch of chords that Arthur wrote that I had never even heard of.”

As a professional musician, Younken explained that you learn to “fake your way through stuff,” and being in Archie Blue made him a better musician.

“It was one of the best things that ever happened to me musically,” Younken said. “When you play with really good musicians, all of a sudden, everything just sounds much better ... the only way to experience that is to actually play with people who are better than you.”

Goldstein brought a certain level of musicianship, creativity and professionalism to the local music scene, according to Younken, and he even advocated for adequate pay for gigs.

“For the musicians who are playing for a living, if people are undercutting, that’s bad for anybody,” Younken said. “You keep saying yes to less and less money — that’s not a good business decision.”

Getting back together with the remaining members of Archie Blue to practice for this weekend has made Younken a “little emotional.”

“It just is so cool to hear his music being performed live again,” Younken said. “I’m sure Arthur would be very pleased to know that something like that will be happening.”

The group has even talked about possibly getting together yearly just to play Goldstein’s tunes, Younken said.

“It always like takes me by surprise when I talk about him (because) sometimes I do get emotional, and I guess it shows why we need this to happen,” Younken said. “It’s like you’re saying goodbye, but you’re also realizing a lot of him is still here.”

Those who knew Goldstein are happy to finally have the chance to “give him the sendoff that he deserved,” Neumuller said.

“I think Arthur’s spirit is really strong and really alive with those of us who were in his life,” Hirsch said.