Renowned jazz bandleader Ken Peplowski has passed away suddenly, just before he was scheduled to perform on a cruise already underway.
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A passenger on The Jazz Cruise informed TMZ that the 66-year-old clarinetist and saxophonist passed away on Monday. Peplowski was scheduled to perform with a quartet late that afternoon but failed to appear. Following a search, he was found dead in his cabin.
A cause of death has not been provided. However, a friend and WBGO‘s former director of editorial content wrote that Ken had been “suffering from multiple myeloma” and “battled the often fatal disease with a unique combination of courage, fortitude and humor.”
His death was announced before the main big band concert that evening. According to a passenger who spoke with TMZ, the ballroom reacted with shock, marked by audible gasps followed by silence.
Fans and Colleagues Pay Tribute to Jazz Bandleader Ken Peplowski
Michael Lazaroff, the executive director of The Jazz Cruise, released a statement, saying in part, “He was a great musician, but he was also one of the very best entertainers ever. I do not know any musician who respected the bandstand more than Ken. He was always prepared, love performing with his fellow musicians, and, man, could he play!”
“Sincere condolences to his family and to all his Jazz Cruise colleagues. We loved him and had the chance to see him, speak with him, on a cruise last year. Exceptionally nice person and superb musician,” one top comment read under Lazroff’s statement on Instagram.
According to Slipped Disc, Peplowski recorded extensively on clarinet and saxophone and served as the jazz advisor for the Oregon Festival of American Music.
Lazaroff noted that The Jazz Cruise is preparing a more detailed tribute.