Producer Arif Mardin Dies

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Producer Arif Mardin, who worked with a host of musical legends, died of pancreatic cancer on June 25. He was 74.

Born in Istanbul, the lifelong jazz fan, he attended Berklee College of Music as the first recipient of the Quincy Jones Scholarship. After graduating in 1961, he taught at the school for a year before moving to New York where he worked as an assistant to Neshui Ertegun at Atlantic Records. Mardin served at the label until 2001 where he produced the Modern Jazz Quartet, Aretha Franklin, Donny Hathaway, Norah Jones, and many others.

During those 40 years, Mardin collected more than 40 gold and platinum albums and 12 Grammy Awards.



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