Re: Klezmer

[Hope Ehn Dennis Ehn <ehn...>]

"Klezmer" music is both a specific repertory and a musical style. It comes
in the first instance from eastern Europe, where "Klezmorim" were
itinerant musicians who traveled from town to town playing at weddings and
other celebrations. The music they played was influenced by synagogue
modes, local non-Jewish folk music, and Chassidic compositions.

In the late 19th century, the first Yiddish theater was founded in Jassy,
Romania, by Abraham Goldfaden. The Yiddish theater was a musical theater
from its beginnings (although not every play was a musical), and the
songs spread throughout the Yiddish-speaking world with touring players.
Both the folk repertory and the Yiddish theater reached the west with the
emigration occurring after 1881. Yiddish theaters were opened in London
and New York.

In the United States (largely but not exclusively), the repertory was
influenced stylistically by American music--especially, ragtime and jazz.
A wide range of styles is found in the repertory, however. Even such
popular dances of the 1930's and 1940's as the tango influenced the
composers of Yiddish popular music of the time.

There are many groups recording Klezmer music, not only in the U.S., but
also in Europe (eastern and western) and in Israel. Here is a
by-no-means-exhaustive list of the American groups for which there are
recordings available:

Brave Old World                   (New York)
Golden Gate Klezmer Orchestra     (San Francisco)
Kapelye                           (New York)
Klezmer Conservatory Band         (Boston)
Maxwell Street Klezmer Band       (Chicago)
Mazeltones                        (Seattle)
New Stetl Band                    (Albuquerque, NM!)
New York Klezmer Ensemble         (New York)
Wholesale Klezmer Band            (Pioneer Valley, MA)

For people in the Boston area, the place with the best selection of
recorded Klezmer music is the Israel Book Shop on Harvard Street in
Brookline (near Fuller St.). The people who run it are Orthodox--I would
never go in there in shorts, although I've seen people do it, and they got
waited on anyway. The cassettes and CDs are in the back of the store, all
the way to the right. They have videotapes, too.  I'm not sure what their
hours are this week, or whether they're open at all during Passover. They
may take a vacation then. Generally, the store is open Sunday through
Thursday and on Friday morning.

Another place to look in the Boston area is Briggs & Briggs in Cambridge.
Their selection is much less complete, but they usually have some Klezmer
music, and they might be $1 cheaper.

Hope Ehn                       <ehn (at) world(dot)std(dot)com>

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Dennis and Hope Ehn are 2 different people sharing one account.
Hope does early music, shortwave radio, and Mendele.
Dennis does programming (mostly C++).
PLEASE don't get us confused!                                 :-)
<ehn (at) world(dot)std(dot)com>
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Topic No. 51