Zahava Seewald - Press Release

[Cllsn <cllsn...>]

For immediate release:

ASHKENAZ SONGS - ZAHAVA SEEWALD & PSAMIM
Sub Rosa - Le Coeur Du Monde Collection

Yet another wonderful release on the Le Coeur Du Monde collection from the
Belgian independent record label, Sub Rosa.  As the name translates - The
Heart Of The World, this collection brings forth the musical heart of
cultures from around the world.  "Ashkenaz Songs" by Zahava Seewald is a
collection of twenty-one Yiddish songs mostly from Eastern Europe (one
from 19th century New York) that represents a particular point in history
of the Jewish people, but also shows a certain timelessness in it's
lyrical nature.  It is her second appearance on the Sub Rosa label, the
first being on the album, "Yiddish and Judeo-Christian Songs" by Mosaic.

In the preface to the album, Zahava Seewald says, "Psamim is born from my
desire as a singer to retrace the lineage of Yiddish songs.  From this
repertoire of Eastern Europe I have chosen mostly little-known songs that
express a complex and emotional universe...If this repertoire belongs to a
people, a region, a moment of Jewish history, it takes on an important
sense that goes beyond the nostalgia of a lost world.  Because these songs
allow me to express an inner nature and a link to the present world, they
are a part of modernity."

Psamim, Seewald's band, is composed of: Martin Weinberg (Accordian),
Renaud Lhonest (Violin), and Joanna Samek (Viola).  The recordings are
sparse, capturing a traditional sound untainted by contemporary
treatments.  But, these nostalgic songs are not merely dusty folklore,
they have a lyricism much closer to perhaps the likes of Dead Can Dance. 
Zahava Seewald's versatility as a singer is simply wonderful - at times
whimsically playful, others, tearfully melancholy... The songs range from
a traditional four-step village dance to a lullaby about both the misery
and pride of a hard-working father.

In recent years, Yiddish music has attracted much interest from both
musicians and listeners alike here, in North America as another musical
alternative that is also steeped in tradition.  Experience another world
of musical emotion through "Ashkenaz"...

For further information, please contact Collusion at: Cllsn (at) aol(dot)com