Re: Identity in Klezmer

[TheDorch <TheDorch...>]

Please allow me to write your paper for you, I mean answer these questions for
you:

1) Yes, klezmer does mimic language, but not Yiddish as one might think.
Chinese. The typical structure of the bulgar, for example, mirrors, in rhythm,
overall structure, and melodic movement, the lilting, robust conversation of
elderly Hunan Chinese women in the course of playing a game of Mahjong
("RummyCube"). This might explain the easy assimilation of the game into
Jewish culture.

2) American Jews view themselves as a homogenous, monolithic unit with a
single mind and voice. We view ourselves as pleasingly plump, sparkling blue
eyes, divorced, black, female, bisexual, dry sense of humor, loves long walks,
Jackie Chan movies, and sushi. Our one opinion on any political or social
issue is never subject to infra-ethnic debate since we agree on everything.
This is certainly reflected in the music. All klezmer sounds the same, and
everyone, especially every Jew, agrees on the same simple, clear, terse
definition of the term "klezmer". 

Bibliography: 

_Don't Knock It!_, by H. Horenstein, a survey of the influence of gin rummy
and other object-matching games on the Zionist movement and the Yiddish
theatre, London 1955

_One Big Jewnion, a global hug_, co-authored by B. Netanyahu and N. Chomsky,
New York 1996

>I am a student at the University of California, Davis and I am writing a
>paper about klezmer music. I am looking for help with two question. Does
>the music mimic language? It sounds like it to me, especially in some the
>melodies Andy Statman plays. The second question is a more general cultural
>question. How do American Jews view themselves, and how does that reflect
>in the music?
>
>Mark