RE: Kol Simcha in U.S.

[Dick Rosenberg <drosenberg...>]

Ari,

After having read your post I listened to the sound clips from the 
review on your site, and after having listened to the sound clips I 
don't understand your post. Aside from not knowing what "deracinated" 
means, from the sound clips it sounded like enjoyable music (and that 
may be key, the sound clips were three 50 second clips containing the 
"beginnings" of the 3 songs. There was no way to tell what they did 
with the tunes after they played them through once). But from what I 
heard, to my ears, it was Klezmer, low-keyed, non-raucous Kleamer (how 
raucous can you be with a flute?), but Klezmer.

In your review you observed "When one listens to the flute or clarinet 
wail, it isn't a typical
klezmer progression that follows, there is no kvetch or krekhts. 
Instead, the
progressions are those of jazz."

In the Flatbush Minyan Bulgar, it seems to me that the clarinetist was 
kvetching and krekhtsing. It was certainly on the "polite" side (as 
contrasted to, let's say, the New Orleans Klezmer All Stars, who 
definitely extend Klezmer music toward the "raucous" side).

I don't know the music of Kenny G and Bruce Benson, but I just 
listened to their clips from the Tara site, and in the case of 
Kenny/Bruce I absolutely agree with you. There music sounds to me like 
what they play on whatever Boston station it is where they play 
"smooth jazz". That music is the quintessence of echo chamber soprano 
sax and synthesizer playing what sounds like computer-generated chord 
changes, with no soul or meaning whatsoever.

Having said that about Kenny G, I don't hear that mindless 
synthesization at all in the music of Kol Simcha. It seems to have 
movement, rhythm, soul, Yiddishkeit, but again in a non-raucous way. 
(The Klezmorim were also fairly non-raucous in their recordings from 
the 70s).  I respect your opinion so I am wondering where the disjoint 
exists. Is it possible that the clips were not really representative 
what Kol Simcha does? Would it be feasible, without doing anything 
unethical, to put longer clips from the 3 songs on your site? Or put 
clips from a few more cuts?

Thanks,

Dick Rosenberg

-----Original Message-----
From:   Ari Davidow [SMTP:ari (at) ivritype(dot)com]
Sent:   Monday, February 01, 1999 2:02 PM
To:     World music from a Jewish slant.
Subject:        Re: Kol Simcha in U.S.

>>Subject: Kol Simcha in U.S.
>>Sender: owner-jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org
>>
>>The Swiss klezmer group Kol Simcha is apparently touring in the U.S. 
soon,
>>at least in the Northeast. I just read of a concert at the Fine Arts 
Center
>>at U.Mass-Amherst in Massachusetts on Feb. 11.
>>
>>Does anyone know of any other dates on this tour?

Before rushing off to hear these guys, it may be worth asking
whether or not the idea of deracinated, lounge-klez fused with
similarly bland elevator jazz or classical muzak sounds potentially
entertaining. (Clearly, millions of Kenny G fans think so, at
least in part, and yeah, some of my best friends think these
folks are the way to do klezmer. I do strongly disagree.)

ari

Ari Davidow
The klezmer shack: http://www.well.com/user/ari/klez/
owner: jewish-music mailing list
e-mail: ari (at) ivritype(dot)com

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