Fw: Transcriptions

[Sandra Layman <sandralayman...>]

Itzik-Leyb Volokh asked me to post this.
s

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jeff Wollock" <jeff (at) nativecouncil(dot)com>
To: <sandralayman (at) earthlink(dot)net>
Sent: Tuesday, January 22, 2002 12:39 PM
Subject: Transcriptions


> Dear Sandra,

[snip]

> How did the thread start? I'm very curious.
> 
> [if you think it will add to the discussion, please post the 
> following on the list for me. -- ]
> 
> 
>      What Sandra Layman describes for the West Coast is equally true, 
> as far as I know, of the East Coast. I started playing klezmer music 
> in Brooklyn, NY about 1977 in direct contact with Andy Statman. I am 
> absolutely certain that Andy learned everything by ear. He suggested 
> I do the same. I have followed that advice ever since. I teach my 
> students to learn by ear as well. What's more, I'm not unusual in 
> this respect. It's kind of a tradition with klezmer players. I have 
> worked with most of the major people in the klezmer field today and I 
> don't know any who aren't comfortable playing by ear.
>      The bottom line is, you can learn tunes in some form, but you 
> can't learn to really play klezmer music by reading off a chart 
> anyhow. Because klezmer is 10% tune and 90% playing style. remember, 
> you can have the same piece of music printed on a page, and it could 
> be played Greek style, or Romanian style, or Ukrainian style, or 
> Jewish style. So what's the difference? It's certainly not what's on 
> the music stand.
>       With somebody like Pete Sokolow it's different. He's got a 
> fantastic ear himself, but if he's leading an ensemble, he writes out 
> notes. That stands to reason - he's an arranger! If you listen to 
> some of the recordings of the 1950s, like "Tants!" or "Freylekhs in 
> Hi-Fi, vol.2", with their sophisticated arrangements, I think the 
> side men, at least, may have used lead-sheets. Obviously they already 
> knew how to play "Jewish." It's understandable that arrangers of the 
> old school like to use at least some degree of "charts." Ken Richman, 
> if I'm not mistaken, wrote out parts to recapture the ensemble style 
> of old bands like Abe Schwartz for his Yale Klezmer Ensemble. Yasher 
> koyekh. 
>      Lead sheets may also be used by klezmer musicians to save time 
> in putting things together, or to keep track of the program. Nor will 
> they necessarily play exactly what's on the sheet. Yes, it is useful 
> to be able to read music! But when it comes to klezmer it's just an 
> auxiliary.
> 
> -- Itzik-Leyb Volokh (

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