Re: How does being Jewish factor into playing, teaching, or learning klezmer?

[Helen Winkler <winklerh...>]

This is slightly different than the topic being discussed;however, I have
met a number of Jewish people both in real life and on the net who play
klezmer music yet do not know anything about where the music came from.
I've heard Jewish performers get up to introduce a tune in concert and give
an incorrect explanation of the music or say something like:  "I'm going to
play something called a sher.  I think it's some kind of old dance."

Before I got interested in learning about the history of Jewish dance and
music, I was a lot like them.  i would do dances and teach them sort of
mechanically--just the steps.  My knowlege of Eastern European Jewish dances
consisted of the characterization of them in Israeli folk dance.  In fact I
strongly disliked Israeli dances that were known as "Chasidic dances"
because they felt  shallow and hokey.  However, now that
I've delved into the history (i'm not an academic--just an obsessive dancer)
it really has brought a whole new layer to my
dancing and to my teaching. I really enjoy going back to the traditional
dances and
teaching them in the way they were meant to be done in the first place.
People seem to enjoy learning them this way too. It's exciting to discover
historical connections to the various dances.
So, whether through academic life or through self-study, Jewish or not,  it
benefits the performer/teacher as well
as the audience/students to really jump in with both feet, and get right
into the material.
Otherwise, everyone is losing out.

Helen



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