Lorele - review in Sing Out! by Seth Rogovoy

[Lori Cahan-Simon <l_cahan...>]

Khaveyrim,

I want to share with you a very nice review of my CD, "Songs My Bubbe 
Should Have Taught Me, Volume One: Passover", by our own Seth Rogovoy 
(author of "The Essential Klezmer") which appears on p. 164 in the Fall 
2002 issue of Sing Out! magazine.  It comes just before a review of 
Sandra Layman's "Little Blackbird".  There are other klez reviews in the 
same issue.

"In the desire to cast off the ways of the old world and in the ashes of 
the Nazi death camps, most of the songs included here have been lost or 
forgotten by the majority of Yiddish performers.  But in the first of 
what will presumably be a series of recordings documenting Yiddish songs 
for all occasions, singer/folklorist Lori Cahan-Simon collects fourteen 
Yiddish Passover songs and performs them with her top-notch ensemble of 
local and national Yiddish vocal and klezmer talent.

On half the numbers, Cahan-Simon shares vocal duties with Michael 
Alpert, best known for his work with klezmer group Brave Old World.  The 
instrumentalists include Steven Greenman, violinist for the group 
Khevrisa, cymbalomist Alezandr Fedoriouk, who has worked with jazz 
artist Herbie Mann and John Cale of the Velvet Underground, and Walt 
Mahovlich, who currently leads the East European folk group Harmonia.

A work of incalculable folkloric value, as well as an entertaining and 
educational tool, Cahan-Simon's CD is well-annotated with extensive 
background notes and complete lyrics, transliterated and translated into 
English.  The musicianship is on a very high level, and Cahan-Simon is a 
compelling, theatrical vocalist, whether she is tackling the 
cantorial-style, rubato phrases of "Avodim Hoyinu (We Were Slaves)" or 
the intimate cabaret-pop of "In dem land fun piramidn (In the Land of 
Pyramids)" by "sweatshop poet" Dovid Edelshtadt.  "Shvimt dos kestl afn 
nil (The Little Basket Floats on the Nile)", laced with flute by 
Mahovlich, has an appropriately Middle Eastern feel to it, and "Dayeynu" 
is rendered in an upbeat, klezmer-to-jazz arrangement.  The highlight of 
the recording is the swinging, imaginative duet between Cahan-Simon and 
Alpert on "Der Bekher (Tayere Malke)".  Henry Shapiro's acoustic bass 
keeps the tune moving at a speedy pace, and the musicans interpolate 
eight rollicking, traditional klezmer tunes in between the verses."


You can get your very own copy from various vendors around the world or 
by emailing me at:

L_Cahan (at) staff(dot)chuh(dot)org    (I can take Visa)

or from CD baby

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/lcahan

or from Simon at Hatikvah 

www.hatikvahmusic.com



Thanks for indulging me,
Lorele


 -- 
You can now hear Lori's new CD, Songs My Bubbe Should Have Taught Me; Vol.1: 
Passover, at: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/lcahan Only $15 & postage. Email me for 
more info.