Re: One klezmer's experience

[SICULAR <SICULAR...>]

thanks for articulating that, Lori!  well-said indeed.

I, on the other hand, was hired to play for a Lag B'Omer women's drumming 
circle event that was passed off as a self-empowerment sort of Jewish women's 
gathering to me when I was called about it, and advertised as quite New Age-y.  
But when I got there it was a rather rigid event trying to bring women into 
more subservient traditional Jewish ways and a lot of political beliefs which I 
will simply say were to me reprehensibly rightwing.  a sponsor website I looked 
at afterward turned out to be a well-funded neo-Orthodox movement office. 
Since I had agreed to it as a business arrangement, I tried proposing one or 
two 
participatory ideas I thought would be more self-expressive and empowering -- 
things I knew from women's Rosh Chodesh groups and feminist seders etc. -- but 
these were clearly unacceptable to the strategy of the motivational 
speaker/leader. so  then I played but refused to give eye contact or anything 
beyond a 
beat to the leaders of the gathering.  I felt very spiritually compromised and 
deliberately misled.... the purpose of the music as used here seemed to be 
helping these repressed people blow off steam and have a creative outlet, while 
trying to attract/proselytize other Jewish women.  nothing wrong with that in 
itself I guess, but they had purposely not told me about their movement 
affiliation and underlying beliefs, sticking instead to the recruiting strategy 
cover of this as a vaguely alternative-lifestyle event and creative outlet.  it 
was held at New York's PS 122 performance space theater on an off night, to 
further this image of something experimental and progressive.

pretty creepy.
Eve
=================
- e v e  s i c u l a r  -
drummer/bandleader
ISLE OF KLEZBOS & 
METROPOLITAN KLEZMER
151 First Ave #145, NYC 10003
tel:  212.475.4544
fax:  212.677.6304
www.metropolitanklezmer.com

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