Re: New Klez Dispensers CD

[Ari Davidow <ari...>]

Received! Looking forward to listening.

ari

At 08:55 PM 1/20/2004, you wrote:
>Hi everyone, great seeing so many of you at KlezKamp. I just wanted to let 
>you know that the new Klez Dispensers CD, "New Jersey Freylekhs" will be 
>coming out in just a few weeks. We went into hiding for a little while 
>preparing this project, but I'm really happy with it and hope it will do 
>well. We'll have some big CD release parties both in NYC and in Princeton, 
>NJ, so look out for info on our website, www.klezdispensers.com. There 
>you'll find some sound clips and complete liner notes (by none other than 
>Pete Sokolow!) on the website, but to whet your appetites, here are some 
>excerpts. Take a look:
>
>It was at KlezKamp, officially known as the Yiddish Folk Arts Festival, 
>that I first became aware of a remarkable group of young musicians who 
>call themselves the Klez Dispensers. As is my wont, I was presiding at an 
>informal jazz session around the piano in the lobby of the Catskills hotel 
>where KlezKamp 1999 was being held. I was joined by two rather shy 
>teenaged musicians who instantly endeared themselves to me, playing bebop 
>with the originality and maturity that one associates with far older, more 
>experienced players. These, I soon learned, were Ben Holmes, a trumpeter 
>from New York, and Alex Kontorovich, a Russian immigrant who played alto 
>sax at the session, but was at KlezKamp to learn the classic Yiddish style 
>of clarinet playing.
>...
>I will go out on a limb and state that I feel that this band, the Klez 
>Dispensers, is the finest young group playing classic American klezmer 
>style that I have heard, both individually and collectively, and this 
>recording proves it.
>...
>As a practitioner of the American school -- I played with Dave Tarras and 
>almost all of the first-generation Americans, and some Europeans, in my 
>formative years (1958-1970) and up until the present -- it is my greatest 
>honor and pleasure to be part of this offering, which pays tribute to the 
>work we did and, in some ways, improves upon it. To my mind, this album 
>represents an updated conceptual continuation of the American klezmer 
>landmark recording called "TANZ!" (1955), a collaboration between Dave 
>Tarras (1897-1989), the clarinet giant of the era, and his son-in-law, Sam 
>Musiker (1916-1964), a legendary klezmer and jazz performer on clarinet 
>and saxophones who strove to achieve his musical ideal, a true synthesis 
>of klezmer music and modern swing -- the swing of the 1940s, with just a 
>touch of bebop.
>...
>Included here are some traditional pieces, newly arranged to suit the 
>band's style, and, more importantly, compositions by several members of 
>the band which are stylistically true to the aforementioned American form, 
>and are extremely effective in extending and updating the genre.
>...
>Make no mistake, this is serious music played by serious virtuosi, each of 
>whom could carve out a full-time career in music if he or she chooses to 
>do so. In addition, these people possess astounding intellects and have 
>obviously thought deeply about the direction they want the group to take 
>musically. As any educated listener can hear, this new Klez Dispensers 
>album combines the traditional with the new in a logical, non-gimmicky, 
>extraordinarily _musical_ package. As you may surmise, I feel that this 
>effort is meant for the more sophisticated musical audience, an audience 
>that can appreciate the incredible artistry, originality, and sheer hard 
>work that went into the production of this wonderful product by these 
>superb young artists. Klez Dispensers, the spirit of Sammy Musiker smiles 
>upon you -- continue, and give new life and validity to our tradition.
>
>
>                     Peter Sokolow
>                     "Klezmerfats"
>                     September, 2003
>
>--
>_________________
>Alex V. Kontorovich
>
>434 W120th St. Apt 7E1
>NY, NY 10027
>(212) 531-0538
>
>
>

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