Metropolitan Klezmer Tenth Anniversary Show

[SICULAR <SICULAR...>]

Hard to believe it's been a decade already...
Time to celebrate Metropolitan Klezmer's Tenth Anniversary!
Join us at Tonic (on NYC's Lower East Side) 
Wednesday, March 24 at 8:00pm

Eight-piece band, guest surprises & collectible, timely party favors
$10, no minimum; full bar, 18 + over
107 Norfolk St btw Rivington & Delancey ~ F, J, M, Z to Delancey
212 358 7501  www.tonic107.com

Our debut was on a Sunday evening in March 1994,
when we played as part of John Zorn's 
New Jewish Music Festival at CB's Gallery.
Our friend David Licht from the Klezmatics had heard we were
going into the studio, and suddenly we had this first public gig.
We were then a five-piece all-instrumental unit 
known initially as 
The Greater Metropolitan Klezmer Band...
Originally we featured the late, great Howie Leess on reeds
(though due to a car accident, we had a fabulous sub for Howie
our first few gigs, Greek clarinetist Lefthedis "Teddy" Bournias).
Today's Metro octet includes all four other founding members:
Ismail Butera on accordion and bendir,
Michael Hess on violin, ney flutes, and qanun zither,
Dave Hofstra on upright bass and tuba, 
and drummer/leader Eve Sicular, 
who have since been joined by
Pam Fleming (in '96) on trumpet/flugelhorn,
Deborah Karpel ('97) on vocals,
Debra Kreisberg (Isle of Klezbos & Metro '99/2000) clarinet/alto sax,
& Rick Faulkner (the new guy! since 2000) on trombone.

Metro's three CDs, plus one by our sister sextet, the Isle of Klezbos
are on Rhythm Media Records, distributed internationally by Stern's Music,
These discs are in stores and all over the net 
-- and remember, Pesakh is coming up!  if you haven't yet,
may we suggest checking out this site for independent labels? 
lots of Jewish music artists!  good prices!  -->  cdbaby.com

A recent review of our second CD:

"Access to klezmer should be unlimited. It ought to be a guaranteed right, 
like freedom of the press and turning on red. But if I were forced to pick 
just 
one klezmer album to tide me through, I'd give serious consideration to 
Metropolitan Klezmer's collaboration with the Isle of Klezbos, Mosaic 
Persuasion
.... 
If you're trying to find a keystone for your collection, looking to have your 
knowledge of the art expanded or planning to introduce a novice to what the 
genre's about, it would be hard to find a better album"
- Sarah Meador     www.rambles.net/metklez_mosaic01.html

Rambles.net also contains reviews of: 
Yiddish for Travelers (1998)
& Greetings from the Isle of Klezbos (2003)
...and did we mention that 
Surprising Finds (Metro/2003) made WorldBeat Top 
30 at The Phat Planet site in the U.K. for 2003?
www.thephatplanet.com -- includes reviews of several of our titles too!

Come down and support Tonic giving us this special evening for the occasion, 
it may be our only downtown nyc event this season.
Hope to see you soon.
=================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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