the KlezmerShack

Klezmer violinist Steven Greenman will present a series of six intensive workshops/rehearsals in Klezmer style ornamentation and repertoire for all string players (violins, violas, cellos, basses, guitars, mandolins, cimbaloms and hammer-dulcimers) who have serious technical knowledge of their instruments and the ability to read music. All interested string performers must register for the workshops no later than Jan. 25th, 2002 by contacting Steven Greenman at (216)231-5467 or by email. Performers must be willing to commit to at least five of the six workshops/rehearsals in addition to the dress rehearsal and concert, Sunday, Feb 24.

"With his violin and a keen sense of musical history, Steven Greenman of Cleveland brings the klezmer music of his Jewish ancestors to the stages of modern America. He has been called 'the extraordinary klezmer violinist' by a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reviewer. 'Particularly impressive' declared the Washington Post." These are quotes from Plain Dealer's William F. Miller in an article headlined "Violinist hears history in Jewish folk music."

Klezmer violinist Steven Greenman will present a series of six intensive workshops/rehearsals in Klezmer style ornamentation and repertoire for all string players (violins, violas, cellos, basses, guitars, mandolins, cimbaloms and hammer-dulcimers) who have serious technical knowledge of their instruments and the ability to read music. This is the first in the new Louis E. Emsheimer Artist In Residence Program of the Cleveland Hillel Foundation, established by Marcia Emsheimer in memory of her late husband, Louis E. Emsheimer who was active in the Cleveland Jewish community.

The primary focus will be on the artistic Klezmer repertoire that was originally and traditionally performed for listening at the wedding table and will also include some of the dance repertoire as well. Participants will learn traditional Klezmer style, phrasing and ornamentation as well as the accompanimental patterns and overall ensemble playing. The historical aspect of the music as well as East European Jewish dance and vocal traditions will also be included. This series will culminate in a public lecture/presentation of the music led by Steven Greenman followed by a concert of the repertoire covered in the workshops featuring the participants.

Professional musicians, students and faculty from the Cleveland Institute of Music, Case Western Reserve University and the University Circle community are especially welcome to participate. No previous knowledge of Klezmer music is required. Repertoire will be taught by ear and with music.

All interested string performers must register for the workshops no later than Jan. 25th, 2002 by contacting Steven Greenman at (216) 231-5467 or by e-mail. Performers must be willing to commit to at least five of the six workshops/rehearsals in addition to the dress rehearsal and concert as repertoire and knowledge of the musical style covered will be cumulative over the series of the workshops.

In the case of those interested who are unable to attend a majority of the workshops/ rehearsals please contact Steven Greenman and arrangements will be made with instructions and parts to be sent. Workshops/rehearsal will take place in the auditorium of the Cleveland Hillel Foundation on Interfaith Plaza in University Circle, 11291 Euclid Avenue. Dates and times of the workshops/rehearsals and lecture/presentation/performance are:

Monday, February 11, 2002, 7:00-9:00 PM
Tuesday, February 12, 2002, 7:00-9:00 PM
Wednesday, February 13, 2002, 7:00-9:00 PM
Monday, February 18, 2002, 7:00-9:00 PM
Tuesday, February 19, 2002, 7:00-9:00 PM
Wednesday, February 20, 2002, 7:00-9:00 PM
Dress Rehearsal: Sunday, February 24, 2002, 10:00 AM-Noon
Lecture/Presentation by Steven Greenman: Sunday, February 24, 2002, 2:00-3:30 PM
Performance: Sunday, February 24, 2002, 4:00-5:00 PM

Currently Klezmer music (history, repertoire and ensemble performing classes) are taught around the United State, although not in Cleveland. Klezmer is a popular "world music" which is appreciated by audiences of many nationalities. According to Steven Greenman, "Klezmer includes music for dancing, elaborate and virtuosic listening music, concert music, delicate&soulful&mournful and tragic music, religious and sacred music and exuberant music."

Steven Greenman is one of the few practitioners of traditional East European Jewish klezmer violin. He is one of the first American born klezmer violinists to create a program and performance style based entirely on the repertoire of European klezmer violin music. Together with Walter Zev Feldman, Steven co-founded the Khevrisa ensemble in 1998. He has performed internationally with such notable klezmer ensembles as the Klezmatics, Budowitz and Kapelye. Steven received both his Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in Violin Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music. He is a regular guest soloist with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra and has participated in the national Repertory Orchestra, the National Orchestral Institute and the American Institute of Musical Studies in Austria.

This new program is coordinated by the Cleveland Hillel Foundation for the University Circle community, in particular targeting Jewish and non-Jewish students with interest in expanding their musical repertoire. The goals of the Artist in Residence program are:

• To expose college students of all faiths to Jewish thought, philosophy, ritual, history, liturgy and culture

• To explore Judaism through the media of the arts, music and dance

• To offer students the opportunity to create art, music, and dance under the guidance of masters in each field

• To enhance Cleveland Hillel Foundation's engagement and education of Jewish students in their heritage

• To develop on-going partnerships with appropriate academic departments of Case Western Reserve University as well as the Cleveland Institute of Art and the Cleveland Institute of Music

For more information about the Louis E. Emsheimer Memorial Artist-in-Residence Program, please call Rabbi Jonathan Freirich, Cleveland Hillel Metro Director at 216-231-0040, ext. 22. To register or for special arrangements to participate, please call Steven Greenman at 216-231-5467 or e-mail him.

Posted by Ari Davidow at 3:34 PM | Permalink

I am delighted to announce that the musical heritage of the Dutch/British chazzan Abraham Katz (1881-1930) is finally accessible by the public at large. His manuscript (83pp, 1915) is browsable through my home page. It is a treat to look at! I sincerely hope that this web site, www.chazzanut.com will enable many people to share the joy with me of using the compositions of chazzan Katz.

Posted by Ari Davidow at 3:37 PM | Permalink

Seth Rogovoy, author of The Essential Klezmer, is coming to Beth El Temple Center in Belmont, MA for a three-part interactive lecture series that will overview the origins of Klezmer music, the arrival of Klezmer in the U.S. and the recent revival of interest in Klezmer. The sessions will include lecture, samples of music, film clips, and plenty of opportunity for questions and answers. The dates are March 24th, April 28th and June 2nd from 2 - 3:30 at Beth El Temple Center, 2 Concord Avenue, Belmont. Cost for all three sessions is $30. Please purchase tickets in advance - space is limited - by contacting jcentury@edc.org.

Posted by Ari Davidow at 3:42 PM | Permalink

A five-day celebration of vocal and instrumental klezmer and Yiddish music, dance, poetry, language, music history, media and visual arts in an atmosphere of joy and welcoming. Four class time periods will each provide a variety of options. A full children's program will be offered. Evening programs will include sing-alongs, dancing and performances. If you would like to be on the mailing list, contact: Julie Egger, jegger@marin.k12.ca.us, P.O. Box 36, Lagunitas CA 94938, 415/488-9125.

Posted by Ari Davidow at 3:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Klezmerpalooza is an annual intercollegiate festival of Jewish music that began in 1999. This year will feature two very exciting events. First, Henry Sapoznik will lead a masterclass workshop, free and open to the public at 10am-12pm in the Branford College Common Room, 74 High Street, at Yale University. Second, the klezmer bands from Yale, Columbia, Princeton, and Brown will play together at Toad's Place in downtown New Haven (300 York St.). Tickets to the concert are $10 for non-students, and students get in free. www.yale.edu/klezmer/Klezmerpalooza/

Posted by Ari Davidow at 3:44 PM | Permalink

The Sephardic Songbook has just been released by the classical music publisher, Peters Edition, Frankfurt. It is a collection of 51 Judeo-Spanish tunes from Turkey, Bulgaria, Greece and Bosnia, collected and edited by Aron Saltiel, one of the leading exponents of the Sephardic music community and a native speaker of Ladino, with transcriptions and an extensive introduction by Josh Horowitz.

The Sephardic Songbook has just been released by the classical music publisher, Peters Edition, Frankfurt. It is a collection of 51 Judeo-Spanish tunes from Turkey, Bulgaria, Greece and Bosnia, collected and edited by Aron Saltiel, one of the leading exponents of the Sephardic music community and a native speaker of Ladino, with transcriptions and an extensive introduction by Josh Horowitz.

The book contains the complete texts and music of all songs in Judeo-Spanish, English and German, complete with annotations, linguistic details and information about the informants. This book has been 10 years in the making and was put together meticulously from field recordings which were made over the past 30 years.

Introduction

The transcriptions in this collection are based directly upon versions sung by usually one, but sometimes more than one informant. The songs have been gathered from the Ottoman Judeo-Spanish vocal tradition and were performed without instrumental accompaniment. In spite of the obvious contradictions and notational shortcomings which have become apparent to us in preparing this book and which we discuss below, we have tried to remain true to our original intention: to present a songbook which conveys as closely as possible the performance and style of 51 Sephardic songs with their complete texts and a representative melody. For this reason, we have been careful to leave out any suggestions which would obscure the original impression of the song and thereby make it impossible for the reader to separate our interpretation of it from that of our informants....

In some places we have had to do some reconstruction work on the songs, especially where it was not possible to glean a complete version from the first verse alone. At times our informants would stumble, forget a word or two, skip parts that weren't known or modulate their voice unintentionally. In such cases we have drawn the missing or unintelligible melody fragments from one or more of the other verses and carefully spliced them into place. Although we have tried to draft transcriptions notating as closely as possible the original version(s) of the songs, to assert that there is such a thing as an 'authentic' edition would be misleading for the following reasons....

[Note: Some of these songs are apparently covered by Ruth Yaakov, as mentioned in my review of her album, back in 1999. ari]

The Sephardic Songbook can be ordered directly in the US by e-mailing Josh Horowitz. For orders inside the US, the book costs 25.00 (book rate) or 27.00 sent first class. Checks can be made out to Joshua Horowitz and sent to:

Joshua Horowitz
1914 C Haste St.
Berkeley, CA.
USA 94704

In Europe, the book may be purchased from Aaron Saltiel, a_saltiel@mail.styria.com. Contact Mr. Saltiel for payment and shipping info.

For further information, consult the Budowitz website, www.budowitz.com/pages/WhatsNew.html.

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From: allen watsky, awatsky@nj.rr.com
To: Jewish-Music Mailing list (reproduced with author's permission)
Date: Saturday, January 12, 2002
Subject: Sephardic Songbook

Josh,

Edition Peters editions are always elegant, well laid out, good paper stock etc. I'm sort of a paper fetishist, I need no encouragement to pick up another book or edition of music. This one stands out, very well presented. I have other Peters items.

The contents of the book, are really great. I actually love this music. I read through about 20 or so pages of it last night. by the time I had sight read to about page 13 page 2 of Canto de boda II, I was electrified. This material is a gift to the musical community.

The only slight problem for me is that they have a number of spots where half measures are continued on the next line. I always find that mildly annoying. Its no big deal. I am going to use this music. I especially enjoy the compound meters. Very refreshing. It would be fascinating to hear the field recordings, is that possible ?

Have I been too effusive ? Naaaaaaah... This is great stuff. Congratulations.... AW

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From: "Joshua Horowitz"
To: Jewish-Music Mailing list (reproduced with author's permission)
Date: Sat, 12 Jan 2002
Subject: Re: Sephardic Songbook

Thanks for the kind words about the Sephardic Songbook Allen.

Regarding the layout solution of half measures which continue on the next line: The publisher wanted to give the text precedence when faced with the problem of splitting up the music line or the text line. I disagreed at first, but eventually saw the logic in this. If you are a singer, it is more difficult to locate the beginning of the text lines when you have several verses and the beginnings of the lines appear in the middle of the music line somewhere. As an instrumental musician, I also want to see measures kept intact, but as a singer, you want to be able to locate the verse beginnings easily, especially when there are many strophes, which is often the case in the ballads. The problems of orthography and layout presentation were thought out quite thoroughly in this edition, and the work with Peters Edition was the highest level I have yet experienced. That's why the release took so long (3 years). The enormous amount of details which need to be dealt with easily escape the reader's attention (and should!) when the finished product is presented in a simple fashion.

You may also notice the solutions to unusual forms, such as the Passover counting song, Quen Supiese y entendiense, whereby each verse increases in length - no easy problem to solve when you want to be clear in presentation and use as few explanatory notes as possible. There are also forms which have assymetrically constructed strophes, making an intelligible solution quite difficult to come by (see for instance Bre Sarica) I hope that the result pleases those who use the book and invite comments and suggestions.

Thanks again for your warm comments...Josh

Posted by Ari Davidow at 3:46 PM | Permalink