Jake Shulman-Ment & Abigale Reisman /
Two Strings

I love Jake Shulman-Ment's band, Midwood (actually, I love all the bands he plays in). I fell in love Abigale Reisman's playing in Ezekiels Wheels, one of Boston's best. Both are "next-generation klezmorim"—musicians who grew up with klezmer post-revival. The two share a passion for Eastern European klezmer and Ashkenazic violin. This recording sets them loose on traditional and new tunes. I saw them live several months ago, in one of those amazing bills that Nat Seelen (also Reisman's bandmate in Ezekiels Wheels) puts together as part of the Boston Festival of New Jewish Music and was just blown away. This recording does a pretty good job of capturing that excitement.

The opening dance medley, "Khosidl/Hopke" illustrates exactly what I mean. Two amazing fiddles, each different, coming together and then harmonizing apart. The feet move of their own accord. Joined by Pete Rushefsky (tsimbl) and Raffi Boden (cello), along with Zoe Christiansen (clarinet) and Richie Barshay (poyk), this is a dream Eastern European klezmer band. As Jeremiah Lockwood points out in his own review of this recording, what we're hearing is music performed by musicians informed not by recordings, but by listening to musicians in Eastern Europe. While the klezmer tradition there was almost destroyed by the Holocaust (along with the communities that celebrated with the music), Shulman-Ment has spent years listening and playing with musicians in Romania, that former borderland between the Ottomans and European empires. This is klezmer without the American jazz (which I also love, but is a different music), as played by both elder musicians and a younger generation.

Two highlights of the recording are the moments when the musicians singing voices take the lead to poems that they each set to music, Abigale on "Zingdendik," a poem by Zishe Weinper (Singing, / the bloodied world awakens, / and through song / emboldened hearts rejoice"); Jake on "Shiker fun bitern emes," words by poet Anna Margolin.

… Out of the dark, heavy, and hard,
as if in service to a higher command,
I am building bright steps to the sought-after,
dreaming and radiant God.

Those words are a good summary of the music of this album. Fans of dancing will also love the many longer sets, including the lovely "Black Sea Suite" or "Tsum Tish" which go on long enough, through a few melodies such that one can get in a good bit of dancing while listening (this is a good recording to listen to with friends). The violin pyrotechnics as the beat goes on, are amazing. And even shorter tunes, like the "Terkisher" and the closing "Gas nign" or the title track, "Tsvey Strunes" (two srings) are vibrant, the two violin voices together, entwined around each other, beautiful.

Reviewed by Ari Davidow, 1-July-2026 .

Songlist

1. Khosidl/Hopke (Trad) 4:56
2. Tsvey Strunes (Trad; arr: Shulman-Ment) 3:37
3. Nigunim (Shulman-Ment, Trad) 8:28
4. Tantsndik! (Trad) 5:34
5. Shiker Fun Bitern Emes—Drunk on the bitter truth (Margolin, Trad/Shulman-Ment) 4:26
6. Black Sea Suite (Trad) 8:55
7. Tsum Tish (Trad) 5:07
8. Zingendik (Weinper/Waletzky/Reisman) 3:53
9. Terkisher (Trad) 3:36
10. Gas Nign (Trad) 3:21

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