Klezmer
A living ceremonial tradition that traveled from Eastern Europe to the American recording studio, then returned as a revival music with new audiences and new energy.
Origins and context
Ashkenazi Jewish communal music for celebrations, especially weddings, before its later American recording history and revival.
The sound
Characteristics
- Clarinet
- Violin
- Accordion
- Tsimbl
- Dance rhythms
- Ornamented melodic lines
History
Klezmer grew out of Jewish musical life in Eastern Europe and was tied for generations to weddings, holidays, and other communal celebrations. In the 1910s and 1920s, players such as Naftule Brandwein and Dave Tarras helped carry the tradition into the United States, where it absorbed new urban sounds and recording-era polish while keeping its old dance vocabulary. After World War II and a long fall in visibility, the music found new life in the late 1970s and 1980s through the klezmer revival, which brought it back into concert halls, clubs, and recordings in North America and beyond.
Notable artists
- NBNaftule Brandwein
- DTDave Tarras
- TKThe Klezmatics
Essential listening
- 1
The Klezmatics
- 2
Naftule Brandwein
- 3
- 4
Explore connected genres
Sources and further reading
- Klezmer
- adp.library.ucsb.edu
Naftule Brandwein’s discography at the Discography of American Historical Recordings spans 1922 to 1941 and identifies him as a Jewish American klezmer musician.
- Apple Music
The Klezmatics’ official artist page describes the band as reworking klezmer with newer influences and situates the group in New York City.
- Library of Congress Today in History: May 15
- Klezmer music collections and subject entries