PICTURES

Pictures by
Enrico De Somma

THE GROUP

David Krakauer: clarinet - bass clarinet

Kevin O’Neil:

guitar

Will Holshouser:

accordeon

Conrad Korsch:

bass

Kevin Norton:

percussion

INFORMATION

DATE:
 13 JULY 2002
 

TIME: 21,15

PLACE:
Courtyard of Honour,

Torrechiara Castle

PROGRAMME:
Klezmer music

The word Klezmer is derived from “kley” and “zemer”, Yiddish terms more or less meaning “musical instrument”. Klezmer  was the accompaniment at weddings and other celebrations in the “shtetl”, rural Jewish villages throughout Eastern Europe in the 19^th and 20^th  centuries. It was often played by groups of itinerant musicians who moved from village to village.

Between the end of the 19^th century until halfway through the 20^th klezmer music followed the peregrinations of the Jews who fled misery and persecution and abandoned the ex-empires of the Hapsburgs and the Czars to settle in North America more than anywhere else.

Shtetls no longer exist today but klezmer music, with its unique combination of melancholy and cheerfulness, has become a heritage for all humanity.

Translation by Sarah J Hyde - www.thelanguage.biz

David Krakauer

Internationally acclaimed clarinettist David Krakauer occupies the unique position of being one of the world’s leading exponents of Klezmer music and at the same time is a  major voice in classical music. Krakauer is in demand as a guest soloist with the finest ensembles, including the Tokyo String Quartet, the Lark Quartet, the Arditti String Quartet, the Empire Brass Quintet, the Eroica Trio, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Brooklyn Philharmonic Music from Marlboro, Berlin Radio Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfonica de Barcelona. His highly successful collaboration with the Kronos Quartet has thrilled audiences at London’s Royal Festival Hall,  Brooklyn Academy of Music, Cal Performances in Berkeley, California, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw and in Copenhagen, Paris and Frankfurt.

As one of the foremost musicians of the vital new wave of klezmer, David Krakauer tours the globe with his extraordinary “Klezmer Madness!” ensemble. Recent performances have included a sold-out concerts in New York, Dallas,Washington, and numerous European tours.

Krakauer’s discography contains some of the most important klezmer recordings of the past decade. His latest release, “A New Hot One” on the prestigious French jazz label Label Bleu has already garnered France’s prestigious Diapason d’Or prize and has been hailed a masterwork by the International Herald Tribune, Le Mond, Télérama, Jazzman, Jazz magazine and Les Inrockuptibles.

Other CDs include “Klezmer, NY”, “Klezmer Madness”, “Rhythm and Jews” and “Jews with Horns” with the Klezmatics; “In the Fiddler’s House” with violinist Itzhak Perlman and the Klezmatics. Krakauer has had recent major profiles in The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The International Herald Tribune, and has appeared with Itzhak Perlman on the nationally televised Late Night with David Letterman.

 While firmly rooted in traditional klezmer folk tunes, Krakauer’s compositions also pay homage to jazz, rock, experimental classical and funk. For the last 20 years, he has developed a unique and literally breathtaking clarinet language using circular breathing, overtones and alternate fingerings.

Back to top