THE JOYS OF KLEZMER MUSIC

For many people, Jews and non-Jews alike, klezmer music is what immediately comes to mind when they think “Jewish music.”  With its plaintive clarinets, brassy trumpets and highly-syncopated rhythms, klezmer conjures up strong Jewish memories, whether it be the score of Fiddler on the Roof or dancing the hora at family weddings and bar mitzvahs.  

However, klezmer is actually much, much more.  It is the music which has accompanied Central and Eastern European Jews on their centuries-old wanderings, a document of the various influences (religious, secular, Jewish and foreign) on Jewish people over the ages and a snapshot of both traditional life in the shtetl and modern life in cosmopolitan cities like New York, Buenos Aires and Paris. 

This audiovisual course will discuss the origins of klezmer, the music’s different styles and genres, how klezmer survived the Holocaust and how it was rediscovered and revitalized in the 1970’s. We will listen to and analyze lyrics and music and trace the fascinating path that klezmer has taken from simple wedding music to sophisticated jazz and world music of the 21st century.

No prior knowledge of Yiddish or Hebrew is required – only the ability to tap your toes! 

Wednesdays, 7:00-8:30pm (EST)

Dates: June 9, 16, 23, 30

Professor Jeffrey Weinstock is a professor in the Business School at the University of Miami.  He graduated summa cum laude from Yale University and holds a graduate degree with high honors from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.   He is the recipient of numerous Excellence in Teaching awards, including being named one of the “Top 50 Undergraduate Business Professors in the U.S.” in 2018.   He lived in Israel for 13 years, is fluent in Hebrew, Spanish and Portuguese, and has spent more hours than he cares to admit consuming pop culture.