Photo courtesy Maxwell Street Klezmer Band
Maxwell Street Klezmer Band
Maxwell Street Klezmer Band
Music lovers in the Milwaukee area are fortunate that klezmer is coming to town. The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band will play at the Polish Center on April 10. Wear your dancing shoes and be prepared to laugh and cry. Or, perhaps as Lori Lippitz, one of the directors of the band explained, “Laugh through your tears.” The venue and program—“more of a straight-ahead seated concert”—will still have you tapping your toes.
Klezmer music is founded on the traditions of the Ashkenazi Jews of Central and Eastern Europe. It is ever evolving, building on traditional dance tunes, ritual melodies and folk songs of the various countries where Jews were tolerated over the centuries. It includes elements from throughout the Ottoman Empire including Greek and Romanian modalities picked up from sojourns in Poland and the Balkan countries.
With the revival of klezmer music in the United States, one can now hear the influence of jazzy rhythms from the big band. However, even newer forms of the music still incorporate Eastern European melodies. Anything and everything that makes one want to dance, clap or celebrate can find its way into klezmer music.
The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band was formed in 1983 by Lippitz, who still serves as its artistic and musical directors in addition to being one of their vocalists and guitarists. The band has played at Carnegie Hall, toured Europe, and was featured at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in the world’s first klezmer opera, The Property. The band’s violinist and musical director, Alex Koffman, combines his classical training with the band’s jazz orientation to create a unique sound.
Many of the musicians who have joined the band in recent years are immigrants from Eastern European countries where they received their musical training. Minsk, Lodz, Prague and Odessa are just some of the cities in their resumes. They share the stage with others who are from Chicago, New York City, and Skokie. Their bios (www.klezmerband.com/bios) are worth reading. One of the clarinetists, Jeff Jeziorski, lives outside of Milwaukee and has performed with Milwaukee’s Skylight Music Theatre.
Their newest clarinetist, Bartosz Warkoczyński, a graduate of the Music University in Lodz, Poland, will also be featured in the concert on Sunday.
When asked if the band has changed much over the years, Lippitz smiled and answered, “Yes, we’re more polished and experienced after decades of playing together.”
Many of the musicians in the band are educators and teachers. I pleased to learn that “[their] Junior Klezmer Orchestra, which trains young people in klezmer and Yiddish songs, has been running nonstop since 1994.”
I clapped when she told me that “One of [their] graduates is the musical director of Hamilton on Broadway.”
But hearing that members of Maxwell Street collaborate with members of the Arabic and South Asian music community to learn and play each other’s music was truly the best news of all in these divisive times. It demonstrates that music can be used to preserve ones heritage and at the same time bring people together. Lippitz is the founder of the Salaam-Shalom Music Project (an interfaith orchestra combining members of Maxwell Street and members of the Chicago Muslim musical community). She invited me to visit: salaamshalommusic.org.
Photo: The Chicago Salaam-Shalom Music Project - salaamshalommusic.org
Chicago Salaam-Shalom Music Project
The Chicago Salaam-Shalom Music Project
One final note: you don’t have to be Jewish to enjoy klezmer music. Think Fiddler on the Roof meets a Dixieland jazz band and be prepared to have a wonderful experience in a delightful venue.
Further information about the concert, ticket pricing, driving directions etc. can be found on the Polish Center’s web site: polishcenterofwisconsin.org.
Maxwell Street Klezmer Band performs 6 p.m. Saturday, April 10 at the Polish Center, 6941 S. 68th St., Franklin.
