An overview of klezmer music and its development in the U.S

Judaism, Wntr, 1998 by Hankus Netsky

Klezmer music came to the United States in the period of heaviest eastern European Jewish immigration, between 1880 and 1924. Klezmorim migrated from many parts of the Austro-Hungarian and Russian empires and Rumania, and brought with them musical traditions which, while diverse, also share a great deal in common. Some klezmorim traveled extensively, creating a tune network throughout the Jewish pale of settlement. Gypsy, Greek, and Romanian elements are so predominant in Jewish dance music traditions that some scholars have dismissed klezmer as a separate genre altogether. Nevertheless, there are important characteristics and influences that distinguish klezmer from other related styles. Jewish performers often use the word krekhts (Yiddish for "groan") to differentiate their interpretation of a dance tune from that of their non-Jewish counterparts. This word refers to a wailing sound reminiscent of weeping. In addition the term tshok might be used to refer to a laugh-like instrumental sound and a kneytsh is a sob-like "catch." These and other typical klezmer ornaments are also found in other forms of Jewish musical expression including cantorial music and folksong. The cantorial parallel is evident in the shape and phrasing of instrumental improvisations.

The Hasidic movement, which emerged in the latter half of the 1700s, exerted a significant influence on the klezmer tradition. This populist sect made religion more accessible to the masses by emphasizing dancing and the chanting of wordless melodies known in Yiddish (and Hebrew) as nigunim. Hasidim sang these melodies with an intense urgency, hoping to "ascend" to higher realms through their music. Klezmorim were frequently employed by Hasidim to enliven their gatherings, and the spirit of this movement greatly influenced their performance.

Klezmorim brought their skills and repertoire with them and re-created the sounds of eastern Europe's cities and towns on this side of the ocean. At first virtually all of the leaders were violinists (many of whom doubled on trumpet so as to avoid combat during their tenure in the military). Many brought over typical European klezmer instruments such as the tsimbl (hammered dulcimer), harmonica (small accordion), or valve trombone. But by the 1920s the instrumentation had fallen more in line with typical American vaudeville bands of the time.

Here (Example 1) is a transcription of a section of "Lebedik un Freylekh" ("Lively and Merry"), a Yiddish theater song recorded by the Abe Schwartz orchestra in New York in 1927. Abe Schwartz, a New York Yiddish theater bandleader born in Rumania, recorded many Jewish dance runes and theater songs in a career that lasted from the teens well into the 1940s.(2) The melodic line is carried by the cornet, clarinet, and violin, while the rhythmic underpinning is provided by the traditional brass instruments (valve trombone and alto horn) and piano, augmented by the more American sounds of slide-trombone, banjo, and drum set. The bass part is played by the left hand of the piano, a contrabass, and a bass saxophone.

Similar arranging techniques were used by many other Jewish-American bandleaders of the time, including Lieutenant Joseph Frankel, I.J. Hochman, Abe Elenkrieg, and Harry Kandel. Early commercial recordings of these bands give us a sense of what Jewish American audiences wanted to hear. At that time musicians had to know a wide variety of traditional dance tunes such as the bulgar, sirba, freylekhs, rusishe sher, patsh tants, broyges tants, zhok, terkisher, and khasidl, along with dance arrangements of popular folk and theater tunes. The repertoire also included a [Musical Expression Omitted] variety of tunes for listening, including doynes, dobrizhens, and tishnigunim and a large number of ritual dance tunes. Klezmorim brought regional tunes to their adopted American communities. The melodies became instantly recognizable to most listeners, and every local Jewish wedding band had to be prepared to play them.

Certain aspects of the recorded repertoire of this era are actually quite misleading. For example, many klezmer disks seem to have exotic titles. In many cases these were thought up in the office of the record company just prior to the release date;(3) musicians tended to refer to tunes only by their genre, their key, or the name of whoever they learned the tune from (e.g., "Bulgar from Meyer Swerdlow"). Moreover, few private patrons could afford to hire bands as large as those heard on the recordings. The physical limitation of 78 RPM records imposed a three to four minute time limit on dance tunes that, when played live, were often sequenced in medleys that went on for half an hour or more.

The clarinet became the predominant instrument in the American bands, and several clarinetists were renowned virtuosi. Naftule Brandwein (18897-1963) was acclaimed for his expressivity, and showed mastery of a tremendous variety of rhythmic and coloristic subtleties. Dave Tarras (1897-1991) was widely considered the technical wizard of the music, with quick trills and finger gymnastics that rivaled any classical soloist. His career lasted well into the 1980s, and his later recordings show his expressive side to great effect. Shloimke Beckerman (1889-1974) played in a heavily ornamented and rhythmically propulsive style, and Itzikl Kramtweiss (dates unknown) played his E flat clarinet with a piercing, nasal sound.