kfarcenter.com Blog

Led by harmonica innovator Jason Rosenblatt, and named for the traditional fur hat worn by Chassidic Jews, Shtreiml blends elements of klezmer, gypsy music and jazz to create a vibrant sound that is at once Eastern European Folk Music and Down-Home Blues. Shtreiml’s debut album, Harmonica Galitzianer, nominated for a Montreal Independent Music Award for Best World Music Album 2003, showcases Rosenblatt’s unique approach to playing the 10-hole diatonic harmonica or “blues harp.”

Uncle Tibor’s Spicy Paprikash
Halevai
Galitzianer Tantz
Nign (Avinu Malkeinu)

Rosenblatt uses recently devised techniques pioneered by harmonica master Howard Levy, to fit the instrument generally associated with the blues into an Eastern European context. Along with Rosenblatt the group members include trombonist Rachel Lemisch, one of the leading figures in klezmer brass revival, founding member Thierry Arsenault on drums and Montreal jam band scene mainstay Adam Stotland on bass. Frequent guests include, the stellar voice and incomparable stage presence of Yiddish folksong revivalist, Abigail Rosenblatt, along with founding member and internationally acclaimed hip-hop klezmer guru Josh (SoCalled) Dolgin.

Shtreiml is at present working with virtuoso Turkish musician Ismail Hakki Fencioglu on a project which explores the connections between Turkish and Eastern-European Jewish music. The group has performed at festivals, concerts, clubs and private functions in Canada, Europe and the U.S.

Download full press kit.

Matthue Roth is an Orthodox paradox; a poet who davens three times a day, he riffs on the sex he didn’t have until he married, crushes on Orthodox girls, his lesbian best friends and other frustrations of being frum. Matthue has performed on HBO’s “Def Poetry Jam” series. On Friday nights he’s a regular at Chabad, but other nights he’s in front of the microphone. He is a published author and poet with two books to his credit “Never Mind the Goldbergs” and a memoir, “Yom Kippur A Go-Go.” A third book is in the works. Warning: these poems may be inappropriate for children and halachic prudes.

Dreidel Maiven
Orthodox Girls

Remedy Ross is an affiliate of the Wu-Tang Clan best known for his landmark Rap song “Never Again.” A Hip Hop artist, he leads an extraordinary program for Jewish youth that brings Remedy’s Jewish-themed lyrics, including his personal family account of loss in the Holocaust and his recent eye-opening experiences in Israel, to young people in search of a stronger Jewish identity. His song “Never Again”, written as a tribute to the Holocaust victims and survivors, appears on Wu-Tang’s “The Swarm” album in 1998 selling over one million copies world-wide and became a Jewish anthem.

Remedy’s program goes beyond a traditional performance. Between songs Remedy speaks about anti-Semitism, Jewish pride, Israel, and other topics relevant to today’s Jewish youth. Remedy also opens the floor to discussions, during which students are free to share their thoughts and questions on issues facing the Jewish people today.

Love My Land
Never Again
I like it (feat. SHI 360)

Ehad

“World Fusion Beat Scientists” Zohar are led by composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist Erran Baron Cohen, whose credits also  include of the popular Da Ali G and Borat movie sountracks.  ZOHAR weave together the beats and textures of modern club culture with hareem, hip-hop, electronica, dub and future grooves.  It is a deconstruction of past, present and future, spanning Jewish Cantors, Arab Muezzins, Byzantine chants, meets today’s modern jazz and experimental musicians. Their approach is resolutely experimental and uncompromising with an instinctive feel for lush cinematic arrangements and intelligent melodies.  Their acclaimed debut, One.Three.Seven.m was produced by Miles Copeland’s Ark 21 label.

The new album Do You Have any Faith? builds on ZOHAR’s previous reputation as underground pioneers of the oriental inspired jazzical influenced dance scene, that produced the legendry Buddha Bar compilations, Thievery Corporation, Dhizan and Kamien, Gotan Project and many others.   This new album features many exciting collaborations. Godfather of folk inspired jazz funk Terry Callier adds his spiritual presence to Roots in Jerusalem. The amazing voice of Tunisian Paris based singer Amina Annabi(who also starred in the epic”The Sheltering Sky”) sings beautifully on Une Ange en Paix, which also features the haunting oud playing of Nabil. Legendry Buddha Bar DJ Claude Challe features on Survival, and the powerful kawali voice of Riffat Sallamat make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up on the haunting Raga.

London-based ZOHAR have already picked up a dedicated body of fans through their performances both in the UK and internationally-USA, Bali, France, Greece, Turkey, Israel, Hungary, Latvia, and at UK festivals Glastonbury, Womad, The Essential Festival, Bracknell, and Homelands. Regular appearances at the trendy Momo’s Moroccan eaterie in Central London and other firing nightclubs like Cargo, Whirl-y-gig, China White and Heaven have added to their London presence.

(more…)

Bum Ching

Emunah are “the UK’s hot new Jewish hip-hop act”, say The Guardian. The band fuse the finest elements of world music with hip-hop, breaks and drum and bass, blending musical ingredients from Klezmer to Carlebach to Bhangra with kicking beats and driving, soulful basslines that never fail to get the crowd moving. Emunah’s members stem from a broad range of ethnicities including Russian, Jewish, Palestinian and Pakistani, and their songs fuse influences from Eastern Europe to the Middle East, from Jamaica to New York, and from Kashmir to London.

(more…)