You’re invited to a day of interactive workshops with klezmer supergroup Forshpil covering traditional Yiddish dance and klezmer music for vocalists, instrumentalists, hand-clappers, foot-stompers, and yay-day-day’ers of all ages and abilities.
$15 per session | ✔ All-Access Pass
Session One: 11 AM - 12:30 PM
Yiddish Dance Far Ale (For All)
Session Two: 1 PM - 2:30 PM
Klezmer for Melodic Instruments
Singalong: Yiddish Love Songs from a Parallel World
Klezmer Groove Train (Rhythm + Percussion)
Workshop Descriptions
Session One: 11 AM - 12:30 PM
Yiddish Dance Far Ale (For All)
Led by Sasha Lurje, accompanied by Ilya Shneyveys, Jake Shulman-Ment, Richie Barshay, & Avi Fox-Rosen
An all-ages and abilities workshop for new dancers, experienced dancers, and even those that think they aren't dancers. We will focus on the steps, styles, and embellishments of essential Yiddish dance genres – paying special attention to meaning and the dialogue between dancers and musicians. All instrumentalists are also encouraged to attend (sans instrument). Understanding the dances is an essential “step” towards becoming a great klezmer musician. Learning with a live band, we’ll cover tempo and repertoire selection, watching the dancers and reading the room, and working with a dance leader. Participants will have a chance to show off their new skills at the evening’s headliner concert at the Cedar Cultural Center!
Musicians: There will be a secure space to store your instruments so you can retrieve them for session two.
Accessibility note: Standing workshop on an open floor with seating around the perimeter for those needing to rest or simply wanting to watch and listen to the live band. Contact us with any questions.
Session Two: 1 PM - 2:30 PM
Klezmer for Melodic Instruments (Beginner and Intermediate/Advanced) with Ilya Shneyveys & Jake Shulman-Ment
Whether you’re playing a simcha every weekend or someone who’s never played a klezmer tune before, here’s your chance to learn from two of the most renowned touring klezmer musicians out there. We’ll split the group into beginners and intermediate/advanced players, and learn music the traditional way; by ear. Beginners will leave the workshop with a new klezmer melody they can play anytime without sheet music, and intermediate/advanced players will learn how to mimic the Yiddish voice on their instrument; infusing rhetorical meaning, rhythmic sense, and ornamentation into their musical phrasing.
Open to musicians of all ages and abilities, but players with at least a basic grasp of their instrument will get the most out of this class. Bring your instrument and an audio recorder (or use your phone). Chairs will be provided. Stands are not needed. Vocalists and non-musicians are also invited to sing along and hang out with us. Contact us with any questions.
Singalong: Yiddish Love Songs from a Parallel World with Sasha Lurje
Yiddish folksongs carry the stories of ordinary Jewish folks’ lived experience, carried across place and time. Singers of all ages and abilities - from fluent Yiddish speaker or professional singer to “can sing yay-day-day” - are invited to enjoy the warmth of these songs together on a cold winter day.
Sasha Lurje has been researching and performing traditional Yiddish singing style and repertoire, investigating both secular and religious vocal materials. With her Yiddish psychedelic rock band Forshpil, she is developing a new style of Yiddish music by integrating the traditional sound into a modern context. Participants will learn selections from the repertoire of Forshpil and be able to sing along at the evening’s headliner concert at the Cedar Cultural Center!
Accessibility note: Seated workshop. Contact us with any questions.
Klezmer Groove Train with Richie Barshay
Join Richie Barshay, international touring percussionist with acts such as The Klezmatics, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, and more, will lead a crash course in body percussion and movement, designed to enhance your groove and rhythmic creativity in the klezmer idiom. For novice to experienced rhythm section musicians, as well as non-musical beginners who want to dip their toes into a musical experience, we will learn traditional rhythms found in klezmer music, with a focus on traditional folk dance and the fundamentals of grounded time and groove. Through elements of the Alexander Technique (Richie is also a certified teacher), we’ll learn to use our bodies as a gateway to more rhythmic flow!
Accessibility note: Standing workshop on an open floor with seating around the perimeter for those needing to rest or simply wanting to watch and listen. Contact us with any questions.