Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Klezmer Music

With its roots in eastern Europe, and its tendrils reaching out to the synagogues and vaudeville houses of the New World, klezmer speaks of both celebration and sadness: celebration in its exuberant rhythms and dance tunes, and sadness in its minor keys and in the wistful strains of the doina (song of lament). Originally a regional folk tradition, klezmer has become very much a world-music and is at the core of Beyond the Pale's sound. The band is adept at both traditional and modern interpretations of klezmer's soul-wrenching melodies and exciting dance rhythms. Like klezmorim of the past, they are heavily influenced by their eclectic and multicultural surroundings. Flirting with elements of other eastern-European folk styles (Romanian, Ukrainian, Roma, Balkan), as well as modern and North American styles (bluegrass, folk, reggae, funk), they have forged a cohesive new sound, deeply rooted in Yiddish musical traditions yet strikingly contemporary.

Beyond the Pale was founded in 1998 by Eric Stein who plays mandolin and tsimbl (hammered dulcimer) and will be joined at the 2006 Great Lakes Folk Festival by Bogdan Djukic (violin, percussion), Aleksandar Gajic (violin), Bret Higgins (bass), Milos Popovic (accordion), Eric Stein (mandolin), and Martin van de Ven (clarinet). Collectively, the ensemble has backgrounds in jazz, classical, rock, folk, country, and bluegrass. According to one reviewer, “In their hands, klezmer is a living and evolving music that they perform with gusto and sheer joy.”

Links

http://beyondthepale.net

http://www.acousticmusic.com/fame/p01866.htm

http://black.coolname.com/pipermail/cdnfolk-mirror/2001-June/001697.html

http://www.rambles.net/beypale_consens04.html

http://www.klezmershack.com/bands/BtP/consensus/

http://www.canadianmusician.com/cmshownov01.htm

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