At one time, there were between 10 and 15 million speakers of Yiddish, the language of the Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern Europe. Some 90% were erased from history after the Holocaust. Today, a number of artists are working hard to revive this language, which was born somewhere in the 9th century from the meeting of ancient German, Hebrew and Slavic dialects. In North America, Montreal is one of the most vibrant scenes for Yiddish expression. It makes sense, after all, the city was shaped in part by Leonard Cohen, Mordecai Richler, Schwartz, Moishes and the first bagel makers, all of whom spoke Yiddish. A vanished world whose flavour can be reintroduced, just a little, with the music of the Kleyn Kabaret ensemble, which expresses a whole batch of old songs (revolutionary, lullabies, musicals, ghetto songs, etc.) in this language. Many of these songs have catchy melodies. They are ‘classics’ of the genre, and understandably so. Above all, they should not be confused with religious songs, which they are not at all. They’re generally about very everyday, prosaic things.
Interview by my colleague Alain Brunet with Kleyn Kabaret :
The performances, meanwhile, are deliciously idiomatic thanks to an array of top musicians from Montreal’s world, classical and jazz scenes: Antonia Hayward on vocals, Damian Nisenson on vocals and saxophones, Luzio Altobelli on accordion and marimba, accompanied by Chantal Bergeron and Miranda Nisenson on violins, Sheila Hannigan on cello, Guillaume Martineau on keyboards, Julie Houle on tuba and Marton Maderspach on drums and percussion.
A beautiful album with a distinguished Bar Mitzvah feel, but authentically festive.
