- Idelsohn Society for Musical Preservation - Our Blog

Mazeltov, Mis Amigos Rocks San Francisco

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0700

Thank you, San Francisco, and to everyone who came out to see our sold-out show at Yoshi's. Grammy award winning Arturo O'Farrill oversaw a dazzling recreation of Mazeltov, Mis Amigos, the 1961 album we unearthed and re-released last year. The gig rocked. Larry Harlow, "El Judio Maravilloso", jousted with The Sway Machinery's Jeremiah Lockwood. Ozomatli's Wil-Dog killed the crowd with his version of "Caballito", and Ceci Bastida and Ethan Miller harmonized in Yiddish for the very first time -- as if they had spoken the language their whole lives. More to come in terms of this concert. The photos below are just a taste. But we are indebted to Arturo and the Koret Foundation for making this night possible. It was epic.

All photography by John Storey.

The INCREDIBLE band: Sandy Perez, congas; David Flores, traps; Saul Sierra, bass; Louie Romero, timbalas; Mike Rinta, trombone; Doug Beavers, trombone; Mike Olmos, trumpet; and Louis Fasman, trumpet

Wil-Dog

Backstage

Ceci Bastida

Jeremiah Lockwood

Bandleader Arturo O'Farrill and Larry Harlow

The Burton Sisters, singing together for the first time in 55 years, and Larry Harlow

Johnny Mathis Honored at Skirball Show

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0700

Last night was a magical evening for all of us at the Idelsohn Society. We were honored to honor the legendary Johnny Mathis, who became the first performer to enter the Idelsohn Society's Canyon of Heroes due to his 1958 recording of the Yom Kippur opener, Kol Nidre. Mathis referred to the song which was released on his album of faith songs, Good Night Dear Lord, as a "hidden gem" in his career.

Hedva Amrani, an Israeli starlet who made it big in Japan in the 1970's opened the show with manesty. Cello jazz legend Fred Katz dropped an iconic performance, and Cantor Sol Zim closed the evening emphatically with his performance pyrotechnics. Thanks to the Skirball staff and all who made the evening so special. More images and videos to come.

All photos by Mitch Maher.

Idelsohn Society remembers Mitch Miller in the New York Times

Wed, 04 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0700

Mitch Miller, the great producer, arranger, and musician passed away aged 99. The Idelsohn Society's David Katznelson remembered him in the New York Times. Read the article here.

Black Sabbath on the Examiner

Tue, 20 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0700

We're less than two months away from the official release of Black Sabbath: The Secret Musical History of Black-Jewish Relations, coming out September 14, and the reviews are starting to come in. Sonya Alexander of Examiner.com calls Black Sabbath "the first compilation of its kind . . a jewel of a musical fervor," and that "these fifteen tracks give credence to the lively musical exchanges between two communities that have sometimes been against each other, sometimes alongside each other. Both groups, oppressed and struggling for freedom at certain points in history, can relate to the other's spiritually-based songs."

Read the rest of the review here.

Tuning Baghdad

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0700

If you're in NYC this weekend, check out this awesome event at Governors Island, led by Regine Basha, friend of the Idelsohn Society.

This Saturday, July 17th, from 12-4pm, Regine is hosting a tutorial on 'Tuning Baghdad', related to the field recordings she had done with elderly Baghdadi musicians of the 1940s-a time when Jews, Muslims and Christians shared a thriving music scene. Read more about Tuning Baghdad here.

Amir El Saffar, an amazing Iraqi-American musician has been invited to play the 'santour' at 2:30 in the house. A rare, intimate treat.

For more details about Saturday, click here.

The Catskills' Last Kosher Resort

Thu, 08 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0700

Save Kutsher's. To many of the musicians we salute, it was the Madison Square garden equivalent of its day. The place is still stunning. Like taking a time machine back to 1962. Do it. Do it.

Click here to read the full story.

Mazeltov, Mis Amigos Rises Again

Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0700

In 1961 the legendary jazz label Riverside Records released Mazeltov, Mis Amigos, an album of “Yiddish favorites in Latin tempo," by Juan Calle and His Latin Lantzmen. The band who performed these mid-century dance floor fusions was an only-in-America supergroup that wasn't as Jewish as their name made them sound. Juan Calle was John Cali, an Italian-American banjo picker and his Latin Lantzmen included some of the biggest names in 50s and 60s Latin music-- conguero Ray Barretto, timbales guru Wilie Rodriguez, pianist Charlie Palmieri-- playing alongside African-American jazz greats like Clark Terry, Doc Cheatham, and Wendell Marshall. Their album — with “Papirossen" showing up as a quick-step mambo, "Yossel, Yossel" dancing the cha-cha, and "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen" waking up as a meringue — stands as one of the great cross-cultural mash-ups of 20th Century American pop music.

This August 30th at Yoshi's in San Francisco, the Idelsohn Society, along with bandleader Arturo O'Farrill, will recreate the album in its entirety for one night only. Like last year's show at Lincoln Center, which drew several thousand salsa and hora dancing enthusiasts, the show will feature an amazing line up of special guest stars and a backing band that only San Francisco could provide. The show includes Fania recording giant Larry “El Judeo Maravilliso” Harlow, the brilliant Jeremiah Lockwood of The Sway Machinery, Mexican singer-songwriter Ceci Bastida, and many more.

This concert would not be possible without the generous support of the Koret Foundation.

Tickets will go on sale soon- follow us on Twitter and Facebook for updates so you don't miss out!

Black Sabbath Coming Out This September

Tue, 29 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0700

The Idelsohn Society is thrilled to announce that our latest album, Black Sabbath: The Secret Musical History of Black-Jewish Relations, will be released on September 14. Hear Johnny Mathis croon Yom Kippur songs and the Temptations groove out on “Fiddler on the Roof”. Also featuring Aretha Franklin, Lena Horne, Cab Calloway, and others, Black Sabbath explores the myriad ways that Jews and African-Americans have coalesced and clashed, struggled against each other and struggled alongside each other.

This is the first attempt to gather the U.S. history of Black-Jewish relations into a selective pop musical guide. The historical, political, spiritual, economic, and cultural connections between African-Americans and Jewish-Americans have long been a reliable subject of rigorous attention. Books and articles focusing on the musical landscapes shared by Blacks and Jews have been equally numerous, indeed most general histories of American Popular Music even turn on the synergies of Black-Jewish creativity, influence, and exchange, be it Tin Pan Alley, Klezmer, the Yiddish Theater, Jazz, or R&B. Yet for all this attention there has yet to be a one-stop musical source of evidence and exploration, a single CD release that succinctly and selectively gathers together the key songs that speak to the vibrant and often dazzling musical back-and-forth between the two communities.

This collection moves from early Black performers like Slim Galliard singing about bagels and matzoh balls and Cab Calloway mixing Yiddish into his hepcat dictionary of jive to Sonny Berman making 40s bebop he called ''Beautiful Jewish Music," Johnny Mathis singing "Kol Nidre," and Aretha Franklin doing 60s take on "Swanee." Indeed, while much scholarly and media ink has been devoted to the Jewish attraction to Black music, this anthology—while surely demonstrating that—will also focus on demonstrating the long history of African-American interest in Jewish musical practice, performance, and composition.

The album will be accompanied by an exhibit at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, opening on August 26. Stay tuned for more details!

"Jews on Vinyl" in the LA Daily News

Tue, 25 May 2010 00:00:00 -0700

(Photo from LA Daily News John McCoy/Staff Photographer)

The LA Daily News had a great piece on the Idelsohn Society and the "Jews on Vinyl" exhibition at Skirball (now through September 5th).

KPCC, Southern Califnornia's public radio, also interviewed our own Josh Kun last week about the exhibit. Listen to it here.

To celebrate the music of "Jews on Vinyl", Skirball is hosting a "Get Down, Moses" listening party on June 3 and a "Mazel Tov, Mis Amigos" listening party on July 8th. We'll see you there!