The Essential Klezmer: A Music Lover's Guide to Jewish Roots and Soul Music, from the Old World to the Jazz Age to the Downtown Avant Garde (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Like most Americans my age (I was born in 1960), I was raised on a steady diet of popular music, beginning with the Beatles and..." (more)
Key Phrases: Old World, New York, Dave Tarras (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Rogovoy, a music journalist and passionate aficionado of klezmer music, carefully and lovingly chronicles klezmer with a journalist's eye for detail. (The term klezmer is a Yiddish contraction of two Hebrew words: kley, or "vessel," and "zemer," or song. Thus, klezmer originally referred to a Jewish folk or street musicianDa vessel of songDand not to a specific style.) Once in America, the genre absorbed influences of Broadway, jazz, blues, funk, and, most recently, a hard-driving rock beat (leading to the recent incarnation of shtetl-metal music). The five chapters deal with chronology, from "Old World Klezmer" through "Revival" and "Renaissance" (the latter looks at the phenomenon of klezmer music in the 1990s). The author is thorough and up-to-the-minute: the last appendixD"Klezmer on the Internet"Dlists websites of the major artists and organizations that perform and promote klezmer music. His discography, as well, is a valuable tool for both novices and seasoned listeners. Highly recommended for all collections.DLarry Lipkis, Moravian Coll., Bethlehem, PA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Engagingly fresh." -- Publisher's Weekly

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Algonquin Books; First Edition edition (May 12, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565122445
• ISBN-13: 978-1565122444
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #578,129 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The one to buy!, July 11, 2000

By	George Robinson (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

I'm not entirely unbiased -- Seth has generously praised my most recent book -- but as someone who writes on Jewish music regularly for several papers, I can honestly say that this is the book on klezmer to start with. Seth's ecumenical, eclectic taste and balanced view of the current scene make him a superb tour guide for either a first-time visitor or an old klezmer hand. As a working music journalist, he has interviewed all the key figures in this music -- even the notoriously reclusive John Zorn -- and clearly he has asked the right questions, because his chapters on recent music are insightful and zesty. And the book's lengthy critical discography makes it an indispensable guide for the listener and record buyer.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rogovoy Gets it Right, June 3, 2000

By A Customer

Seth Rogovoy has written a rich history of Klezmer music that should prove to be an important contribution to the field of Jewish music. He has captured the spirit and meaning of this most wonderful and expressive musical traditon that is currently in the midst of a significant rebirth. This is an intelligent and loving tribute both to the musical tradition, and to the men and women who have performed Klezmer from generation to generation.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Klezmer in a cultural context - and much more!, June 19, 2000

By A Customer

The author does a great job of putting the technical and artistic components of Klezmer music into an historical and cultural context and following its evolution within that context, as well as independent of it. He does it in a way that is both entertaining and scholarly without being ponderous. The discography is an invaluable resource.