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Student resources:

Accordion

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Welcome to the student resources page! Here you can find lots of useful information to help you to play klezmer.

 

We are preparing study tracks for each of our four tunes: Odessa BulgarDave's NignS'iz Nito Keyn Nekhtn and Kiev Freylekhs

Odessa Bulgar

Mishka Ziganoff

Odessa Bulgar was recorded by accordionist Mishka Ziganoff in New York in the 1920s. He was not Jewish, but played a lot of Jewish music and even spoke Yiddish!

 

It’s an upbeat tune; the mode is freygish, and the dance style is freylekhs/bulgar.

Odessa Bulgar played by Mishka Ziganoff

Study tracks

Resources in development

Dave's Nign

Dave Tarras

The recording we followed for the NKYO version of this freylekhs comes complete with a slide whistle! In the original, it follows a slow improv ('Rumenishe Doyne') played by legendary klezmer clarinettist Dave Tarras.

 

The mode is Misheberakh and the dance style is freylekhs/bulgar. 

Dave Tarras plays Dave's Nign

Study tracks

Resources in development

S'iz Nito Keyn Nekhtn

London Klezmer Quartet

'S'iz Nito Keyn Nekhtn' means 'Yesterday is Over'. There are many versions of the melody, and it's a song in the Belarussian language, as well as in Yiddish. 

In the freygish mode, it's made for singing along.

London Klezmer Quartet play S'iz Nito

Study tracks

Resources in development

Kiev Freylekhs

Vintage klezmer cartoon (detail)

A major key romp with a chorus inviting us to 'play it again' (shpil es nokh a mol). You can hear lots of options for variation in the Naftule Brandwein version.

Ukrainian SSR State Ensemble (1937)
Naftule Brandwein's orchestra (1925)

Study tracks

Resources in development
Odessa Bulgar
Dave's Nign
Kiev Freylekhs
S'iz Nito
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