NORTHAMPTON — A day-long celebration of klezmer music with workshops, concert and community potluck will be hosted at Bombyx Cetner for Arts & Equity on Sunday, March 23, and will feature a new group ready to lead the day of music and culture.
A Glezele Tey, Yiddish for “a very little glass of tea,” features Rachel Leader on violin, Ariel Shapiro on accordion and Richie Barshay on percussion. The group assembled over a year ago.
The celebrations are open to all with no prior experience necessary. The workshops will include a demonstration on the roots of Ashkenazi instrumental music (klezmer) and Yiddish song followed by participants breaking into small groups, each led by a member of A Glezele Tey, to focus on the music more deeply.
Then, A Glezele Tey invites the audience into a warm, intimate and thralling performance of klezmer, Yiddish folk song, and tkhines, traditional Ashkenazi prayers centering the experiences of women, trans and gender non-conforming people, set to new melodies.
The workshops with A Glezele Tey will begin at 11 a.m. and go until 12:30 p.m. At 1 p.m., workshops with Alicia Svigals will break out before everyone re-gathers for a concert in the sanctuary from 4-5:30 p.m. The potluck will begin at 6 p.m. in the Peacock and Music rooms.
There are three types of tickets: workshop only, concert only, and workshop and concert bundle. To learn more about the upcoming Klezmer Festival and to purchase tickets, visit bombyx.live and look at upcoming events.
Rooted in the music of the Eastern European Jewish diaspora, Bombyx Executive Director Cassandra Holden said performances are soulful, spontaneous and deeply personal.
“There are different ways to go deeper into learning about the structure of klezmer music, how to play it, how to sing. So, it’s really inviting participants of every skill level to come together first in the group format but then breaking off into these smaller groups and then coming back together to play something as a community,” said Holden.
Holden told Reminder Publishing that they have hosted ensembles in the past and this new project, from A Glezele Tey, is a fresh take on the genre. It also coincides as an opportunity for Bombyx to host a community event that brings people together.
“A little over a year ago, Bombyx received two bomb threats. We are home to a Christian Congregation and a Reform Synagogue,” said Holden. “As the conflict on Gaza was stirring up a lot of online hate activity, the synagogue housed here received two bomb threats via email and the conversation really began in response to that about how could we do something joyful as a community to counteract the hurt and negativity that we were experiencing in the world.”
Attendees are encouraged to check out the night prior on March 22 for a presentation of Cine Concert: The Ancient Law, a new digital restoration of Ewald Andre Dupont’s 1923 silent masterpiece featuring violinist Alicia Svigals and pianist Donald Sosin performing an original score.
The Sunday portion and workshops of the Klezmer Festival will be followed by a potluck dinner for participants, which brings home the theme of community coming together in this unique experience.
“We’re trying to bring people together in celebration and learning so sparking curiosity and creating opportunities to come together and make new friends,” said Holden. “Often when we do potlucks, we’re seated at large tables so there’s opportunity to talk to strangers and make connections that way. Folks will have spent the afternoon together in these workshops and then experience the concert, so everyone in that room has common ground. You have all experienced something so you can turn to the person next to you and have a conversation because you have these shared experiences on which to draw.”
Holden said she hopes the community makes it out for this event that is not only educational but a celebration of music, culture and community.
“Acknowledging that joy is such an important part of our mental well-being and resilience. There’s an appropriate time for protest, and grief and for all the complex emotions that come up as part of being a human being,” Holden said. “But in order for us to be resilient and bounce back and keep doing the important work in our community, we need these opportunities to come together in celebration and to see one another, dance with one another and share a meal with one another, and that’s really the idea behind this festival.”
