Zev Feldman, Pete Rushefsky and Alicia Jo Rabins
Performing: “A Rare Evening of Klezmer Tsimbl (Cimbalom/hammered dulcimer)”:
Live at The Stone (www.thestonenyc.com/)
John Zorn, Artistic Director
Basya Schechter, Curator for February series
Date: Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Location: Corner of Ave. C and 2nd St., Lower East Side of Manhattan, NYC
Time: Two sets: 8PM and 10PM
Admission: $10

A special night of music featuring the tsimbl– also known as the cimbalom or Jewish/Eastern European hammered dulcimer. A string instrument played like a xylophone, the tsimbl employs over 100 strings to create a mystical harp-like sonority. It was a popular instrument in Jewish klezmer ensembles across Eastern Europe from the 1500’s through the first decades of the twentieth century.

Walter Zev Feldman (tsimbl) was a true musical pioneer when he revived the tsimbl’s use in klezmer in the 1970’s. He continues to be a leading performer and researcher of Jewish music and dance as well as a leading authority on Ottoman and other Central Asian/Near Eastern musics. His Khevrisa ensemble’s recording European Klezmer Music was released in 2000 by Smithsonian Folkways. When not performing, Feldman also serves as Artistic Director for the 92 St.Y’s Jewish music concert series and holds faculty/fellowship appointments at Bar-Ilan University and Hebrew University. Feldman recently co-directed the successful application for Turkey resulting in UNESCO naming the Mevlevi Dervish tradition as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Pete Rushefsky (tsimbl) was first turned on to the tsimbl when he heard Feldman’s seminal 1979 album Jewish Klezmer Music with mandolinist/clarinetist Andy Statman. He performs regularly with some of the leading performers of the klezmer scene, such as Adrianne Greenbaum, Steven Greenman, Rebecca Kaplan, Joel Rubin and Alicia Svigals. A veteran faculty member of KlezKamp and KlezKanada, Pete also serves as Executive Director of the Center for Traditional Music and Dance, a NY-based non-profit dedicated to preserving the performing arts traditions of ethnic and new immigrant communities.

Alicia Jo Rabins (violin) is a rising star on the New York music scene. She has performed across Europe and North America as a member of the klezmer ensemble Golem. Additionally, Rabins is well-known as a virtuoso of Old-Time music, having performed or recorded with the Mammals, Underbelly, Jay Ungar, Pete Seeger, Cliff Eberhart. Her acclaimed solo album Sugar Shack was released in 2003.