Maestros & master classes

An impressive array of musicians will practice and perform at the 10th Jerusalem Klezmer Festival.

By SAMANTHA KUBEK
Giora Feidman (photo credit: Courtesy)
Giora Feidman
(photo credit: Courtesy)
The Jerusalem Klezmer Festival will mark its 10th anniversary with a week of performances, including three days of master classes. The festival begins on August 5 with the start of the master classes (August 5-7). The classes will feature musicians from around the world. Hanan Bar-Sela, clarinetist and managing director of the festival, stresses that a wide range of countries will be represented, such as Japan, Germany, Austria, Spain and France.
During the day, the public can watch the klezmer musicians practice free of charge, but seating is limited, he explains.
Renowned klezmer musician and classical clarinetist Giora Feidman (pictured) , founder and artistic director of the festival, will lead a master class for bass clarinet players.
“Feidman was a member of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra for over 20 years,” says Bar-Sela. “He is a very special musician and has brought many of his colleagues to the festival over the years.”
This year, Feidman has brought such international friends as Prof. Philippe Cuper, Helmut Eisel, Raul Jaurena, Federico Mondelci, Guido Jäger, Emil Aybinder and Prof. Gersh Geller.
In the evenings, performances will take place throughout the week, beginning with a concert entitled “From Mozart to Klezmer” at Beit Avi Chai. It will feature Feidman and clarinetist Cuper of the Paris Opera, accompanied by participants of the master classes.
The festival will host a concert in Petah Tikva entitled “Klezmer Tisch.” The performance is a tribute to Feidman, who is credited with the revival of klezmer music for this generation. It will feature Feidman, guest artists from Israel and abroad and participants of the master classes. Following the performance, scholarships will be awarded to outstanding musiciansoldiers and musicians from northern Israel.
A Kabbalat Shabbat concert will take place on Friday afternoon (August 9) at the Jerusalem Great Synagogue. Entitled “Lecha Dodi,” it features Feidman and Bar- Sela, with special guest Lt-Col. Shai Abramson, chief cantor of the IDF. The event will be broadcast live on Israel Radio’s Reshet Moreshet and Reshet Bet.
The festival closes on August 11 with a memorial concert in Yad Vashem’s Valley of the Communities to commemorate the klezmer musicians who perished in the Holocaust. The concert will feature Feidman, Abramson, guest artists and participants of the master classes. The concert will be attended by first- and second-generation Holocaust survivors and Friends of Yad Vashem from Israel and abroad. It will be broadcast live on Reshet Bet.The Klezmer Festival master classes will take place August 5-11. For more information, call (02) 621-5900 or visit http://www.bac.org.il.