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Maxwell Street Klezmer Band

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Maxwell Street Klezmer Band
OriginSkokie, Illinois[1]
GenresKlezmer
Years active1983 (1983)–present[2]
Members26 Active Members[3]
WebsiteOfficial website

The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band is a Chicago-based klezmer ensemble. It was founded by Lori Lippitz in 1983 and is directed by violinist Alex Koffman.[4] The band's educational and outreach focus led to the establishment of the Klezmer Music Foundation, which continues to support Maxwell Street Klezmer Band among other professional and amateur groups.[5][2][6] Maxwell Street Klezmer Band has performed and toured across the United States, United Kingdom and Europe.[6][4] Notable performances have also included those at Carnegie Hall and alongside the Lyric Opera of Chicago in 2014.[5] In addition to performing on stage, Maxwell Street Klezmer Band also plays for weddings, bar/bat mitzvah ceremonies, Jewish community celebrations, and other events.

The band is well-known for performing in the classic European Jewish klezmer style blended with a big band sound. Many of the band's members are themselves immigrants from Eastern Europe, including countries like the former Soviet Union, Poland and Czechia.[2]

The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band, along with its sister music groups in the Klezmer Music Foundation, use community outreach and education to promote the preservation of the klezmer musical heritage.[7][8]

History

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People lined up with instruments are posing in a black and white photo
The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band in 1987

For information about the history of the klezmer music genre, see this page on klezmer music.

The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band was founded by Lori Lippitz in 1983. The name "Maxwell Street" derives from the neighborhood of the same name on the west side of Chicago, which was culturally important due to the Sunday Market. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many of the merchants and pushcart peddlers who settled in Maxwell Street were Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe.[9]

In 1994, Lippitz founded the Klezmer Music Foundation, a nonprofit organization which includes the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band.[8][7]

The band toured Europe multiple times. In 1998, the band performed in London, Vienna, and Munich among other locations. The same year, Maxwell Street performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City.[10]

In 2014, the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band, together with the Chicago Sinfonietta, performed the world premier of Ilya Levinson's Klezmer Rhapsody, with violinist Alex Koffman as the soloist.[2][11] The same year, the band also performed as the ensemble for the klezmer opera The Property with the Lyric Opera of Chicago.[12][13]

Style

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The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band primarily plays klezmer music[14][2] in a manner that has been described as high-energy,[14] soulful,[8] and horn driven.[2]

They perform dance music[2][8] in a multitude of styles. They perform a blend of classical Eastern European klezmer music with a big band jazz style.[4]

Albums

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An illustration with a dark forest
Album art for the Klezmer Band

The Maxwell Street Klezmer Band release their music under the Shanachie Records label.[6][14]

  • Maxwell Street Days (1986 & 2013)[14]
  • Maxwell Street Wedding (aka Sweet Early Years) (1991 & 2013)[14]
  • You Should Be So Lucky! (1996)[14]
  • Old Roots New World (2002)[14]
  • Eight Nights of Joy (2008)[14]
  • Arik Luck is... Moyshe Oysher (2010)[14]

Publications

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The band released The Joy of Klez Band Books, a three book collection of Klezmer band scores published by Tara Books. The book features arrangements of traditional Klezmer songs from 1910 to 1940.[15]

Band members

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alex koffman poses with violin
lori lippitz looking to camera
Alex Koffman (top) and Lori Lippitz (bottom)
group photo of band
Band group photo in Skokie, 2015

Band leadership

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  • Alex Koffman: band director, violinist, and composer. He joined the band in 1990. Koffman creates arrangements for the band and serves as musical director.[2][6]
  • Lori Lippitz: band's founder, manager, guitarist, and one of the vocalists. She also manages the Junior Klezmer Orchestra and the Salaam-Shalom project.[6][2]
  • Shelley Yoelin: saxophone, clarinet, flute, composer[2][6]

Current band members

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  • Vocalists: Lori Lippitz, Lisa Fishman, Cantor Pavel Roytman, Bibi Marcell, Tanya Melamed, Natasha Bodansky, Charlene Brooks[16][2]
  • Violin: Alex Koffman, Irina Kaufman[16][2]
  • Clarinet: Shelley Yoelin, Donald Jacobs, Jeff Jeziorski, Bartek (Bartosz) Warkoczynski[16][2]
  • Trumpet: Ivo Braun[16][2]
  • Trombone: Robert Samborski, Dana Legg, Audrey Morrison[2]
  • Piano: Gail Mangurten, Lawrence Eckerling[2]
  • Bass/Tuba: Jim Cox, Rich Armandi, Howard Prager
  • Drums: Steve Hawk, Justin Kramer[16][2]
  • Accordion: Peter Sadkhin, Sam Hyson[16]

Awards

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The Award for Artistic Excellence

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Awarded by the Skokie Fine Arts Commission in 2016,[17] this award honors Skokie artists for community visibility, artistic talents, number of people reached, regional recognition, and demonstration of artistic excellence.[17]

2020 Skokie Community Foundation Grant Award

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Awarded in 2019, the Skokie Community Foundation donated funds to support an interfaith initiative between the Klezmer Music Foundation and the MCC Academy. Jewish and Muslim students attended educational events and held a concert featuring music of their cultures.[18]

Klezmer Music Foundation

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The Klezmer Music Foundation is an outreach organization that includes the Maxwell Street Klezmer band as one of its affiliated groups. The Foundation's mission is to preserve and maintain the Jewish tradition of klezmer music through performance, education and collaboration.

Other musical groups associated with the Klezmer Music Foundation are the Junior Klezmer Orchestra and the Chicago Salaam-Shalom Music Project, as well as several synagogue klezmer bands.[6][5]

The Junior Klezmer Orchestra was founded in 1994, and teaches teenage musicians the klezmer music style and tradition for performances at various local venues, including music festivals.[19]

The Salaam-Shalom Music Project includes both Jewish klezmer musicians as well as Christian, Muslim, and Arab musicians from countries including Egypt, Pakistan and Iraq. The group comprises members of different ethnic and religious backgrounds sharing and performing folk music in various styles.

The Foundation also organizes performances, collaborations on theatrical and musical presentations, and educational programs at nursing homes, schools, and synagogues.[20][21][22]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Luc, Karie Angell. "Skokie-based Maxwell Street Klezmer Band returns from coronavirus-induced hiatus at Highland Park concert". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Maxwell Street Klezmer Band | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  3. ^ "Bios". Klezmerband. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c "Local Event: Maxwell Street Klezmer Band Featuring Vocalist Lisa Fishman". Skokie, IL Patch. July 8, 2021. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c "Rabbi Joe Black and the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band | November 27, 2016 | Old Town School of Folk Music". oldtownschool.org. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g "Maxwell Street Klezmer Band". North Shore Center for the Performing Arts. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  7. ^ a b "The Klezmer Foundation". ChiTribe. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c d "JUF : Guide to Jewish Living : Maxwell Street Klezmer Band". Jewish United Fund. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  9. ^ "Many Cultures". Maxwell Street Foundation. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  10. ^ "Concerts – Europe – Maxwell Street Klezmer Band". proplanet.net. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  11. ^ "Chicago Sinfonietta Ends Season with two new concertos". Chicago Sinfonietta. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
  12. ^ "Lyric Unlimited to Premiere Klezmer Opera The Property, 2/25". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
  13. ^ "Lyric Unlimited and Logan Center for the Arts to Partner In 2014–15 | UChicago Arts | The University of Chicago". arts.uchicago.edu. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Maxwell Street Klezmer Band". Discogs. Retrieved February 17, 2021.
  15. ^ "Joy of Klez: From the Repertoire of the Maxwell Street Klezmer Band – Clarinet/Sax/Trumpet (Paperback) | Brain Lair Books". shop.brainlairbooks.com. Retrieved May 8, 2021.
  16. ^ a b c d e f Maxwell Street Klezmer Band – You Should Be So Lucky! (1996, CD), retrieved October 10, 2021
  17. ^ a b "Award for Artistic Excellence Recipients | Skokie, IL". skokie.org. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  18. ^ Fairman, Laura. "2020 Grants". Skokie Community Foundation. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  19. ^ "JUF : Guide to Jewish Living : The Junior Klezmer Orchestra". Jewish United Fund. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
  20. ^ "JUF : Guide to Jewish Living : Klezmer Music Foundation". Jewish United Fund. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  21. ^ Stories, Local. "Meet Lori Lipptz and Alex Koffman of Maxwell Street Klezmer Band in Skokie – Voyage Chicago | Chicago City Guide". voyagechicago.com. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  22. ^ Foundation, Klezmer Music (January 17, 2020). "Klezmer Music Foundation and Muslim Community Center Academy Receive Skokie Grant to Build Bridges Through Music". Daily Herald. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
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