Klezmer in the Manchester Community
Klezmorim of Manchester
The Klezmorim of Manchester is the community klezmer musicking ‘group’, organised by Daniel Mawson and Richard Fay, the co-directors of The University of Manchester Klezmer Ensemble (Michael Kahan Kapelye), and more recently Modalways CIC. This ‘group’ comprises anyone who currently or wants to take part in klezmer activities in Manchester. It can range anywhere from a small 5-person workshop to a 25-piece dance band with 80+ dancers.
Modalways aims to bring accessible, modally diverse and wide-reaching ‘intercultural musicking encounters’ (workshops, seminars, concerts, folk/dance sessions) to Greater Manchester and beyond. These aim to benefit:
professional and hobbyist musicians by enabling skill development and exchange;
under-represented immigrant communities by increasing representation both within and outside of their communities, and;
cultural organisations not engaged in musical activity by bringing in new audiences to their venues.
Klezmer is a great vehicle for enabling meaningful intercultural encounters of the familiar and unfamiliar because of the meetings of different demographics, histories, and diverse modes of learning. It is also a rich musical tradition that has risked being lost through persecution, pogrom, and genocide, and deserves to be kept alive, particularly in Manchester, which was historically a new home for these persecuted people. Today, It is also home to the second-largest population in Britain.
Since the formation of the Klezmer Tune Club in 2022, we have been adapting and applying our developing university ensemble pedagogy to the wider Klezmorim of Manchester.
Further, through Modalways, we have been connecting the current and former university ensemble students to the network of professional and developmental opportunities in, with, and for the wider klezmer-appreciative and jewish community (e.g. Halle Evening of Klezmer and Dance, Reminiscence sessions in Jewish care homes, Gathering of the Klezmorim/Vessels of Song concerts). Members of the wider community also engage with the students and the klezmer module by performing for, and teaching them, klezmer dancing, presenting to the students, and in the case of the Hallé, coming in to deliver performance masterclasses.
This pedagogic approach aims to foster appreciative intercultural musical encounters that develop both musical and intercultural personhood of all who participate in them, at all levels of engagement.
Much of this work has been enabled by funding from The University of Manchester’s Social Responsibility funding and the JMI.
Halle Evening of Klezmer and Dance
The Hallé Evening is a collaboration between The Klezmorim of Manchester and the Hallé Orchestra’s Halle Connect programme. The event was originally trialled in 2017 and was forced to take a break due to the pandemic, but it returned to be part of the regular Hallé season in 2023, happening twice a year. It has taken place in both Hallé St. Peters and St. Michaels.
Musicians and dancers from the Hallé and the Klezmorim of Manchester are brought together for an evening of optional participatory dance led by local klezmer dance leaders, musical interludes from the traditional klezmer tradition and klezmer-classical crossover pieces.
Interludes include explorations of the Jewish musical inspiration from works by lesser-known composers like Joseph Achron, to concert favourites like Shostakovich, as well more recent compositions by living klezmer composers.
It is an opportunity to try out dancing this inter-generational, communal dance culture, or simply sit back and listen to this rich crossover of musical tradition.
The collaboration generated a tune book (originally created by MKK-alum Jack Fearn) that has been synthesised with the repertoire from the Klezmer Tune Club that is free to use for anyone within the community. The second edition of the Manchester Klezmer (Dance & Jam) Tune Book is available now.
The Klezmer Tune Club brings together musicians (of any level, background, or instrument) to explore tunes from the rich klezmer tradition. We take participants on a musical journey through klezmer’s fascinating history and work with them on a new musical piece each session. We use recordings, sheet music, and learning by ear to explore tunes in a way that is inclusive to learners of different abilities and skillsets, and that is historically, culturally, and musically sensitive.
The KTC workshops are one-off events but they also work cumulatively - so, over the months, budding klezmorim develop a shared set of tunes which can be played for events such as Chanukkah parties and the like. We often recap previous tunes at the end of sessions to contribute to building and maintaining a shared repertoire.
We have facilitated groups with as little as 3 people, up to about 23 people. The KTC is used as a feeder group to our other events and forms the core musicians for our performance groups.
Klezmorim of Manchester Dance and Jam Tune Book
Dan has created a new resource, based on the earlier Halle Dance Book, to enable greater accessibility to jam sessions and dances for musicians with diverse appreciations of klezmer. This is available in different transpositions and clefs (7 in total). It is available to download for free here
Residential Care Home Reminiscence Sessions
“The feedback I have had from the evening concert was amazing ”
Members of the Klezmorim of Manchester group go into Heathlands Village and Belong Morris Feinmann dementia-friendly care homes, that cater to a Jewish residents, and play our shared developing tune club repertoire, as well as additional Yiddish, and Hebrew favourites. The group (a mixture of University students, alum, and KTC members) often goes in for Jewish holidays (e.g. Chanukah, Purim, Rosh Hashanah, Simchat Torah) and perform music appropriate for the occasions.
These sessions are mainly in a concert format, but with space for the residents to participate through carer-supported dancing and singing along. We have had people participating by conducting the group and playing alongside us for a couple of numbers.
One concert a year is usually reserved for the current University of Manchester Klezmer Ensemble, and is open to residents and their family. They often use this as a ‘dress rehearsal’ concert for their klezmer ensemble performance assessment.
KlezJam FOlk Sessions
The KlezJam is klezmer folk session the snug of the Kings Arms in Salford that meets every 1st Tuesday of the month. Participants play klezmer music, drink and socialise, with a very casual and inclusive feel: a folk session for all folk!
People wanting to play only need to bring themselves, their voice and/or instrument. We usually have sheet music for tunes if you aren't comfortable playing by ear.
It's also a chance to come to learn about the tunes, different dance styles and chat with klezmer musicians about anything. Check out danielmawson.com/KTC for some of the core repertoire if you aren’t very familiar
Even if people don’t want to play, they can just come along for a drink and a listen. The only rules are participants need to be is respectful and keen, and to buy a drink or two so we aren’t taking advantage of the pub’s generosity.
The session is anchored by the core group of musicians from the Klezmorim of Manchester, including participants of the Klezmer Tune Club.
Academic Yikhes: Publications & Talks
R Fay, D J Mawson & Caroline Bithell, Intercultural musicking: learning through klezmer, Languages & Intercultural Communication Special Issue (2022).
R Fay, D J Mawson & N Palacios, Intercultural musicking: Reflection in, on, and for situated klezmer ensemble performance [due for publication in 2024]
Daniel J. Mawson & Richard Fay, Klezmer Journeys: What can one tune tell us? (Manchester Limmud, 2021)