Hey! I just saw that sixholes posted a tune he learned from "Ayelet Hacohen, an Irish Music expert in Israel." Trip, where are you!? Look what I found!
How much Irish trad music is there in Israel, actually? Anybody know?
Seems only fair that there should be, since the Irish tradition has adopted an Israeli piece (Itzikel, to be found here under the title Frailach). ;)
Sara
There is a great festival in Israel organised by Menachem & Yehudit Vinegrad, called "Jacob's Ladder Folk Festival". I think it was 1995 when we played there. The Jacob's Ladder Festival site is: http://www.jlfestival.com . Menachen & Yehudit's Email address is: ns_jaclad@bezeqint.net and I'm sure they would know what's happening on the trad music scene in Israel. They're a really nice accomodating couple and I'd say they'd be happy to answer your questions Zina.
Itzikel is not Israeli. Kevin Burke is the man who brought that tune into the tradition. He was visiting Scandinavia once, and heard some musicians playing it. He liked it, and learned it, and asked them what the name was, and where it came from. They said that it was a Yiddish tune come over from Russia. They didn't know much of anything else about it, though. Later, he was visiting a doctor in Alaska, who's hobby was to collect Yiddish sheet music. Kevin played the tune for him, and the doctor found it written down under the name Itzikel, which is a form of the name Isaac. The name of the type of tune is a frailock.(spelling?) Watch Kevin's video on the Kenneddy Center to hear him tell the story himself, and play the tune! Beside Kevin recording it on his In Concert album, Lunasa recorded it on their first album. Donogh said that they learned it from Kevin Burke. It's extremly beautiful, and haunting too.
Hi Max, I called it Israeli because a Jewish friend of mine who went to college in Tel Aviv told me she heard it played there. But you're right about the line of transmission of the tune, I've heard KB tell exactly that story. I originally learned the tune mostly by ear from In Concert.
Sara
Dadanaan (sp?) recorded "Onga Bucharesti," about a hundred times faster than Andy Statman played it on one of his Klezmer albums. Oops, we were talking about Irish in Israel, weren't we?
Well, here we are on the map! I have been a member for several months, but have not posted comments yet. There is an ever growing group of very dedicated, very professional Irish musicians here, and five different Irish bands. In addition to the Jacob's Ladder Festival mentioned earlier - our main folk music fleadh, there is also an Irish festival in Tel Aviv sponsored by the municipality and Murphy's. We have had a long list of players here - Dezi Donnelly, John McSherry, Paddy Keanan, Cian, Cran, Liz Dogherty, members of the Bothy Band, and many more. There is also a professional Irish dance group who are beginning to perform. So we've got it all!
Visit the website of my band, Emerald, at www.ismargad.com.
All the best, Bracha
Adding to what Bracha wrote - there are regular Irish music gigs taking place in various Irish pubs around the country as well as 2 weekly pub sessions in Tel Aviv (at Molly Bloom's pub on Fridays and Leo Bloom's pub on Saturdays). Tel Aviv's Irish Festival had seen a long list of wonderful musicians (Bracha mentioned few of these great musicians, to which I will add Uilleann Piper Jerry O'Sullivan, Emer Mayock, Karen Casey's band, P. Glackin & M. O'Dhomnaill, Zoe Conway, Gavin Whelan's band. Dervish and Lunasa also did concert tours in Israel in the past few years.
I learned the tune posted by Sixholes from Amir, a friend and a great mandoline and guitar player. We play together every week in a "Slow players" music group. Amir first heard this tune on a Dubliners recorording. I think it was the Dubliners' Anthology. http://www.lightningcd.com/albumdetail.php?AlbumID=2627
Miles, is your friend's middle name "El"?
I suspect a p*sstake! *insert smiley of choice*
My friend Laoise works for SOAS in London and organises many events here; that's why I thought the guys might know here as she has connections in Tel Aviv....
It strikes me that Zina's surprise at encountering the reference to ITM in Israel is kind of similar to my (delightful) surprise when visiting an ITM session in America and finding the leading player to be a Chinese lady
Er - hi Conan - now I can see what you have been saying about me !!! I met Bracha a couple of years ago when I was in Israel and coincidentally John McSherry was playing with Irish Cream. His eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw me after the concert! I was also in Israel last December and played at Molly Blooms with a couple of musicians including a lovely bouzouki player - Ehud Nathan. Nice session although musicians were outnumbered by Bodhrans. Israelis (at least some of them) are really passionate about Irish music. Its a bit strange, because they generally are not so into Klezmer - perhaps because it reminds some of them of their Eastern European roots which they are trying to get away from, while other Israeli's have non-yiddish roots - i.e. Spanish and Middle Eastern. Needless to say, Irish music has a similar energy and they love to dance. The Israelis went wild for John and Irish Cream. One of the best audiences Ive seen.
BTW - a Freylach (which does indeed mean happy) is a tune in 2/4 time which has an underlying rhythm with stresses on 1/4/7 of an 8 beat phrase - i.e. /DA da da DA da da DA da/
Nearly three years on from the start of this discussion and Irish music is still going strong here. I have an authentic instrumentation band playing a combination of Irish and Jewish (hassidic) tunes. Check us out at israelirishmusic.com!
Mordechai Gordon
Irish music in Israel
Irish music in Israel
Hey! I just saw that sixholes posted a tune he learned from "Ayelet Hacohen, an Irish Music expert in Israel." Trip, where are you!? Look what I found!
How much Irish trad music is there in Israel, actually? Anybody know?
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Zina Lee
Re: Irish music in Israel
Seems only fair that there should be, since the Irish tradition has adopted an Israeli piece (Itzikel, to be found here under the title Frailach). ;)
Sara
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by sara g
Re: Irish music in Israel
Hehe, love Itzikel =] fist tune ever learned by ear ^_^;
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by armandale
Re: Irish music in Israel
There is a great festival in Israel organised by Menachem & Yehudit Vinegrad, called "Jacob's Ladder Folk Festival". I think it was 1995 when we played there. The Jacob's Ladder Festival site is: http://www.jlfestival.com . Menachen & Yehudit's Email address is: ns_jaclad@bezeqint.net and I'm sure they would know what's happening on the trad music scene in Israel. They're a really nice accomodating couple and I'd say they'd be happy to answer your questions Zina.
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Murrough
Re: Irish music in Israel
Way cool. I had no idea that folk musics were popular in Israel...I don't know why it comes as a surprise, exactly.
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Zina Lee
Re: Irish music in Israel
Itzikel is not Israeli. Kevin Burke is the man who brought that tune into the tradition. He was visiting Scandinavia once, and heard some musicians playing it. He liked it, and learned it, and asked them what the name was, and where it came from. They said that it was a Yiddish tune come over from Russia. They didn't know much of anything else about it, though. Later, he was visiting a doctor in Alaska, who's hobby was to collect Yiddish sheet music. Kevin played the tune for him, and the doctor found it written down under the name Itzikel, which is a form of the name Isaac. The name of the type of tune is a frailock.(spelling?) Watch Kevin's video on the Kenneddy Center to hear him tell the story himself, and play the tune! Beside Kevin recording it on his In Concert album, Lunasa recorded it on their first album. Donogh said that they learned it from Kevin Burke. It's extremly beautiful, and haunting too.
-Max
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Max Becher
Re: Irish music in Israel
I guess it could be Israeli in origin, but it doesn't seem to have come form Israel directly.
-Max
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Max Becher
Re: Irish music in Israel
Hi Max, I called it Israeli because a Jewish friend of mine who went to college in Tel Aviv told me she heard it played there. But you're right about the line of transmission of the tune, I've heard KB tell exactly that story. I originally learned the tune mostly by ear from In Concert.
Sara
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by sara g
Re: Irish music in Israel
Irish music is very popular in Israel. Have a look at www.Evergreen.org.il/fs.en.html
Cariad
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by cariad
Re: Irish music in Israel
Sara, I first heard it on In Concert, but learned it from Lunasa.
-Max
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Max Becher
Re: Irish music in Israel
Dadanaan (sp?) recorded "Onga Bucharesti," about a hundred times faster than Andy Statman played it on one of his Klezmer albums. Oops, we were talking about Irish in Israel, weren't we?
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by rocking bow
Re: Irish music in Israel
Well, here we are on the map! I have been a member for several months, but have not posted comments yet. There is an ever growing group of very dedicated, very professional Irish musicians here, and five different Irish bands. In addition to the Jacob's Ladder Festival mentioned earlier - our main folk music fleadh, there is also an Irish festival in Tel Aviv sponsored by the municipality and Murphy's. We have had a long list of players here - Dezi Donnelly, John McSherry, Paddy Keanan, Cian, Cran, Liz Dogherty, members of the Bothy Band, and many more. There is also a professional Irish dance group who are beginning to perform. So we've got it all!
Visit the website of my band, Emerald, at www.ismargad.com.
All the best, Bracha
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Bracha
Re: Irish music in Israel
Adding to what Bracha wrote - there are regular Irish music gigs taking place in various Irish pubs around the country as well as 2 weekly pub sessions in Tel Aviv (at Molly Bloom's pub on Fridays and Leo Bloom's pub on Saturdays). Tel Aviv's Irish Festival had seen a long list of wonderful musicians (Bracha mentioned few of these great musicians, to which I will add Uilleann Piper Jerry O'Sullivan, Emer Mayock, Karen Casey's band, P. Glackin & M. O'Dhomnaill, Zoe Conway, Gavin Whelan's band. Dervish and Lunasa also did concert tours in Israel in the past few years.
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Ayelet Hacohen
BTW, Zina, Re: Cook in the Kitchen
I learned the tune posted by Sixholes from Amir, a friend and a great mandoline and guitar player. We play together every week in a "Slow players" music group. Amir first heard this tune on a Dubliners recorording. I think it was the Dubliners' Anthology.
http://www.lightningcd.com/albumdetail.php?AlbumID=2627
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Ayelet Hacohen
Re: Irish music in Israel
Do any of you guys know Laoise Davidson? She plays Klezmer and Irish music, and is about to become my flatmate!
Conán
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Conán McDonnell
Re: Irish music in Israel
Do any of you guys know Udi Arhou from Tel Aviv? Not sure of the spelling? He is a guitarist and would be about 45-46 years old.
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by milesnagopaleen
Re: Irish music in Israel
Miles, is your friend's middle name "El"?
I suspect a p*sstake! *insert smiley of choice*
My friend Laoise works for SOAS in London and organises many events here; that's why I thought the guys might know here as she has connections in Tel Aviv....
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by Conán McDonnell
Re: Irish music in Israel
Glad to have provided the cause for this discussion. Yes, Irish Music is cherished (almost?) everywhere...
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by sixholes
Re: Zina Lee's surprise
It strikes me that Zina's surprise at encountering the reference to ITM in Israel is kind of similar to my (delightful) surprise when visiting an ITM session in America and finding the leading player to be a Chinese lady
# Posted on June 10th 2004 by sixholes
Re: Irish music in Israel
LOL Conan,
It took me a couple of minutes to get it but no joke. This is a guy I haven't seen since 1977.
hohoho I'm still laughing tho!
# Posted on June 11th 2004 by milesnagopaleen
Re: Irish music in Israel
"Frailock"?!
The nearest word I can think of to it is "freylech" ('ch' pronounced as in German or Irish), which is Yiddish for "joyful" or "happy".
....sorry, I know that was aeons ago, but I only just read it now.
# Posted on June 11th 2004 by Joe CSS
Re: Irish music in Israel
Er - hi Conan - now I can see what you have been saying about me !!! I met Bracha a couple of years ago when I was in Israel and coincidentally John McSherry was playing with Irish Cream. His eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw me after the concert! I was also in Israel last December and played at Molly Blooms with a couple of musicians including a lovely bouzouki player - Ehud Nathan. Nice session although musicians were outnumbered by Bodhrans. Israelis (at least some of them) are really passionate about Irish music. Its a bit strange, because they generally are not so into Klezmer - perhaps because it reminds some of them of their Eastern European roots which they are trying to get away from, while other Israeli's have non-yiddish roots - i.e. Spanish and Middle Eastern. Needless to say, Irish music has a similar energy and they love to dance. The Israelis went wild for John and Irish Cream. One of the best audiences Ive seen.
BTW - a Freylach (which does indeed mean happy) is a tune in 2/4 time which has an underlying rhythm with stresses on 1/4/7 of an 8 beat phrase - i.e. /DA da da DA da da DA da/
Laoise
# Posted on June 24th 2004 by laoisew5
Re: Irish music in Israel
Nearly three years on from the start of this discussion and Irish music is still going strong here. I have an authentic instrumentation band playing a combination of Irish and Jewish (hassidic) tunes. Check us out at israelirishmusic.com!
Mordechai Gordon
# Posted on April 29th 2007 by israelirishmusic
Re: Irish music in Israel
there are a couple of reels and jigs composed by israelis (one at least I know is played in germany. ceol agus craic!).
# Posted on September 9th 2007 by Osher
Re: Irish music in Israel
Calling all musicians- Boycott Israel!
www.bdsmovement.net/
# Posted on June 10th 2011 by Jim Vine