The London Klezmer Quartet returns to Sydney

The London Klezmer Quartet (LKQ) returns to Australia for a five-week national tour of the festival circuit and major concert venues from 28 February.  They also bring with them a new album.

The all-female band will take you on a Jewish musical odyssey from Eastern Europe to Australia, the Balkans, Thailand, Turkey, the US and London.

Klezmer is the traditional celebratory and soulful music of Jewish Eastern Europe; from kley zemer  (Hebrew: vessels of song) – music that kept Yiddish wedding parties on their feet for days!

The quartet comprises Ilana Cravitz (fiddle), Susi Evans (clarinet), Carol Isaacs (accordion), and Indra Buraczewska (double bass). Their authentic performances of the whirling Klezmer have won praise from leading exponents of this tradition, amongst them Stuart Brotman of Brave Old World and Frank London of the Klezmatics.

The band will also be passing on their expertise in festival workshops and through Sydney Conservatorium’s Open Academy. Learn how to hot-foot it Yiddish style with LKQ’s dance caller at their special dance events.

The LKQ made its 2012 debut tour of the east coast of Australia, playing to sold out audiences. Just 12 months later they are back with their newest CD, entitled Butterfield Green N16 – full of original material in traditional style, inspired by their travels and their London stomping ground. Tracks include Chalk Farm Sirba and Butterfield Green Kolomeyke.

Catch them at 6 festivals nationally including Port Fairy Folk Festival, the National Folk Festival, the Blue Mountains Music Festival, Brunswick Music Festival, Nannup Music Festival and Castlemaine State Festival, as well as several venues including the Melbourne Recital Centre, Camelot, the Famous Spiegeltent, and the Sydney Jewish Museum.

Tickets: Prices differ with venue.

13 Mar   Sydney Jewish Museum (NSW) www.sydneyjewishmuseum.com.au

14 Mar    Camelot (Sydney) www.camelotlounge.com

15-17 Mar   Blue Mountains Music Festival (NSW) www.bmff.org.au

17 Mar        Camelot (Sydney) www.camelotlounge.com

18 Mar         Sydney Conservatorium workshop  http://openacademy.sydney.edu.au/workshopsandfestivals