What are some easy klezmer tunes?

[Mandolin-wolf]

I already know Hava Nagila, but that's about it. What are some easy klezmer tunes for someone whose only been playing 5 months? And, sorry, I meant "easy" in the topic.

I fixed the title for you. -JEStanek

[Elliot Luber]

Do a search, there was a Website posted once with a ton of Klezmer songs listed with the music. I'd post it but I don't have a lot of luck with the Cafe's search function.

[JEStanek]

Mandozine has these. You'll need the free TablEdit Viewer software to see them. I can play some intermediate stuff by dropping some of the notes.... or leap in and go slowly! I do that too.

Jamie

[Jim Abrams]

The best source that I know of is "Easy Klezmer Tunes: Classic Tunes from Eastern Europe Arranged for Beginners on All Instruments" by Stacy Phillips and published by Mel Bay in 2003. The book's contents are grouped into three sections: (1) Khosid'ls and Other Slowish Tunes--6 tunes; (2) Horas--4 tunes; and (3) Freylakhs, Bulgars and Other Up-Tempo Tunes--14 tunes. Each tune is transcribed for C instruments (one each for violin and flute), and for Bb, Eb, and Bass instruments. It comes with a CD played by a top notch Klezmer band so you can hear an authentic setting for all of the tunes.

Another excellent source is "The Absolutely Complete Klezmer Songbook" ed. by Klezmer scholar and violinist Yale Strom. This is a 420 page book containing several hundred Klezmer tunes, many of which are fairly easy to play. Two CD's have been recorded that highlight some of the tunes in the book. The group on the CD's is Strom's band Hot Pstromi. The edition I have was published by Transcontinental Music Publications in 2006.

[Bill Stokes]

Here are a gazillion tunes: sheet music, midi audio, it's a treasure trove. All of the ones I've used have been easy.
The music links are over on the right side of the page, under the word Index. http://www.schoellerfamily.org/scores/

[Mandolin-wolf]

Thanks Bill! I'll have to look through these! Which tunes would you recommend?

[Bill Stokes]

Any songs that are familiar; that you've heard a lot. Most people know "Bei Mir Bis Du Schon" (aka Buy me a beer, Mr. Shane.)

Not sure how much Klezmer you listen to. I'm not even Jewish, but a lot of the Freylechs sounded familiar to me.
I think it helps on a new instrument if you have the tune in your ear already.

I would have sworn that "Yossel Yossel" was in there, but I see it's not.

[Mandolin-wolf]

Well, I've heard the Odessa Bulgar several times, and I really like the tune "Miserlou"......

[Ronny]

From Mandozine, "Zemer Atik" and "Moshe Emes" are quite easy. From http://www.schoellerfamily.org/scores/ , you should try "Oyfn Pripetshik"...
From http://www.klezmer.de/Noten/noten.html you should try "Lebedikh un Freylak" (my first klezmer tune, and one of my favorite), "Papirosn" and "Die Grine Cousine"...
All these tunes are easy...

[Mandolin-wolf]

The best source that I know of is "Easy Klezmer Tunes: Classic Tunes from Eastern Europe Arranged for Beginners on All Instruments" by Stacy Phillips and published by Mel Bay in 2003. The book's contents are grouped into three sections: (1) Khosid'ls and Other Slowish Tunes--6 tunes; (2) Horas--4 tunes; and (3) Freylakhs, Bulgars and Other Up-Tempo Tunes--14 tunes. Each tune is transcribed for C instruments (one each for violin and flute), and for Bb, Eb, and Bass instruments. It comes with a CD played by a top notch Klezmer band so you can hear an authentic setting for all of the tunes.

Another excellent source is "The Absolutely Complete Klezmer Songbook" ed. by Klezmer scholar and violinist Yale Strom. This is a 420 page book containing several hundred Klezmer tunes, many of which are fairly easy to play. Two CD's have been recorded that highlight some of the tunes in the book. The group on the CD's is Strom's band Hot Pstromi. The edition I have was published by Transcontinental Music Publications in 2006.

Thanks, Jim. My aunt loves books, and loves to find books for me, so I'll ask her sometime if she can find these!

[Tele295]

How about Anniversary Song?

[SincereCorgi]

Best thing is probably to get some CDs you like and cop the good tunes by ear... the feel is very hard to get (lots of little bends and ornaments) and doesn't necessarily lend itself easily to plucked strings. Maybe check out the first Klezmer Conservatory Band record, or Brave Old World, both fairly traditional-style klezmer with great execution. The Klezmatics and Statman are pretty great though if you want something fresher.

[Mandolin-wolf]

I've heard of the Klezmatics, and the Klezmer Conservatory Band. I'll have to see what I can find. And, I also just started learning the Odessa Bulgar a few weeks ago.

[allenhopkins]

Here's Grine Cousine as we play it. Key of Gm.

[DougC]

http://www.juditheisner.com/klezmer.html

This website has some really nice CD's .
For a while now I have been wanting to put some klezmer mandolin stuff on the net for the benefit of other manolin players. Our band has about 100 tunes in our set list and I play mandolin on all of them. BTW I have pdf's now. (yea!) But our CD is a few years old and there are only two cuts with mandolin. We now have a klezmer string band which I'm sure you'd like because it is the acoustic sound, i.e. fiddle, mandolin, acoustic bass, and hammered dulcimer. So stay tuned - I'll get it together yet.

[DougC]

Mandozine has these. You'll need the free TablEdit Viewer software to see them. I can play some intermediate stuff by dropping some of the notes.... or leap in and go slowly! I do that too.

Jamie

Some of the easy tunes in TAB edit from Jamie (thanks Jamie) are MaYofus and Moshe Emes These are really great tunes that everyone knows.

Zemer Atik and Hava Nagila are Israeli folk dance tunes.

BTW my favorite book is from that old banjo player himself Henry Sapoznik. It is called "The Compleat Klezmer" You can find it on Amazon.

Other easy tunes are: Turk in America, Broyges Tantz, Shver un Shviger (uncle and aunt), and Tantz, Tantz, Yideleh

[Mandolin-wolf]

Ah, The Compleat Klezmer. That was the book my aunt got me. Should be coming in the mail sometime this week...

[DougC]

I'm glad you are getting this book. It includes 'A few notes on the Theory and Performance of Klezmer Music' by Pete Sololow which is still the best at describing the modes and rhythms of the music.

Cravitz a fiddle player from England, has written an excellent book describing the different parts, ie rhythm mandolin/fiddle and bass. No one else has this stuff and it is, to me at least, the best way to get started in the music. Doing some simple chords while the melody is playing is much easier than memorizing lead stuff. Klezmer has a lot of rules about rhythm and style and you need to learn the different dance rhythms. And for that matter a lot of chords written into klezmer scores are jazz chords and they don't work for simple, old world second fiddle / mandolin backup. Look for Ilana Cravitz - klezmer fiddle, how to guide book. Another gem of a book.

[fatt-dad]

i like to play Shifting Sands.

http://mandozine.com/music/search_re...rder=A&submit=

f-d

[Mandolin-wolf]

The book just came in the mail today. I was just skimming through it, and I like what I'm seeing.

[DougC]

The book just came in the mail today. I was just skimming through it, and I like what I'm seeing.

There is plenty to read there, a whole history of the klezmer revival just for a start. And page 19 has the rhythms and scales. It is a compleat book, just like the title says. The bottom of page 25 mentions the 'distinctive solo voice' and the tremlo sound that mandolins do so well.

I would add however that mandolin players in klezmer can and do, play all of the parts of the ensemble. Not just the melodies. By this I mean that you need to know the bass parts, the rhythmic trombone and snare drum parts, secund fiddle parts, and harmony parts as well. The mandolin works with everyone in the band, filling in what is needed at the moment. Unlike clarinet, a mandolin can really do everything and you need to think as you listen to old recordings, how you would play trombone or tuba on a mandolin.

[Mandolin-wolf]

Well then........ Challenge accepted.....

What tunes would you recommend starting with out of the book?

[DougC]

Oy, did I make a challange? I guess I did. Well good, that's the attitude.

Tantz, Tantz, Yidelekh , which means in yiddish "dance, dance young (jewish) man" is like a tune you know and should be a good start.

Broyges Tantz is another good one.

For extra credit play the first tune in D Freygish mode/scale (also called Ah-a-va Ra-bah mode). D Freygish is much easier to play and is more common. E Freygish is for the wind players.

[Mandolin-wolf]

Tantz, Tantz, Yidelekh is coming along greatly, although I think I prefer it in the original key of E. Not sure why...

[DougC]

Tantz, Tantz, Yidelekh is coming along greatly, although I think I prefer it in the original key of E. Not sure why...

I suppose the difference you experience is from the big streach between the second and third fingers. The frets get smaller, going up the neck and even though it is only one pitch higher; from D to E, that huge 1 1/2 step interval gets a little smaller in E.

For thoes who want to know,
the D freygish mode goes like this:

D, Eb, F#, G, A, Bb, C, D