Much-loved international klezmer ensemble the London Klezmer Quartet return to Australasia this month their latest album.
LKQ’s fourth album, To the Tavern, takes their evocation of the celebratory and soulful music of Jewish Eastern Europe (klezmer) to a whole new level. The recording, which they will re-create live in performance for the tour, is a dawn-to-dawn story about a klezmer band’s arrival in a small town. With a wealth of traditional-style compositions by the band, the adventure weaves fabulous instrumentals with the irresistibly sonorous vocals of Indra Buraczewska, who features in traditional laments, a Warsaw Yiddish theatre hit with a hint of jazz (‘Goodbye New York’) and even a song about beetroot soup!
A band arrives at dawn at the railway station in a small middle-European country town for a 24-hour sojourn. The musicians find their way around, get to know the locals and lead a rowdy session at the local tavern, before exhaustion sets in as they see in the new day. The spirit of the album reflects current and perennial themes of migration and community.
The London Klezmer Quartet was formed in 2009 by four London-based klezmorim with a shared interest in the traditional playing style. The group is Ilana Cravitz (violin), Susi Evans (clarinet), Carol Isaacs (accordion) – all direct from the UK – and Aussie, Indra Buraczewska (double bass & vocals).
LKQ kick off their tour in Australia on 12 January at the Illawarra Folk Festival before performing in Sydney’s East, Inner West, Northern Beaches and Wollongong. Then they head to New Zealand for their debut tour of that country (taking in Motueka, Nelson, Paekakariki, Wellington, Levin, Napier, Hamilton, Te Pau and Auckland) before re-crossing the ‘ditch’ for performances in Brisbane, Lismore, Nimbin, Newcastle, Katoomba, Parramatta and the NSW South Coast. Finally, the hit Bendigo, Kyneton and Melbourne in Victoria, before rounding off the tour in Adelaide and the Clare Valley.
London Klezmer Quartet Australia/NZ tour 2017 – Australian dates:
12-15 Jan – Illawarra Folk Festival, Bulli NSW
19 Jan – Camelot, Marrickville NSW
20 Jan – HONKFEST, Wollongong NSW (with DVA)
21 Jan – Eastern European Village Dance, Five Dock RSL NSW (with The Transylvaniacs)
22 Jan – Humph Hall, Allambie NSW
8 Feb – Klezmer Workshop and Concert, Lismore Bowling Club NSW
9 Feb – Brisbane Jazz Club QLD
10 Feb – Nimbin Bush Theatre NSW (music + klezmer bush dance, with Out of Range)
11 Feb – Maleny RSL, QLD (with The Unusual Suspects)
14 Feb – 5 Church Street, Bellingen NSW
16 Feb – Lizottes, Lambton Newcastle NSW
17 Feb – Blue Mountains Theatre, Springwood NSW
18 Feb – Riverside Theatre, Parramatta NSW
19 Feb – South Coast Music Society, Batehaven NSW
21 Feb – Smith’s Alternative, Canberra ACT
23 Feb – The Capital, Bendigo VIC
24 Feb – Toddler cushion concert, The Capital, Bendigo VIC
25 Feb – Kyneton Bluestone Theatre VIC (klezmer music & Yiddish Bush Dance)
26 Feb – House Concert, Glen Iris VIC
28 Feb – Melbourne Recital Centre VIC
2 Mar – South Coast Folk Club, Port Noarlunga SA
3 Mar – Prospect Town Hall, Adelaide SA (Adelaide Fringe)
4 Mar – HATS Courthouse Cultural Centre, Auburn SA (Adelaide Fringe)
5 Mar – House Concert, Fullarton SA
David Edwards is the former editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television
