Dundee Synagogue proved the perfect venue for the opening night of SCoJeC's seven-stop Klezmer, Baroque, and Tartan tour, featuring the Adrianne Greenbaum Quartet.
Members of the Tayside and Fife Jewish Community, supported by many friends of the community, turned out in good time to meet the band over a pre-event buffet. Adrianne spoke enthusiastically about her collection of flutes, some of which date from the early nineteenth century, talked about the history of the flute in klezmer music, and told the story of how she had progressed from classical music to klezmer, becoming a teacher at Klezfest camp over 20 years ago!
Adrianne was then joined by Lev Atlas (violin and viola), Michael Alpert (voice and a seemingly endless succession of instruments including violin, guitar, accordion, and a large variety of percussion instruments), and David McGuinness (keyboards), for a fantastic concert. She explained the programme as they went along, and the relevance of the baroque, klezmer, and Scottish melodies that Jewish people in Scotland have listened to during the last 300 years.
Everyone danced, clapped, and had lots of fun as Adrianne and Michael, a klezmer dance expert, talked us through some klezmer and Scottish dances. A selection of Hebrew songs in harmony added to the cultural mix, and there were tears of joy and nostalgia when, in response to a special request from one of the audience, the band played "My Yiddishe Mama".
The performance was flawless, even though Adrianne had only flown in from America that morning, and violinist Lev Atlas, who is principal viola with the Scottish Opera Orchestra, had not met any of the other members of the quartet before the afternoon's rehearsal.
The evening was summed up by a new member of the local Jewish community who told us, "It really was brilliant. Thank you so much for putting on this event. My spirits are incredibly lightened knowing that there is a community of Jewish people and friends near my new home".
