The London Klezmer Quartet‘s old and new melodies on fiddle, clarinet, accordion and double bass, and colourful stories about musicians’ lives and times, take you on a journey from the Baltic to the Black Sea and beyond, delving deep into the celebratory and soulful music of Jewish eastern Europe. Their acoustic sound, choice of repertoire, and combination of technical ability and musicianship give them appeal across the musical spectrum, with bookings not only for folk and world music venues, but also jazz clubs, museums, art galleries, and classical music societies. Their new CD, ‘To the Tavern’ is their fourth, and tells a day-long story that they recreate in performance.
As well as bringing fresh life to an almost-lost instrumental folk tradition through a huge repertoire of dance tunes and lyrical melodies – some self-composed – LKQ features the irresistibly sonorous vocals of Indra Buraczewska in traditional laments, a Warsaw Yiddish theatre hit with a hint of jazz (‘Goodbye New York’) and even a song about beetroot soup.
The evening will celebrate a band member’s birthday, with the first half an LKQ performance, and throughout the later part of the evening, musical and poetic offerings from friends and family.
“Dizzyingly dynamic playing… a band at the forefront of the European klezmer revival” (fROOTS)
“A fantastic sound with inventive arrangements, virtuosity, exciting original tunes and soulful playing.” (Songlines Magazine)
“With artistry like this, the music doesn’t have to be reinvented.” (London Evening Standard)
“The tradition is safe in the hands of the next generation.” (The Sunday Times)
