Ola Bilinska - Berjozkele (Yiddish Lullabies) [Jewish Historical Institute]

Berjozkele:
Ola Bilińska - vocal, OP1 synth, electric guitar, vibes, Moogerfooger delay
Michał Moniuszko - double bass
Kacper Szroeder - trumpet, flugelhorn, bielarussian dulcimer
Mikołaj Trzaska - bass clarinet
Raphael Rogiński - electric guitar

The Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute 2014


I have recently written shortly about Berjozkele's concert during the Jewish Culture Festival and I promised to write more about the group and their music, available on cd thanks to the support of Jewish Historical Institute. Bilinska's project is in fact of great etnographic, historical interest, in many ways a dive into the past. The album is a collection of yiddish songs of yonder times, before the tragic disappearance of jewish culture in Europe. Thankfully, it's not only a recollection of a lost culture but a modern interpretation of it, an example of its recent revitalization. The presence of Raphael Roginski and Mikołaj Trzaska on the record is somehow symbolic, given the two are greatly responsible for the phenomenon of polish new jewish music.

Berjozkele's music, however, is not only a journey into the past. All the songs are connected by the common theme of night and dream. It's a collection of lullabies, songs that dwell in-between the light of the day and the pitch dark of the night. On the border, following the fine line between real and surreal, tragic and comic, a dream and a nightmare.

Shlomo Bar & Kutiman Orchestra at Krakow Jewish Culture Festival

I've written in the previous post about two concerts of the Festival that I loved for the sense of the intimacy that the concerts created, showing the different side of this big festival. But the big stage has its merits as well and this post is dedicated to the two bands I believe played the best, both in Tempel Synagogue and during the grande finale at Szeroka Street.

Shlomo Bar & Habrera Hativet come first, a concert that was part of "classical" side of the program, but that sounded nothing like the visit in a museum. Shlomo Bar is a charismatic vocalist with a voice strong as a bell. But also a true showman, a percussionist with a gift for stage gesture. The music by the band combines the musical traditions of sephardic Andalusian Jews' mysticism and middle-Easter flavours. The music was full of life, vivid, and managed to make the opposites meet. Majestic and fun. A meditation in the desert. A wedding party in oasis.

The kind of music that has the power to transcend the millenias, as proven by the thousands of people dancing to it this year at Szeroka Street.



Kutiman Orchestra was the last band on stage this year (before the festival's all-star orchestra closed the night) and the deserved this honor without any doubts. A ten man strong unit on stage with plenty of percussion, horns and the leader behind a set of synthesizers that would make any vintage electronica fan drool.
Even as the band hit the first notes, they captured the crowd immediately and filled the space (either Synagore and Szeroka Street) with non-stop grooves, horn sections' punch, funky basslines, psychodelic guitar (with occasional hard rock riff) and and spaced out synth. The Orchestra is an unstoppable dance machine ("What's going down? We're grooving this town"). I believe the Godfather of Soul himself mr. James Brown would say the are bad mothe*uckers.

Fantastic show, if you ever got a chance to see them, don't miss out. Otherwise hunt for the records.

Ori and Berjozkele at Krakow Jewish Culture Festival

The time is running in a fast forward mode, but before I jump to Warsaw Summer Jazz Days festival I have to bring back some music from the last week and a half in Krakow.

Krakow Jewish Culture Festival is a beautiful, massive event, with a grande finale at Szeroka Street, with the daily, majestic concerts at Tempel Synagogue and the handfull of workshops, lectures ecc to go around. Which may be I found two concerts in particular of great value. Both took place in the small and cosy Cheder Cafe which allowed for more intimate musical experience.

And it's hard to be more musically intimate than during the festival's first live concert by an artist from Berlin - ORI. Alone on the small stage, barefoot, probably to get more real feel of the space, with just a mike a small sampler and a keyboard.

Ori's music is an atmospheric mixture of minimal electronica with trippy beats and charming voice. Delicate and intimate, soulfull and nostalgic. Taking inspiration in both folk pop ballad and neo soul music, Ori often loops his own voice in order to create intricately layered arrangements, sings with a lot of feedback to give even more otherworldly quality to his music which seems fit somewhere between the melancholic songs of Bon Iver and ethereal quality of songs by Sigur Ros.

Hypnotizing performance by the songwriter which you should most definitely check out.




Berjozkele  is a project led by Olga Bilinska (vocals, piano, loops), with Michał Moniuszko on double bass, Kacper Szroeder on trumpet and dulcimer and Raphael Roginski on guitar. They play and sing jidysz lullabies, surreal tales of dreams and mysteries. The music is esoteric, it had the me the feeling the Grimm's fables have - that of magical space full of wonder but where terror and sadness lingers in the shadow.

It was truly the music of the night, a mesmerizing performance by the band.

(I'll try to write more soon  about them and their debut cd released december last year)

25th Krakow Jewish Culture Festival - 2nd week

And the 2nd week of the festival begins today. Lots and lots of great music awaits you.

Important notes - events at Dajwor are open-air and free admission
Midnite sessions start at midnight, last often till early morning hours, tickets are 10 PLN
All the concerts from Tempel Synagogue are transmitted live via streaming available on festival's website!

29.06. Frank London, Michael Winograd & Yaako Lemmer - Ahava Raba at Synagogue Tempel (8pm)
Gelada DJ Set - Bob Dylan & other jewish hippies  at Dajwor Quarter (8.30pm)
Frank London & La Mar Enfortuna - Midnite Session at Alchemia
We start with some classic sounds by the festival's omnipresent Frank Longon, Michael Winograd and kantor singer Yaako Lemmer. Alternatively you can listen to the dj set by Yaron Mandelovici. The night will end with more of Frank London and the exquisite La Mar Enfortuna.

25th Krakow Jewish Culture Festival - 1st week

This is the 25th edition of the Festival which has grown to be one of the most important cultural events in Krakow's yearly calendar, one of the biggest events dedicated to jewish culture (battling Jerusalem and New York for the title), is one of the most complex and complete experience, a total immersion into judaic world (concerts, lectures, films, museum tours, food, guests from all over the world) whose rich program fills up 10 days of activities and leads up to the grand finale, the Shalom concert, an multi-hour marathon of joy and music nicknamed Jewish Woodstock.

Ladies and Gentleman, below is a summary of the OFF part of the festival's program (first 4 days only!) which is focused on jewish traditional music in the prism of modern pop/indie/rock/jazz/electronica culture. I wholeheartedly invite the entire program - you'll bound to find something to your particular liking.

Apart from from the traditional main concerts in Tempel Synagogue and the Midnight Jam Sessions at Alchemia there are plenty of open air events (free admission) at new space called Kwartal - Quarter (Dajwor street, on the back fo the Old Synagogue).

25.06. MLDVA at Dajwor Kwartal (8.30 PM)
           Congo Beat The Drum (movie projection) (9.30 PM)
MLDVA is a live dj act the grooves freely mixing ethnic rhythms (klezmer, turkish, chasidic) with modern aesthetics of dub and trip-hop.
Congo Beat the Drum is a move that tells a story of two jewish musicians travelling to Jamaica to record their songs with local musicians. Klezmer meets reggae - sounds like a lot of fun.




26.06. Ori at Cheder Cafe (8 PM)
           OFF Radio Krakow - Only Vinyl Set with Daniel Drumz and Good Paul at Dajwor Quarter (8.30 PM)
           Teder Presents a night in Tel Aviv at Barka (10 PM)
Ori is an original songwriter, born in Jerusalem, living and working in Berlin. Eclectic and unorthodox, his music shows influences of folk, neo-soul, trip-hop and minimalism. Music for a peaceful dream.
For something slightly different and more upbeat you have two DJ events. Firstly a double set curated by OFF Radio Krakow, secondly a whole night party with some of Tel Aviv's greatest.