SIMPLY
TSFAT

Back
in 2004, Simply Tsfat was at the 5th Annual Jewish Music
&
Cultural Festival of Central York. They were a huge hit! So, in
celebration
of Israel at 60, Simply Tsfat is coming back to the
festival!
Simply
Tsfat are three Breslev Chassidim, 2 Americans and
one
Israeli, 2 guitars and one violin. Their aim is to spread the
joy
and inspiration of Breslev Chassidim and to bring a breath
of
fresh air to you, from their home, the mystical city of Tsfat,
the
home of the Kabala.
From
New York, Philadelphia, Montreal, Miami, San Diego,
Portland,
Canada, Guatemala and Costa Rica their audiences
ranged
from Jewish inmates at Federal Penitentiaries to 4000
people
at an Israel 2000 event at the Greek Theater in LA, from
Chassidic
children in Cheder to Conservative congregants,
from Israeli Army bases in the Golan to skid row in Los Angeles
(REALLY!)
and old age homes too. Whether at weddings,
Yeshivas,
annual dinners, day schools K-12, prisons, nursing
homes,
tour groups all over Israel, synagogues, JCCs, campus
Hillels,
private parties, and fundraisers from 10 to 4000 people,
from
2 years old to 120, from private homes to large halls,
from evening concerts,
to morning, afternoon and midnight
kumsitzes,
if you're looking for more than just a quick pick me
up,
if you're looking to connect with your past to help you live
now
and tomorrow, join us and the thousands whom Simply
Tsfat
have touched, their music will touch you as well!
HANANEL
EDRI

Twenty-three-year-old
Hananel Edri, born in the northern city of
Kiryat
Shmona, made his debut as an actor, singer and dancer
participating
inlocal groups as a soloist while still a child. His first
professional
show was in Vancouver, Canada where he had the
starring
role of Tevye in a production of Fiddler on the Roof.
As a member of the Israel Scouts organization, he was selected to be
part of the 2001 Tzofim Friendship Caravan. For three months, he
performed around America and Canada. It was during this unique tour
that
he came to Syracuse and fell in love with our community.
After completing high school, Hananel began his three-year mandatory
military service with the Israel Defense Force (IDF) and was place in
its Musical Ensemble division. He was eventually appointed commander
of
his troupe. In addition to appearing all over Israel, he was sent to
various countries to participate in performances that raised millions of
dollars for Israel. Following his military service, Hananel entered the
Israel's
Song Festival, a national competition, to choose who would
represent
Israel in the Eurovision contest. He and his two fellow group
members
came in second place by a popular vote of the Israeli
population.
The group made a CD for sale to the public. Following their
success
in the competition, the group performed on Israeli television
shows
and produced musical videos that were aired on television.
During the second Lebanon War in 2006, he was called to reserve duty to
perform with the IDF Musical Ensemble, under fire from Hezbollah, in
order to raise the morale of the residents who were displaced to bomb
shelters. In 2007, Hananel and two colleagues toured Australia and New
Zealand
to celebrate Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha'atzmaut. After completing
that
two-week tour, he was invited to Sweden where he did a solo
performance
for the Jewish community of Malmö.
Hananel has continued to perform within the Israeli musical stage in a
variety of venues. He also had a recurring dramatic role on a popular
evening television show. As
a part of his artistic development, Hananel
auditioned
for musical theatre schools on Broadway. He was accepted
and
will be studying there this fall.
The
Shekhter - Tekhter

THE
"SHEKHTER-TEKHTER" AND BINYUMEN will present their show
OUR ZEYDAS AND BUBBAS AS CHILDREN - a revue about kids,
young
and older, and their relationships with each other, with their parents,
with
the Rabbi, with the world. The songs are all in Yiddish. Translations
are
provided. The performers: BINYUMEN SCHAECHTER and the
"Shekhter-Tekhter"
(the "Schaechter Daughters"), REYNA SCHAECHTER
(age
13) and TEMMA-LEEBA SCHAECHTER (age 8).
Binyumen
(Ben) Schaechter is a Yiddish composer and performer, as well
as
conductor of the Jewish People's Philharmonic Chorus (JPPC) and the
Pripetshik
Singers, an ensemble of native-Yiddish-speaking children. They
have
performed at Lincoln Center, Shea Stadium, Synagogues, and JCC's
across
the Northeast. As a performer, he has traveled across North America
and
in Paris in his one-man show, The Shtetl Comes To Life and together
with
his daughter Reyna Schaechter in From Kinahora To Kuni-Ayland, his
musical
revue about the Jewish experience in America.
LOVE
& KNISHES

Love
and Knishes is a trio that provides a mixture of traditional, contemporary
and
original songs in Yiddish and English, plus instrumentals from the klezmer
tradition.
Singer-songwriter Bonnie Abrams has won awards in national
songwriting
competitions, and was a "New Folk" finalist at the Kerrville Folk
Festival
in Texas. She has recorded three albums of original songs, and her
fourth
CD, A Sudenyu of Yiddish Song, has been featured at the Holocaust
Museum
in Washington. Violinist Glenna Chance trained at the Eastman
School
of Music and has been a member of orchestras and chamber groups
in
America and Europe. Allen Hopkins has been playing with Bonnie as a duet for a dozen years;
they worked with Glenna in a local klezmer band, and decided to form a group that would present music from the Jewish vocal and instrumental repertoire and showcase Bonnie's songwriting ability as well.
Love
and Knishes has played at the New England Folk Festival (NEFFA), at
Rochester's
Jewish Community Center, at community concerts in Brighton and
Brockport,
and at many local private and public events. Their instrumental lineup features Bonnie's guitar, Glenna's violin, viola, and recorder, and Allen's mandolin, mandola,mandocello, concertina, and banjo (with a few miscellaneous other instruments).They play traditional Yiddish folk and cabaret songs, klezmer dance tunes,some general folk material, and a large helping of Bonnie's original songs. They also feature "Voice of the Second Generation," a commemoration of the Holocaust
in song and story, based on the experience of Bonnie's parents as concentration camp survivors. Love and Knishes has performed "Voice of the Second Generation" at schools and education centers in New York and New England.
JONATHAN
DINKIN & KLEZMERCUSE

Jonathan
Dinkin & Klezmercuse are Syracuse’s homegrown
klezmer
sensation.
Klezmercuse features Jonathan on keyboards. Mike
Fixler,
on
clarinet and saxophone, Sam Young, on euphonium.
Art Bronstein,
on
bass guitar. Judy Schmid, on accordion. Mark Wolfe,
on drums and
percussion
along with additional vocalists: Aveeya Dinkin, and
Lee
Lawitts.
Jonathan Dinkin & Klezmercuse have released
an instrumental
CD
titled "Naches", a Yiddish word meaning
pleasure and pride.
You
may download the whole CD or individual songs on OYsongs.com
KEYNA
HORA KLEZMER BAND

Lively,
ethnic Klezmer dances and Yiddish folk songs are the
specialties
of the Keyna Hora Klezmer Band. At performances,
audiences
often spontaneously jump to their feet to dance to the
spirited
Eastern European melodies. Everyone is encouraged to sing
along
and clap to the music.
Based
in Central New York, consisting of approximately
12
instrumentalists and vocalists, the group performs instrumental
Klezmer
dances and medleys of Hassidic tunes, as well as sings the
traditional
Yiddish folk songs of love, joy, and sorrow.
Sid
Lipton started the Keyna Hora Klezmer Band six years. Sid had
just
attended the Yiddish Folk Arts Festival (also known as "KlezKamp")
which
specializes in the teaching and playing of Klezmer music. He
returned
"high" on the Eastern European sound and beat, and determined
to
found a band in Central New York. The first three members were:
Marge
Schlisserman on piano, Sam Katz on fiddle, and Sid on banjo.
Marge
has played the piano and organ all her life and has accompanied
countless
soloists and choruses in the Syracuse area. Sam, a gifted
musician
in his 80's, is a retired member of the Syracuse Symphony.
Later
joiners, but no less enthusiastic, are Al Kosoff and Mark Wolf,
percussion;
Mimi Weiner, vocal and violin; Neil Novelli, banjo;
Carl
Borek, clarinet; Harry Sommer, vocal and dance leader;
Harvey
Pearl, mandolin; Bill Sanderson, trumpet; and Sam Young,
baritone
horn.