JMI KlezFest Faculty 2009
modified 7February 2009

• Frank London
• Monica Acosta
• Ilana Cravitz
• Christian Dawid
• Ros Hawley
• Sanne Mörricke
• Andreas Schmitges
• Emma Stiman
• Guy Schalom
• Polina Shepherd
• Sophie Solomon
• Paul Tkachenko
• Abbi Wood

Frank London (New York: trumpet, course leader)
Charismatic front-man of Grammy award-winning band Klezmatics, Frank London has made a huge contribution to Klezmer and Jewish Music over the last 20 years. He also leads Frank London's Klezmer Brass Allstars and Hassidic New Wave, and has written and performed music for several films. This is the fourth year that London has directed KlezFest and his involvement has been outstanding. He inspires creativity among KlezFest students and leaves a huge amount of warmth in his wake.

Christian Dawid (Berlin: clarinet, dance band leader)

Christian Dawid is considered one of today's internationally leading klezmer clarinetists. He started by studying classical music and playing in theater and chamber orchestras, moved on to explore music styles ranging from chamber music to a-cappella pop, finally specializing in Yiddish instrumental music.

In 1993, Dawid co-founded Klezgoyim (Bremen) and co-initiated the Bremen Klezmer Nights, which were started in 1996. In 1999, Brave Old World (USA) invited him on tour as a special guest. Since then, he is a regular guest of the group. Since 2000, he plays for Budowitz (USA/H/D), who have brought an in-depth understanding of traditional European style to the klezmer revival. Since 2005, he's directing and producing the Ukrainian family brass band Konsonans Retro.
Dawid is a sought after instructor for Yiddish music and is teaching at KlezKanada, Klezmerwochen Weimar, KlezFest St Petersburg, KlezKamp und Klezfest London.

Christian Dawid performed with numerous artists and ensembles, among them Brotherhood of Brass (USA/SCG), Theodore Bikel, Frank London, Lorin Sklamberg, Michael Alpert (all USA), Shura Lipovsky (NL), Paul Brody's Sadawi (USA/D), Smyrna Trio (GR), Aufwind (D). Dawid writes arrangements for his ensembles and composes new and traditional Yiddish music. He lives in Berlin.

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Polina Shepherd (Brighton: vocals, piano)
Polina has become a familiar face at KlezFest over the past few years. Known for her incredible voice which reaches places that even Heineken cannot, she is also a wonderful arranger and accompanist. She has become indelibly linked to the KlezFest Choir, where musicians and singers alike congregate to shift some serious vocal muscles.

Composer, singer, pianist and the leading choral conductor of Yiddish song in the Former USSR. She has performed and taught internationally. Her specially developed choral teaching methods are based on instrumental ornamentation and Jewish modes. Polina performs with her own a cappella ensemble, ‘The Vocal Quartet Ahkenazim’, The Max Pashm Band and works with the Sound & Light Cinematic Duo, who play live accompaniment to rare black and white silent Jewish films. Polina's music is performed by choirs and soloists all over the world.

Sanne Mörricke (Berlin: accordion)

Sanne Möricke is one of the most highly sought after klezmer accordionists. She first studied ethnomusicology in Amsterdam. before taking up accordion studies at the Sweelinck conservatory and specializing in Yiddish instrumental music, since 1992.

Sanne Möricke was the musical director and co-founder of DI KALLES (NL), probably the first-ever all-female klezmer band. In 1996, she was invited to the ensemble of Bern/Woron's legendary "Three Penny Opera" production at the Bremen Staatstheater. Khupe was founded in that same year. Since 2002, she performs for the international group, Sukke (UK/NL/D), whose first CD was released in 2004 on the World Music Network label. In 2006, she was asked to join the ensemble of renowned trumpeter/singer Susan Hoffman Watts, a fourth generation klezmer of the famous Hoffman dynasty and one of America's leading klezmer musicians.
Sanne is a regular guest of the Cracow Festival of Jewish Culture. She has been teaching and performing at many international festivals and seminars such as KlezKamp, KlezFest London and Yiddish Summer Weimar.

Sanne Möricke has performed with numerous international artists, such as Frank London's Klezmer Brass Allstars (USA), Lorin Sklamberg, Joanne Borts, Michael Alpert, Steven Greenman, the Strauss/Warschauer Duo, Veretski Pass (all USA) and Konsonans Retro (UA/D/GB). She lives in Berlin.

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Andreas Schmitges (Cologne: dance leader, mandolin, guitar)
Over the past seven years Andreas has been developing a yiddish dance element in KlezFest. Last year, for the first time, the dance strand took off with dance-specific classes all through the day, meaning that people can now come to KlezFest just to dance if they wish.

A fluent Yiddish speaker, Andreas has attended Klezmer-Workshops and Yiddish Courses in Oxford, London, Weimar and New York. He works as a teacher for Yiddish Dance at Festivals in London, Kiev, Odessa and Weimar and has given concerts, dance- and Klezmer-workshops at festivals of Jewish and Yiddish culture in Europe, including London, Amsterdam, Enschede, Berlin, Munich, Gelsenkirchen and Weimar. Andreas has performed internationally in Paris, London, Washington D.C. and Amsterdam with his bands 'A Tickle In The Heart' and 'Klezmer Alliance'. His highly successful collaboration with Yiddish storyteller and teacher Pesakh Fiszman from New York in a Yiddish Music & Language Programme won high acclaim.

Emma Stiman (Cologne: clarinet)
Emma was offered a scholarship at 16 to study classical clarinet at the junior departments of the Royal College of Music, followed by a scholarship at the Birmingham Conservatoire of Music, graduating with a BA (Hons) in Music. She was first clarinettist in the National Youth Wind Orchestra of Britain and in the Young Musicians Symphony Orchestra conducted by the late Sir Yehudi Menuhin, in well known concert halls including the Royal Albert Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.

After gaining a postgraduate Diploma in Music Education and additionally for Primary School Music, Emma managed West Lodge school music department until 2004. Her attendance of KlezFest 2002 ignited a flame for Yiddish instrumental music, in which she has continuously immersed herself since then, plus recently exploring free improvisation. Whilst living in London, Emma played in 'Nomadica world Music/ Klezmer Ensemble' at London venues including 'The Spitz', 'The Jazz Cafe', the 'Victoria and Albert Museum' and for Lady Annabel Goldsmith at her exclusive club.

Since 2006, Emma has been teaching clarinet, saxophone, piano and recorder in Cologne, Gemany and has almost 50 students aged 6-60 years old. She has played for Yiddish dancing in Germany, Belgium and London and has grounded ' Queen Esther's Klezmer Trio, who are performing her own klezmer compositions as well as traditional repertoire at Jewish community venues and synagogues as part of a jewish cultural arts project in Germany. Emma was asked to compose music to the 8 verse Itsik Manger Yiddish poem 'Af der Statse Kolomey' which is being featured on Andrea Pancur's new solo CD. Emma is a 'budding' Tsimbl player and recently began to study breath control techniques with a vocal specialist.

Guy Schalom (London: dance, rhythm, percussiond)
Guy Schalom is among the most in-demand klezmer drummers in Europe. His class on Klezmer Rhythm is hugely popular and is very useful for musicians,dancers and singers, who want to understand the rhythmic structure of the music. He has a busy touring schedule and has worked with, among others, Frank London, The Klezmatics, Josh "SoCalled" Dolgin , Michael Alpert, Susan Watts and David Krakauer.

He is a founding member of the pan-European Klezmer Alliance as well Ukrainian Village Brass Band Konsonans Retro featuring Berlin's Christian Dawid. Guy also runs his own duo Schalom-Bakhshayesh featuring the expressive violin playing and singing Jilah Bakhshayesh.

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Paul Tkachenko (London: tuba, double bass, sound)
Paul joined the KlezFest team for the first time in 2007 and has rapidly made himself indispensable. This year this multi-instrumentalist and Klezmer enthusiast will continue to work with KlezFest providing brass instrument tuition, sound engineering and playing with the dance band. Paul has worked as a music teacher as well as playing bass for several outfits including, most recently The Yiddish Twist Orchestra and stilt walking band Rumpel Stiltstein. He was musical director for the sold out show Masque of the Red Death at Battersea Arts Centre. He also performs with Greek/Turkish/Jewish group Troia Nova.

Ros Hawley (Manchester: Clarinet, education)

Ros studied at the Royal Northern College of music. She has taken one-on-one masterclasses with many of the world's imminent klezmer clarinetists, including Kurt Bjorling, Merlin Shepherd and Christian David in the USA, Germany and UK. She is very active in promoting and performing klezmer in the UK, and has given many workshops and enthused countless individuals through performances with the duo Klezmer Gourmet and the band Klezmeruk. Her new band the Deli Babies was voted ' Best Band 2007' in Studio Salford's Embryo Awards at the King's Arms pub and theatre venue in Salford. As a result they were invited to run a klezmer music residency at the Kings Arms which will be developing into a weekly night including a klezmer class for instrumentalists, music jam and performance by the Deli Babies.

Ilana Cravitz (London: Klezmer teacher, organizer, author)
Ilana has been involved with JMI and KlezFest for many years. Her role has grown over previous years and she is now the key tuition provider, giving lessons for students who need extra help with technique and developing repertoire. Ilana has been the JMI Klezmer teacher at SOAS for many years.

As well as being one of the UK's top Klezmer fiddlers, Ilana Cravitz also plays the baroque violin and viola da gamba.

Based in London, Ilana regularly performs with klezmer bands and period instrument ensembles on stage and at weddings, bar mitzvahs and parties, as well as teaching classes, workshops and private students. She specialises in klezmer ceilidhs - Yiddish dance events with live traditional Jewish music.

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Abbi Wood (London: recorder, Joe Loss Lecturer in Jewish Music, SOAS, University of London)
Dr Abigail Wood was appointed the Jewish Music Lecturer at SOAS in 2006 and through her passion for the genre, is making Klezmer a big priority. For 2008/9 she is has 12 students studying klezmer and three of them (all graduates of KlezFest) specializing in klezmer for masters degrees.

Monica Acosta (London: Ladino Song)
Monica has taught Ladino Song for JMI for the past two years and has worked on several projects performing and teaching Sephardi music (Judeo-Spanish) and Tango songs. With a classical and folk song background, Monica is at home with Opera as she is with traditional music. She performed a Ladino Solo in Noam Sherrif's Sephardic Passion at the Dartington International Summer School in 2005 and performed a concert of Sephardi music from the Sephardic Songbook at Central Synagogue for JMI in 2006.

Sophie Solomon (London: Violin)

Sophie Solomon's voice is her violin. Whether she's performing with the LSO or playing with her own band, her music is a thrilling combination of technique and passion that refuses to be confined by the conventional parameters of the instrument.

"When I play, the violin is like an extension of my body," she says. "I'm not thinking about anything else. I don't completely understand what happens but it's definitely as if the spirit takes over."

Her unique musical vision reaches its full flowering on her self-composed Decca debut solo album ‘Poison Sweet Madeira’, an audacious mix of different styles and influences given purpose and unity by her extraordinary violin playing.

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