May 06, 2007

Rebbe's Orkestra in Albuquerque, NM

The Rebbe's Orkestra presents an evening of Klezmer, Mediterranean, East European and Middle Eastern music for a concert and dance party at Winning Coffee in Albuquerque.
Saturday, June 16th from 7:30pm to 9:30pm.
Winning Coffee,
111 Harvard Dr. SE (south of Central Ave. near UNM),
Albuquerque, NM, 505-266-0000.
Admission is $5.00 at the door: 12 and under are free.
http://www.isound.com/mp3s/rebbes_orkestra_klezmer_and_judaic_band

To learn all about the concert and the musicians, keep reading here...
Join the southwest's favorite klezmer band - THE REBBE'S ORKESTRA - for a concert of Sephardic, Mediterranean, Eastern European and Middle Eastern music, on Saturday, June 16th from 7:30pm to 9:30pm. The evening will begin with the concert which will also include folk songs in Ladino (Judeo-Spanish), Arabic, Greek and Romany. Then push back the chairs for a Klezmer dance party! Simple line and circle dances (no partner needed) will be quick-taught and led by Michele Diel, who is a member of Rikud Yiddish dance troupe. The concert and dance party will take place at Winning Coffee, 111 Harvard Dr. SE (south of Central Ave. near UNM), Albuquerque, NM, 505-266-0000. Admission is $5.00 at the door: 12 and under are free.

The Rebbe's Orkestra is an Albuquerque-based ensemble that has been performing throughout the Southwest since 1996. The ensemble plays an eclectic variety of Jewish music: Klezmer (Jewish instrumental dance music of Eastern Europe), Middle-Eastern and Israeli pieces, Yiddish theater and folk songs, Sephardic (Judeo-Spanish), Spanish New Mexican, Mediterranean, Balkan, Roma (Gypsy), even Jewish Jazz & Chamber-style Jewish music. Over the years, the group has explored the ways in which Jewish people over the centuries have interacted with surrounding musical traditions to produce music which is unique and uplifting. From Spain to Iraq, Poland to the Mediterranean: The Rebbe's Orkestra plays tunes and songs as widely divergent as the geography and yet with surprisingly similar themes. The band's set for June 16th will include lots of Klezmer dance music (the group's specialty), several songs in Ladino--the ancient language of the Spanish Jews, an Andalusian mushwasha -- an ancient Arabic poem set to music, an Iraqi-Jewish instrumental piece, an Arabic classical instrumental piece, as well as songs in Yiddish, Romany and Greek. Traditional improvisational techniques called doina, taxim, and vorshpiel will be used freely in many of the band's arrangements.

The Rebbe's Orkestra's (pronounced to rhyme with "the Debbie's Orchestra") musicians are: Beth Cohen-violin, mandolin/tenor banjo/vocals; Debo Orlofsky-accordion/vocals; Randy Edmunds-guitar/ Macedonian tambura/vocals; Barbara Friedman-bass/Macedonian tambura/vocals with special guest percussionist Mary Masuk-doumbek and riq.

Beth Cohen is a well known vocalist, string musician and music teacher in the Albuquerque and Santa Fe areas. She has been running her own music studio in Albuquerque since 1983, teaching voice, guitar, violin/fiddle and piano to students of all ages. In 1991, Beth received her Bachelor's of Music degree in voice performance from the University of New Mexico. Since 1995, she has been the musical director and Cantorial soloist at ABQ's Congregation Nahalat Shalom where she also teaches and directs the 20-piece Community Klezmer Band, teaches Bar/Bat Mitzvah prep classes, and organizes the annual renowned Klezmer music and dance festival "Klezmerquerque". Ms. Cohen is the violin/fiddle, piano & voice teacher at Santa Fe School for the Arts and she is an experienced band and orchestra teacher. Beth began singing and accompanying her voice with the guitar when she was 7, studied jazz piano from ages 9-17, and was the recipient of many music awards and apprenticeships throughout her childhood. Growing up in a home where both parents spoke Yiddish, Beth learned to sing in Yiddish--although she has (regrettably!) never learned to speak this expressive language. Since 1996, Beth has performed with bassist Barbara Friedman in Goddess of Arno-Balkan band & from 1984-1999 she was a member of the popular Svirka-women's Balkan chorus. Beth also performs with the vocal trio Earth Angels, the folk trio Village Idioms and she has played in all kinds of ensembles from Celtic to classical & reggae to blues.

Debo Orlofsky is The Rebbe's Orkestra's newest member: 'Debo' (a.k.a. Debra Orlofsky) has been singing in and around ABQ since the late 1980's. Following a few stints in hippie-punk and goth-rock bands, Debo performed as the lead singer of Splinter Fish, a seminal alternative band on the ABQ music scene. Well-known for her powerhouse vocals and presentation, inventive lyrics and percussion, and heart-grabbing harmonizing, Debo was invited to sing with Animal Opera, a local group of "all-stars" that rocked the NM desert with African dance music. She was also part of the world beat rock band, Manna from Nowhere. Debo sings and plays accordion and piano in the rockin' country blues band, Alpha Blue, showcasing her original songs. In her own Big Rock Studio, she engineered and mixed Alpha Blue's debut CD, "Agave Summer" - a spaghetti-western/middle-eastern folk-rock opera - which was released in the summer of 2004. Debo studied classical piano as a child, picking up the accordion by accident. Knowing how little respect the accordion has had in American pop music since the guitar assumed preeminence, she tried to put it down but found it was much too tightly strapped on. After a few close encounters of the Klezmer kind, she found her way to The Rebbe's Orkestra and decided it was destiny.

Randy Edmunds is one of the original members of The Rebbe's Orkestra. He is an experienced rhythm guitarist and provides a unique texture and fullness to the band's harmonic layer. Randy's use of the guitar as a melody instrument lends an unusual flavor to klezmer music, which is often associated with reed and brass instruments. He also plays the Macedonian tambura on several of the group's Sephardic pieces, and his lyric baritone voice adds another thread to the tapestry of sound woven by the band. He studied violin as a child in his home state of Louisiana and later picked up the guitar when he attended college in Texas. Randy's musical roots lie in the American genres of old-timey, gospel, bluegrass and country-western. After discovering and learning some Yiddish folk songs from a song book, he eventually expanded his repertoire to include Israeli, Greek, Rom (Gypsy), and Balkan folk songs. Randy performs in a duo with Beth Cohen, as a guest artist with Svirka and Goddess of Arno, and was a member of Sandanski men's Balkan Chorus. He is the guitarist in the folk trio Village Idioms and he's a special guest artist in The Nahalat Shalom Community Klezmer band. Randy also works part-time as a personal care attendant for disabled people.

Barbara Friedman provides the solid foundation for the band's rhythmic drive. For over 25 years she has been singing and playing music professionally as a member of Svirka women's Balkan Chorus, Goddess of Arno, Erenler, Wired for Sound and other Middle Eastern and Balkan groups in New Mexico. An avid collector, student and performer of Eastern European music, Barbara regularly attends workshops and studies with the top musicians and ethnomusicologists from Europe and the USA. In addition to adding rhythmic solidity to the band, her bass playing adds a melodic layer to their sound: often lending a trombone-like quality to the melody line. Barbara is also skilled on the Macedonian tambura, which she plays on some of the band's Sephardic pieces and her powerful voice adds another layer to the band's dynamic sound. At Congregation Nahalat Shalom, Barbara performs in Alavados-Holy Days band and she is a special guest member of the Community klezmer band. She also works part time as a public health nurse in Albuquerque, NM.

For more information about the band contact:
Beth A. Cohen at (505)243-6276, cohenedmunds@netzero.net
Web: http://www.isound.com/mp3s/rebbes_orkestra_klezmer_and_judaic_band
and
http://arnoproductionsnm.com/indexhtm
For information about Winning Coffee (venue) call: (505)266-0000 Posted by jmwc at May 6, 2007 10:59 AM