SKU: AP.1-ADV8405

UPC: 805095084054. English.

A Klezmer Wedding is a set of four dances, newly-composed but based on traditional models. The Doina is an expressive chant for three successive soloists; it twists and turns with the wailing lament of a shepherd's pipe. Next follows the Hora, a slow Rumanian dance in three with a mood that reflects the wedding's solemn vows. A Chusidl, with a moderate speed and bouncy rhythms, gets the party to the dance floor. The concluding Freylach (happy, but still in a minor key!) takes the bride, groom, and guests to the edge of frenzy.

Titles: Doina * Hora * Chusidl * Freylach.

SKU: PR.11642027L

UPC: 680160688470.

SKU: CF.CPS264F

ISBN 9781491161746. UPC: 680160920433.

Some of the first music I remember hearing as a child was folk dance music from around the world. My parents were avid folk dancers, and they used to host weekly folk dance evenings in our basement. Some nights, when I was supposed to be in bed, I would stand with my ear to the door, listening to this fascinating music that drifted up the stairs. I didn't know what each piece was, but the melodies have stayed with me. Tropanka is one of those tunes. Tropanka (pronounced tro-PAHN-kuh) is a folk dance from Bulgaria, and the title means stomping dance. One can hear two repeated notes at the end of each phrase - this is where the dancers stomp. Patsh Tantz (pronounced PAHTSH tahnts) is a classic example of Klezmer, which is East European Jewish folk music. The title is Yiddish for clapping dance, and all the players get the chance to clap at certain points in their individual part. Klezmer music is often quite exciting, and this arrangement includes the characteristic accelerando, building excitement as the piece drives to the end. Both movements should be played rhythmically, and as it is folk music that would be danced to by untrained dancers, often wearing boots or other flat-soled shoes, adding weight to many of the downbeats will help bring out the earthy character of the music. Since my parents met while folk dancing, I made these arrangements (originally in a version for string quartet) as a gift in celebration of their 50th wedding anniversary.
Some of the first music I remember hearing as a child was folk dance music from around the world. My parents were avid folk dancers, and they used to host weekly folk dance evenings in our basement.  Some nights, when I was supposed to be in bed, I would stand with my ear to the door, listening to this fascinating music that drifted up the stairs. I didn’t know what each piece was, but the melodies have stayed with me. Tropanka is one of those tunes. Tropanka (pronounced “tro-PAHN-kuh”) is a folk dance from Bulgaria, and the title means “stomping dance”. One can hear two repeated notes at the end of each phrase – this is where the dancers stomp. Patsh Tantz (pronounced “PAHTSH tahnts”) is a classic example of Klezmer, which is East European Jewish folk music. The title is Yiddish for “clapping dance”, and all the players get the chance to clap at certain points in their individual part. Klezmer music is often quite exciting, and this arrangement includes the characteristic accelerando, building excitement as the piece drives to the end.Both movements should be played rhythmically, and as it is folk music that would be danced to by untrained dancers, often wearing boots or other flat-soled shoes, adding weight to many of the downbeats will help bring out the “earthy” character of the music. Since my parents met while folk dancing, I made these arrangements (originally in a version for string quartet) as a gift in celebration of their 50th wedding anniversary.

SKU: PR.41641593P

UPC: 680160639465. 9.5 x 13 inches.

SKU: IS.CQ7019EM

ISBN 9790365070190.

American composer and woodwind performer Mike Curtis is equally comfortable in classical, jazz, and ethnic settings. He has toured the world as a klezmer clarinetist, played bassoon with symphonies and opera companies, and recorded on sax with jazz greats Charlie Rouse and Anthony Braxton. His compositions show the influence of those experiences and more. A Week in Plasencia was written following Mike’s 2015 trip to the International Clarinet Association festival in Madrid. After a week in the City that Never Sleeps, Mike sought an unknown, tranquil, provincial alternative. Sunny Plasencia, a riverside town at the foot of the Sierra de Gredos, came to reveal itself as a magical font of beauty, history, and inspiration. This piece exists in two versions, for solo clarinet and clarinet quartet. This product page listing is for the Clarinet Quartet version.

SKU: IS.C7288EM

ISBN 9790365072880.

American composer and woodwind performer Mike Curtis is equally comfortable in classical, jazz, and ethnic settings. He has toured the world as a klezmer clarinetist, played bassoon with symphonies and opera companies, and recorded on sax with jazz greats Charlie Rouse and Anthony Braxton. His compositions show the influence of those experiences and more. A Week in Plasencia was written following Mike’s 2015 trip to the International Clarinet Association festival in Madrid. After a week in the City that Never Sleeps, Mike sought an unknown, tranquil, provincial alternative. Sunny Plasencia, a riverside town at the foot of the Sierra de Gredos, came to reveal itself as a magical font of beauty, history, and inspiration. This piece exists in two versions, for solo clarinet and clarinet quartet. This product page listing is for the Solo Clarinet version.

SKU: IS.CQ7582EM

ISBN 9790365075829.

American composer and woodwind performer Mike Curtis is equally comfortable in classical, jazz, and ethnic settings. He has toured the world as a klezmer clarinetist, played bassoon with symphonies and opera companies, and recorded on sax with jazz greats Charlie Rouse and Anthony Braxton. His compositions show the influence of those experiences and more. The Adagio (2nd movement) from George Gershwin's Concerto in F for Piano and Orchestra.