The Joel Rubin Jewish Music Ensemble was founded in 1994, the first such group dedicated to the performance of the classical Eastern European Jewish instrumental (”klezmer”) repertoire. The ensemble consists of seven professional musicians from the United States, Hungary and Italy and forms a link with the multi-cultural tradition of the turn-of-the-century Eastern European Jewish orchestras. The Joel Rubin Jewish Music Ensemble therefore combines the skills of Jewish, Rom (Gypsy) and non-Jewish artists: in addition to the Italian master accordionist Claudio Jacomucci - equally at home with the tangos of Astor Piazzolla, the contemporary music of Luciano Berio or Jewish music - and the charismatic cimbalom virtuoso Kálmán Balogh - scion of one of Hungary’s most prominent Rom musical dynasties - Rubin is joined by László Major, Sándor Budai, Ferenc Kovács (of the Dresch Quartet) and Csaba Novák from Budapest, all of whom bring extensive experience with jazz, traditional Eastern European and urban Gypsy music to the ensemble.
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Rubin review Slobin JAMS

Review of Mark Slobin’s edited volume American Klezmer in the Journal of the American Musicological Society, 60 (1) (Spring 2007): 238-253.

The Jewish Music Series celebrates its 10th anniversary with the release of “Di Eybike Mame”, the first CD anthology of recordings featuring women of the Yiddish stage. This carefully edited production documents the enormous variety of music present during the period 1890-1930, from folksong to music hall and vaudeville, liturgical song to operetta and musical comedy. The booklet includes a detailed essay on Yiddish theater music and the role of women in Yiddish popular song. Read more…