Local klezmer act Zoyres is no sour pickle

Just can't get enough klezmer? Fear not, dear readers, this week I talked to local klezmer act Zoyres Eastern European Wild Ferment and - lucky you - they have two live shows this week:

1) Zoyres, Seth Augustus, & Emperor Norton’s Jazz Band
Thursday March 18 9pm start
Starry Plough
3101 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley (near Ashby Bart)
$7
 
2) Zoyres Eastern European Wild Ferment
Friday March 19
7:30 doors/8pm show
Red Poppy Art House
2698 Folsom St, San Francisco , CA
$10-15

*Excerpts from the interview:

j. weekly:When and how did Zoyres begin? Why play klezmer music?

Zoyres:  Zoyres Eastern European Wild Ferment began around 2003 with the intent of approaching klezmer and Eastern European folk music from both a “traditional” and rootsy perspective, as well as a stretched out and experimental one.  A huge inspiration back then, and still, was Naftule’s Dream, a Boston based band that compellingly bridges traditional klezmer music with way-out experimental and jazz improvisational forms (think of the perfect band if Frank Zappa were to be Bar Mitzvah’d).

j: Do you craft your own tunes or play classic klezmer songs, or a mixture of both?

z: Zoyres’ repertoire includes traditional klezmer tunes as well as traditional Balkan folkdance tunes from countries such as Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, etc.  We also write our own compositions both in and out of those styles.  Our approach is to mix the “traditional” with sounds that catch our own ears and reflect our broad listening experience.  The results vary, some tunes might sound quite like a 1920’s recording of a folk musician, while others have clear reference in traditional music, but are played in wildly different settings.  And then we write tunes and improvise in ways that don’t fit into any neat categories.

Here’s a bit more on the conceptual framework of the group’s aesthetic:
The name "Zoyres" derives from the Yiddish term for fermented vegetables, "zoyers." These foods have been transformed by culture and community (of the microbial sort) through incredible biochemical fermentation processes. These "cultural" transformations underlie our own cultural development, as humans have relied and reveled in fermented foods for millennia. Zoyres' music represents the geo-social analogue to the biochemical ferment. Our music, of Eastern European origin, brined in the contemporary cultural milieu, is akin to the pickle, still evident in its cucumbral origin, but with a taste and texture transformed.

j: What is the audience's reaction to your music generally?

z: Audience reaction is typically positive.  Our sound appeals to a wide audience, that includes folkdance aficionados, jazzheads, experimental music lovers, and everyone in between.  The band is packed with real solid players and we put a lot of intention into developing arrangements, both of which make a powerful statement.  Sometimes we play for folkdancers, which is a lot of fun for us, and hopefully for them.  We often surprise them with new takes on old folkdance favorites, so they can’t always dance by rote, but need to be up on their toes!  For those interested in traditional folk music, what we play might stretch their ears a bit and we’ve gotten some funny feedback in that regard, especially from our Youtube videos.

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