“The concert will feature Klezmer music, which is traditional Jewish music of Central and Eastern Europe. The central elements of the tradition include dance tunes, ritual melodies and improvisations, which are played for listening,” said Sarah Michael, chair of the arts committee at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.
The Flying Klezmerians will perform at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church on Friday. Donations will be accepted at the door.
Based in Dayton, The Flying Klezmerians is comprised of Rich Begel (trombone), Bill Burns (clarinet), Dave Diamond (trumpet), Steve Makofka (accordion) and Eric Reith (percussion). The group was originally formed in 2018 as the Miami Valley Klezmer Ensemble.
Klezmer is an instrumental style of folk music that is derived from the traditions of Ashkenazi Judaism and Eastern European folk traditions. The term “klezmer” combines the Hebrew words for a vessel “kley” and melody “zemer.” Klezmer music is often featured at weddings and other social functions. Typically, the instrumentation includes the clarinet, accordion, trumpet, trombone and drums or cymbals.
“A lot of Klezmer music was popular in Europe and the United States through World War II,” Michael said.
Following the live concert, the performance will also be made available virtually on the Holy Trinity Oxford YouTube channel.
Red Door Community Concerts, a six-concert series, was organized by the Arts Committee of Holy Trinity Oxford. The concert series offers diverse styles of music, performed by a variety of artists. The goal of the series is to bring the community together through music.
Red Door Community Concerts are an outreach of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, which fulfills part of its mission to teach, to learn and to serve.
“Our church is right next door to Hillel. In October, Hillel was celebrating a Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which is a festival of the harvest, and their Sukkah tent was destroyed by three Miami students…The police determined it was vandalism. The three men were caught and charged with vandalism. As a result of that, Hillel and Miami University reached out to the community, and they held a special ‘The Shabbat of Love & Honor’ service and it was very well attended by students and community members,” Michael said.
Other Red Door Community Concerts this season will include Bill Murray on Feb. 17, Yun Kim on Apr. 14 and Phil DeGreg Trio on June 9.
How to go
What: Red Door Community Concerts at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church to feature The Flying Klezmerians
When: 12:15 p.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2
Where: Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, 25 E. Walnut St. in Oxford. Concerts are in the sanctuary
Cost: Free
More info: www.holytrinityoxford.org
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