Live from the Gallery: The Klezmatics Play Letters to Afar

Location: Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street, NYC

Co-presented with the Museum of the City of New York.

Presented in connection with Letters to Afar, an immersive video art installation co-presented by YIVO and the Museum of the City of New York (October 22, 2014-March 22, 2015).

Join us for an extraordinary opportunity to experience Letters to Afar, the video art installation by Péter Forgács and score by The Klezmatics, with live music. In this evening, the Grammy-winning, New York-based Klezmatics will perform an acoustic version of the score they composed for the installation, along with related music. In the spirit of old-style, peripatetic klezmer street bands, the band will perform while walking slowly through the installation. Guests are invited to wander through the gallery, absorbing the Klezmatics’ unique sounds and Forgács’ haunting re-staging of home movies taken by New York Jewish immigrants who traveled back to Poland in the 1920s and ‘30s.

About the Performers

The Klezmatics are world-renowned superstars of klezmer. Since their emergence from New York City’s East Village in 1986, they have revitalized Yiddish music for the 21st century. The band has helped change the face of contemporary Yiddish culture; they have performed in more than 20 countries, released ten acclaimed albums, and served as the subject of a feature-length documentary film, The Klezmatics: On Holy Ground.

The Klezmatics have garnered numerous accolades, including the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album, the 2006 New York Jewish Music Award for Best Klezmer Band, Italy’s 2012 Tenco Prize for Achievement in Songwriting and the German Critics’ Award.