In an interview with Iggy Fenech, the London-based fiddle player and folk writer Chris Haigh talks about Klezmer music, his work with Morcheeba and Riverdance, and the Klezmorimalta Foundation’s upcoming workshop.

Chris Haigh

Although few people can describe what Klezmer music is, the probability is you’ve listened to it before – and enjoyed it.

In fact, while chatting to Birgit Albrecht and Ralph Bulters, the founders of the Klezmorimalta Foundation, I discovered that one of the most widely-known uses of Klezmer music happened in the Academy Award- and Golden Globe-winning film, Fiddler on the Roof.

What is very easy to underestimate, however, is just how culturally important the uber-ancient genre of Klezmer has been over the centuries.

Thankfully, the Klezmorimalta Foundation knows that and it’s now ready to share the knowledge and excitement of Klezmer through a week-long workshop that is being supported by the Malta Arts Fund, the Malta Society of Arts, and the Arts Council Malta.

For this workshop, Klezmorimalta has got together with three influential and experienced performers, who are flying to Malta to share their incredible stories and talents with Maltese musicians and music students.

One of these is the London-based fiddle player, Chris Haigh, an accomplished musician and writer who recently published a book called Exploring Klezmer Fiddle.

In fact, Chris is a real authority on how the fiddle has been used in Klezmer and folk music, and his site www.fiddlingaround.co.uk, is a comprehensive and widely visited source on the web. But the question still remains: what’s so special about Klezmer?

“Klezmer is an exotic, thrilling and evocative kind of dance music that people love even if they’ve never listened to it before,” says Haigh.

“It uses special near-Eastern scales that manage to sound happy and sad at the same time. It also has a fascinating story to tell, with roots and branches woven throughout the history of central and Eastern Europe.

“For example, back in the 19th century, Klezmer in Eastern Europe was a functional music designed to entertain bride, groom and guests at Jewish weddings,” he says.

“Then, it almost died out in the mid-20th-century. But, since the 1970s there has been a huge revival all over the globe.

“Today, bands like the Klezmatics in New York have given Klezmer a new lease of life, adding modern elements, such as jazz, rock and Latin, to keep it fresh and contemporary. It has powerful rhythms and strong melodies, which attract anyone onto a dance floor and, yet, it also has great artistic and cultural integrity.”

As I’ve come to discover, there are now hundreds of Klezmer bands all across the world, one of the most successful of which is the Yxalag Klezmer Band, whose lead, Jakob Lakner, will be joiningHaigh and the UK-based accordionist Basil Bunelik, at the Klezmorimalta’s A Workshop in Klezmer Music.

“It is always a thrill to be able to turn people onto a new style of music,” adds Haigh, “and I always enjoy teaching in a workshop-situation to people who are already competent musicians and who are interested in learning new approaches to playing.

“I have been playing Klezmer in London for many years,” he continues.

“There is a large Jewish population there, and, therefore, a constant demand for musicians at weddings and bar mitzvahs. As with many other genres, I have studied in detail the history, repertoire and style of the music, and have written about it on my website.

Klezmer is an exotic, thrilling and evocative kind of dance music that people love even if they’ve never listened to it before

“It was a result of this writing that I was invited to appear on a BBC documentary on Klezmer, which, in turn, lead to me being asked to be one of the three tutors at the free-of-charge workshops for musicians, music students and music teachers.”

By now, Haigh has become an experienced fiddler, musician and performer, having appeared in over 80 albums worldwide and worked with the likes of Morcheeba, renowned for their song Rome Wasn’t Build in a Day, and the Irish troupe, Riverdance.

“For me, one of the delights of being a professional musician is that you never know what is round the corner,” he says.

“Being involved in many specialised forms of music means I get invited to play with a wide variety of musicians in many genres.

“Riverdance was a real highlight, and playing before huge audiences along with an amazing cast of musicians was great. What made it so special is that, unusually, Riverdance was not only hugely popular with the general public, it was also real high-quality art, and the music was absolutely thrilling to play.

“On top of that, I often do recording sessions too, one of which was with Morcheeba. These are often very short – just a matter of going into the studio, having a brief chat with the artist or producer, and then playing a bit of fiddle on whatever track has already been laid down.

“The challenge with these kinds of sessions is to be quick and accurate, and also to try and grasp what it is that the artist is looking for.

“They will usually know very little about the fiddle, and will only know what they want when I’ve already played it.

“Nevertheless, I sometimes get to have much more in-depth collaborations. For example, at the moment, I am working with the Indian singer Najma Akhtar, who has worked in the past with Page and Plant.

“We are now recording an album, and the whole band is contributing ideas and incorporating a whole range of influences.

“Undoubtedly, it’s very important for musicians to have different kinds of experiences, and not to allow themselves to be too pigeonholed.”

By teaching learners the skills of improvisation, performance, ornamentation and rhythm in music, A Workshop in Klezmer Music aims to give Maltese musicians the tools to collaborate and work in a professional way and to be flexible performers.

On top of that, those who join the workshops taking place between tomorrow and Saturday, will also have the possibility to perform at a concert open to the public and even be part of Malta’s first Klezmer band.

As for Haigh: “In the run-up to the workshops, I have been I have been given a guidebook, and I must say Malta looks like a fascinating and beautiful island.”

A Workshop in Klezmer Music will take place between tomorrow and Saturday from 9am to 12pm and 1pm till 4pm at the Malta Society of Arts in Valletta. This workshop is free-of-charge and anyone who wishes to join is asked to send a short description of their background in music and a brief explanation of why they would like to join, to klezmorimalta@outlook.com.