The Klezmatics at Miner Auditorium

The Klezmatics Happier Joyous Hanukkah
Miner Auditorium
San Francisco, CA
December 15, 2025 

As they near their 40th anniversary in 2026, The Klezmatics delivered a jazz-infused Hanukkah program to SFJAZZ that balanced groove, grief, and collective resilience while keeping the dance floor in mind. Drawing on material from Happier Joyous Hanukkah, recently reissued on vinyl, the band framed the evening around a central idea: joy gains force when it is shared, sustained, and responsive to the moment at hand. For an ensemble nearing four decades together, forged in the East Village ecosystem that blurred punk, folk, and the avant-garde, that idea felt deeply integrated into the music itself.

The opening moments set the tone. "Honeyky Hanukkah," Woody Guthrie's witty addition to the Jewish songbook, arrived with a rhythmic push and forward drive. Its groove pushed against the formality of the seated hall and quickly changed the room's energy. Within minutes, an audience member near the entrance stood up and began tracing traditional dance steps in the aisle. Ushers moved back as others followed her lead. The response unfolded naturally, highlighting the music's physical pull and community spirit.

That sense of movement carried right into the band's jazz vocabulary. Miner Auditorium's warm acoustics encouraged flexibility and interaction, emphasizing improvisation as a shared process. Trumpeter Frank London, a long-time catalytic presence in the group, has described SFJAZZ appearances as chances to expand the music's improvisational scope. On "Vitsn," from the upcoming We Were Made For These Times, he fully embraced that approach. Playing through a plunger mute, London crafted phrases that laughed, growled, and bent pitches, creating distinct connections between early jazz phrasing and the expressive shapes of Eastern European folk traditions. The solo played out as a conversation—between eras, styles, and emotional tones.

Across the set, the ensemble played with the cohesion of a seasoned small group. Drummer Richie Barshay and bassist Paul Morrissett moved through changing meters with buoyancy, forming a flexible foundation for violinist Lisa Gutkin and clarinetist Matt Darriau. Their exchanges felt like dialogue, driven by listening rather than showing off. Before "Kegn Gold Fun Zun" ("Towards the Golden Sun"), London offered a brief aside on rhythmic connections between Yiddish music and Crimean Tatar traditions. The context sharpened the performance, which settled its complexity through groove and momentum.

Midway through the program, the emotional focus narrowed. London spoke briefly about "innocent people who seem to be just being slaughtered at this time," adding that "sometimes there are no words." The band responded with "Elegy," a sparse, wordless instrumental that drew the audience into collective stillness. Its placement in the set highlighted contrast as a musical tool, allowing reflection to coexist with motion rather than disrupt it.

From that quiet center, the band expanded outward again. Vocalist and accordionist Lorin Sklamberg—whose steady bellows work anchored the harmonic language throughout the night—introduced "Der Yokh," the Yiddish adaptation of the Catalan protest anthem "L'estaca." Sung with focus and restraint, the song's metaphor of many hands pulling together carried particular weight. The performance relied on collective voices and a steady pulse, allowing the song's message to emerge through repetition and unity.

The group's long-standing connection to Woody Guthrie resurfaced during "Deportee." Before performing, Sklamberg recalled the 1948 plane crash that killed Mexican field workers whose names were left out of news reports, reduced to the label "deportees." The performance was clear and straightforward, anchoring the evening's bigger themes in a particular human story and reinforcing the band's dedication to preserving history.

As the set approached its end, the music shifted back to dance-driven material with renewed energy. Years of shared language enabled the band to move smoothly between tight unison sections and open improvisation. The program's richness—combining historical context, political reflection, and celebratory energy—sometimes required careful listening, but the group's punk-klezmer roots kept the music lively and straightforward.

By the encore, "Ale brider," the sense of separation between stage and audience had faded. Earlier, London described the band's recent work as a way to help people "stay strong and avoid getting depressed." The sentiment resonated clearly in the room. As The Klezmatics approach their 40th anniversary, they continue to treat tradition as a living practice—one shaped by listening, improvisation, and the belief that shared joy remains a powerful source of endurance.

Setlist

"Honeyky Hanukkah," "Man In A Hat," "Vitsn," "Kegn Gold Fun Zun," "Hanukkah Gelt," "40 Years," "Der Yokh," "Happy Joyous Hanuka," "Un Du Akerst," "Elegy," "I Am Willing," "Lashinke," "Deportee," "Payklers Tants," "Hanukkah's Flame," "Hanukkah Tree." Encore: "Ale brider."

Comments