KlezKanada

Yes, I know KlezKanada has been over for a while.

So, if you've been reading so far, you will know what KlezKanada is.  KlezKanada differs from the European klezmer workshops in several ways.  First of all, KlezKanada has had 15 years now to grow and mature.  The result of this is a very diverse program of study which allows for the student of klezmer to find a great deal of interesting things to do. 

Second of all, KlezKanada, is a residential program in the style of KlezKamp.  While KlezKamp is located at a hotel in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York in the middle of winter (not much incentive to go outside), KlezKanada is held at a summer camp in the Laurentian mountains of Quebec, about an hour north of Montreal.  This area, near Ste. Agathe-des-Monts (if you want to know more about this area in the 1950s, read Mordechai Richler's "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz), is historically a resort area for Montreal Jews.  Nestled in this area, right on a lake, is Camp B'nai Brith, which KlezKanada takes over for a week after the campers head home for the summer at the end of August.  So, the weather is usually a big bonding factor for the participants of KlezKanada.  It gets cold at night, and can be very pleasant and lovely during the day.  Or it can rain.  This year, it was quite nice (although cold at night), until Shabbes when the rain came.

Third, KlezKanada is probably the biggest klezmer workshop in the world.  This year (not even close to the biggest it's been) hosted over 220 participants, and faculty.  Going back over my records, I find that the 2006 edition (my first KlezKanada) had 430 people, total.  This creates a large community of klezmer-philes who come from all over the world.  I don't recall if I mentioned this before, but many Europeans and others that I encountered on my travels would ask me about KlezKanada before KlezKamp.

Fourth is the large number of young people.  KlezKanada has a large scholarship program, subsidizing musicians, scholars and others under the age of 35.  While there is only a small group of younger people at places like Weimar or KlezFest, and even KlezKamp, KlezKanada teems with kids, teens, and young adults.  Especially gifted and talented young musicians.

This year's edition was also fascinating.  By bringing over The Other Europeans, there was a heavy emphasis on Moldovan and Roma music this year.  It was great to meet and talk to these great "other" musicians, and it also injected some amazing new life into KlezKanada.  This was actually an interesting contrast with Weimar, which normally explores the links between klezmer and another music and this year focused exclusively on Jewish music (calling this year "Yiddishkayt").

KlezKanada is also great for the student concert -- held in the "gym" which is tranformed every year into a great sounding concert space.  This event allows the students to perform what they've been preparing all week long.

KlezKanada is also demographically more similar to KlezKamp.  It's certainly more Jewish than the European workshops, and the programming does reflect this.  There is more Yiddish and religious content, and there is a large contingent of observant Jews who can attend easily because Camp B'nai Brith has a kosher kitchen.

So what is there to say about KlezKanada?  Great people, lots of fun, lots to learn, but it still feels like a week long "hang" with friends.  Informants have told me that a lot of the teenagers who come year after year have built a large group of friends and continue to continue attending even without their parents!  For them, and for many others, the community, and being surrounded by Yiddish language, and Jewish music and dance is more important than making great music.