Klezmerband Mazzeltov, featuring singer Rolinha Kross, releases its fifth album in 2008. ‘Amsterdam’ (subtitled ‘Filching in Mokum [the yiddish name for Amsterdam]) pays tribute to the yiddish past of this city and it is a surprising cd.

Poetess Willy Brill translated some well known English and Dutch songs into yiddish, e.g. ‘Windmills of your mind’. The music has been rearranged into an eastern-european klezmer style with a hint of jazz. In this way Mazzeltov is very creative in enlarging the yiddish repertoire.

The famous Dutch tearjerker ‘Amsterdam huilt’ (Amsterdam cries) is sung in Dutch but has been klezmerised musically and -obviously- the album contains some yiddish classics as well. Nevertheless songs like ‘Dos Kleine Zigaynerl’ (The little gypsy) and ‘Trink Brider’ (drink brothers) have been arranged in an extraordinary way. In new compositions by band members, but also in a tune like ‘Ishmael’ by South-African composes Abdullah Ibrahim jewish music, jazz and gypsy music are blended beautifully.

Amsterdam is and always has been a melting pot of cultures. For centuries jewish refugees have been welcomed and they were able to build up a new life. They left their traces in the Dutch language. Words like ‘mazzel’ (good luck), ‘gabber’ (mate), ‘jajem’ (gin) and ‘tof’ (cool) are used daily. Nowadays it is the city with the largest number of languages spoken in the world (languages hailing from 177 different countries)!

Jewish music has always been a melting pot as well. The ‘klezmorim’ used to play in many eastern European countries and regions and they were always influenced by local music. Mazzeltov continues this tradition of cross-pollination and ‘filches’ influences from various sources, hence the sub-title of the album.

For more then 10 years Mazzeltov has performed in the Netherlands and abroad. Their last album ‘Mishpoge’ was nominated in 2005 for the Edison, the Dutch equivalent of the Grammy.

Mazzeltov is: Rolinha Kross-vocals, Harm van den Berg-accordion, Harold Berghuis-guitar, Gottfrid van Eck-clarinets, Edith Mathot-violin and Gregor Schaefer-ud, double bass.

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