WOMAD

Kroke

From Poland

Kroke are a Polish trio who play klezmer, the music of East European Jews. It's a style that has grown increasingly popular in the USA, where the Klezmatics are its most well-known exponents. But the music was almost wiped out in Europe by the Holocaust. It's a style that has been described as "desperately joyful" and its re-emergence brings it another dimension. This is a music that was all but extinguished (more than 90 percent of Krakow's Jewish community died at the hands of the Nazis); now it has returned. You can't kill a culture. Four years ago, Kroke were playing in a Krakow restaurant (the band's name is the old Yiddish spelling of the city's name) when they were spotted by Steven Spielberg's wife. The director had just finished making 'Schindler's List' and invited the group to play for Holocaust survivors at a special memorial concert for Oscar Schindler in Jerusalem in May 1993. Since then, Kroke have played to audiences across Europe, enjoying huge success. Kroke - Tomasz Kukurba (viola), Jerzy Bawl (accordion) and Tomasz Lato (double bass) - are one of a small number of East European groups dedicated to the rejuvenation of klezmer, whose name comes from two Yiddish words, kley and zemer - instrument and song. Dressed in matching black hats, the three men explore the roots of the style and bring Balkan touches to it, as well as shades of European classical music and American jazz and blues. However, unlike their US counterparts, Kroke do not use the clarinet. The dance rhythms at the heart of klezmer come from Bulgaria, Romania and other Slavic regions where Jews settled, making it a truly international sound.