Yale Strom is an American violinist, composer, filmmaker, writer, photographer and playwright. Strom is a pioneer among klezmer revivalists in conducting extensive field research in Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans among the Jewish and Rom communities since 1981. Initially, his work focused primarily on the use and performance of klezmer music between these two groups. Gradually, his focus increased to examining all aspects of their culture, from post-World War II to the present. He was among the first of the so-called klezmer revivalists to identify the connection between klezmer and lautare and explore that connection in his scholarly and artistic works. In the more than two decades since his initial ethnographic trip, Strom has become one of the world's most productive and influential scholar-artists of klezmer culture and history.
Career
Music
Yale Strom's klezmer field research helped form the base for the repertoires of his two klezmer bands, Hot Pstromi in New York and Klazzj in San Diego. Since Strom's first band began in 1981, he has been composing his own New Jewish music, which combines klezmer with Hasidic nigunim, Rom, jazz, classical, Balkan and Sephardic motifs. These compositions range from quartets to a symphony, which premiered with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. He composed original music for the Denver Center production of Tony Kushner's "The Dybbuk". He also composed all the New Jewish music for the National Public Radio series "Fiddlers, Philosophers & Fools: Jewish Short Stories From the Old World to the New", hosted by Leonard Nimoy, as well as numerous film scores. Strom is also one of the only two composers of Jewish music to carry on the tradition of writing original songs, with Yiddish lyrics, about humanitarian and social issues. List of CD recordings: "Cholent With Huckleberry", "Eclectic Klezz", "With A Little Horseradish on the Side", "The Last Klezmer", "Carpati: 50 Miles, 50 Years", "Wandering Jew","Tales Our Father Sang", "Garden of Yidn" "Cafe Jew Zoo", "Dveykes/Adhesion" "Absolutely Complete Klezmer", "Borsht with Bread, Brothers", "Absolutely Klezmer, Vol. II", "The Devil's Brides: Music from The Witches of Lublin". Strom has performed with many well-known musicians including Andy Statman, Mark Dresser, Marty Ehrlich, Mark O’Connor, Alicia Svigals, Salman Ahmad, Samir Chatterjee, Muzsikas, Kálmán Balogh, Damian Draghici, Marta Sebestyen, Tanya Kalmanovitch, Theo Bikel and myriad others. Strom has been hailed as "a commanding bandleader and composer", "one of the best klezmer musicians in the country" and "an all-around musical visionary". Dirty Linen sums it up most concisely: "Yale Strom is a Jewish roots trip unto himself". The New York Jewish Week writes:
"He's a gifted photographer and author, a talented documentary filmmaker and has his own klezmer band... Strom's multifaceted career is a wonder, and his work schedule is downright fiendish."
Books
Strom's research has also resulted in nine books. Strom's most recent book, written in collaboration with his wife, Elizabeth Schwartz, is "A Wandering Feast: A Journey Through the Jewish Culture of Eastern Europe". Strom's book "The Absolute Complete Klezmer Songbook" comes with a CD as well called Absolutely Klezmer Vol I and contains 313 known and rare klezmer melodies, many of which were collected by Strom during his years of field research. His first children's book "The Wedding That Saved a Town", illustrated by Jenya Prosmitsky, was published by Kar-Ben Publishing in 2008 and won the San Diego Library Association's Best Illustrated Children's book award in 2009. His biography of klezmer clarinetist David Tarras, "Dave Tarras: The King of Klezmer" is the first full biography of Tarras, authorized by the Tarras family and includes 28 Tarras melodies, many of which have never before been published or recorded, as well as rare family archival photos and biographical details.
Film
Strom has directed five award-winning documentary films and has composed music for others. He was the first documentary filmmaker in history to be given his own run at Lincoln Center's prestigious Walter Reade Theatre, where The Last Klezmer broke box office records; this record was only exceeded by Carpati's run there. Both films went on to strong theatrical runs both in the U.S. and abroad, and were featured on major Top Ten Lists. The Last Klezmer was short-listed for an Academy Award. Klezmer on Fish Street won the 2003 Palm Beach International Film Festival's Special Jury Selection award. His documentary A Man From Munkacs: The Gypsy Klezmer was produced by Duna Television. Two edits exist, the producer's cut to be shown exclusively in Hungary, and the director's cut for other countries. In 2007, Strom curated an event in New York City, A Great Day on Eldridge Street, a photo shoot of over 100 of the world's leading klezmer and Yiddish artists, a parade through the Lower East Side and concerts. Strom's short film, A Great Day on Eldridge Street, documents these events.
Photo exhibitions
Strom's solo photo exhibit, "The Rom of Ridgewood", about Gypsy communities in Queens, New York, was mounted at the Queens Museum of Art; he has had numerous solo exhibits throughout the U.S. and Europe. His solo exhibit of portraits of klezmer musicians in Bessarabia, "Klezmorim", was exhibited in Romania and Hungary. This same exhibition just recently was at the Jewish Community Center in Houston. His photos are part of many collections including Beth Hatefusoth, The Skirball Museum, The Jewish Museum of NYC, The Frankfurt Jewish Museum and the Museum of Photographic Arts.
Plays
Strom's original stage play, "…from man… to beast… to crawling thing…", was given a fully staged workshop in June 2001 by the Streisand Festival. His play, "The Education of Hershl Greenshpan" was workshopped by the San Diego Rep, North Coast Rep as well as in New York City, Connecticut and Los Angeles. Strom was featured in the May 31, 2004 issue of Time for this play, and the scholarship behind it. In collaboration with wife and partner Elizabeth Schwartz and author Ellen Kushner, Strom co-wrote the audio drama, "The Witches of Lublin", starring Tovah Feldshuh, and featuring Simon Jones, Barbara Rosenblat and Neil Gaiman, among others. He also composed the original music for the recording.
Lectures and teaching
Strom has lectured extensively throughout the United States, Asia and Europe and taught at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at NYU for 4 years, where he created the course "Artist-Ethnographer Expeditions". He is on the advisory board of the Center for Jewish Creativity, based in Beverly Hills, California. Since 2006, he has been an Artist-in-Residence in the Jewish Studies Program at San Diego State University, a position created for him. Strom was the first klezmer violinist in history to be invited to instruct master classes at both the American String Teachers Association and the Mark O'Connor fiddle camp, a position that continues.
