Harry Mulisch was a fan of Di Gojim: when he passed away in 2010, the Dutch klezmer band was honored to play during his funeral; While playing music, the chest was escorted to the Zorgvlied cemetery. In their music theater performances, the six professional multi-instrumentalists / singers combine the ingredients humor, emotion and theater with klezmer, Balkan and gypsy music. During a collaboration
… with the Norwegian singer Bente Kahan, she gave them the idea for a production about the charismatic Jewish-Russian Vladimir Vysotsky (1938-1980). The alcohol-addicted actor, poet and singer with the nickname 'Dirty Yid' left six hundred songs about the fringes of life. Soviet authorities found his lyrics too vulgar, but the common people loved his songs full of astute observations, sarcastic humor and melancholy. Di Gojim chose to translate Vysotsky's lyrics and put them on new music. Jaap Mulder sings Vysotsky's songs in Yiddish, French and Frisian, accompanied by instrumental interludes of traditional Balkan music. (SvdP)more
