Who we are
Klezmer meets Bluegrass!
Margot Leverett and the Klezmer Mountain Boys was founded in 2001 and continued performing until 2014.
The music of the Klezmer Mountain Boys has been featured in film, theatre and dance, most notably in a piece by the Paul Taylor Dance Company entitled "Klezmerbluegrass". Margot Leverett was a featured guest soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra this year.
Check out our CDs "Margot Leverett and the Klezmer Mountain Boys" and "2nd Avenue Square Dance" on Traditional Crossroads and hear for yourself!
The Ensemble
Margot Leverett, (clarinet) is one of the foremost clarinetists of the klezmer revival. Classically trained at Indiana University School of Music, she was involved in avant-garde music when she first heard klezmer, the dynamic East European music traditionally played at Jewish weddings. Leverett was a founding member of the Klezmatics in 1985 before moving on to launch a solo career. Her first CD, "The Art of Klezmer Clarinet," is a tribute to classic Klezmer of the 20's and 30's, and was released in 2001 on Traditional Crossroads (CD4296) to glowing reviews. She tours internationally and has performed and taught traditional and original klezmer music at festivals and workshops around the world.
In addition to founding and directing the Klezmer Mountain Boys, Margot Leverett performs with Udi Bar-David and the artists of Intercultural Journeys, a concert and cultural organization to promote intercultural dialogue. They were featured guest artists with the Philadelphia Orchestra last year www.philorch.org. Margot has toured Japan twice with The New York Ragtime Orchestra and has been featured in several Off-Broadway productions.
Margot Leverett was a staff instructor at KlezKamp for over 10 years and has also taught at KlezKanada, Klezkamp West, Klezmerquerque, and at colleges, music festivals, and Jewish organizations across the country and in Europe.
The Klezmer Mountain Boys featured Barry Mitterhoff, Kenny Kosek, Joe Selly and Marty Confurius and were often joined by guest artists including Jorma Kaukonen, Wayne Fugate, Don Mulvaney, Brian Glassman, David Licht and others too numerous to mention. We would like to gratefully acknowlege founding members Cookie Segelstein and Bob Jones.
Photo L-R: Marty Confurius, Kenny Kosek, Barry Mitterhoff, Margot Leverett, Joe Selly.
Photo by Melanie Wellner.
