Chutney’s beats at The Vanguard
Since the band was founded in 2019, Chutney has evolved its branding and emphasis from a predominant focus on klezmer, to world jazz fusion coupled with original music.
ECLECTIC klezmer band Chutney is taking a stack of new original tunes to The Vanguard in Newtown this Thursday, February 18.
Consisting of musicians Ben Adler (violin), Paul Khodor (keyboard), Ben Samuels (clarinet) and Yiss Mill (percussion), for the first time Potbelleez frontman Ilan Kidron will be joining the band for a one night only performance, along with bassist Ralph Marshall.
The dynamic group of musicians will perform klezmer takes on numbers including Billie Eilish’s Bad Guy, and Kidron will also sing Libertango, in addition to Adler’s original piece, Rivers of Gold, described by the composer himself as a “musical theatre inspired jazz power ballad”.
“Ilan is a dear friend of mine and an extremely supportive mentor and one of the biggest people in the Jewish Australia music scene. He is full of love and integrity and passion and it’s unbelievable to have him join us,” Adler commented.
Since the band was founded in 2019, Chutney has evolved its branding and emphasis from a predominant focus on klezmer, to world jazz fusion coupled with original music.
“We think we are becoming a more interesting band to listen to, and we are finding our voice, which is a more eclectic and a more original voice than what we were even half a year ago,” Adler shared.
Between last August and November, Chutney performed to three sold-out shows at Camelot Lounge, and although Marrickville remains the band’s spiritual centre, the musicians are excited to be venturing into a new space.
“The mission or vision has always been to spread the joy of Jewish music more broadly and generously,” Adler said. Even when the band’s intention isn’t to produce Jewish music, an underlying flavour inadvertently flows through.
“There are certain harmonies and melodic inflections that come out of us creatively, and that we can see are Jewish. It is in our souls … There is a commonality and continuous thread even if [our pieces] deal with funk or musical theatre.”
Buy tickets at bit.ly/3pZVjae.
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