Local musician/artist Matthew Levitt has plenty of reason to celebrate this Tuesday (which just happens to be Yom Ha’Atzmaut – Israel’s Independence Day). Not only is he hosting The Jewish Culture Showcase at the Acadia Café, he’ll also be celebrating the release of his first Jewish music CD entitled, Ahava Raba. The free, all-ages show gets started tonight (5/10/11) at 7:30pm at the Cedar Ave. hot spot near The U.
May’s Jewish Culture Showcase will feature a variety of local talent, including Cherie Rae Cobbs (singing solo tonight but you might recognize Cherie as the vocalist from Days of Rae, who recently released a CD to critical acclaim), singer/songwriters Nate Uri, Alex Goldfarb, Beth Brody and Sarah Goldberger as well as Elijah Swaden from MN Homegrown Hip Hop. Says Levitt, “I’m not just excited for myself and the show but for all of the fabulous Jews that are also playing…I’m also pretty happy to be joined on stage by Umar Malik Williams and Eric Silva Brenneman, two of my favorite musicians and two of my best friends.” There’s no doubt that there will be plenty of good music to accompany all of the great beers the Acadia has on tap.
And everybody will be celebrating the release of Ahava Raba. Matthew Levitt’s new album draws on texts from the Siddur, the Prophets and the Psalms. Levitt has created new melodies and arrangements that draw on a multitude of influences and inspirations such as Indian kirtan, Middle Eastern modality, as well as Latin rhythms and North American folk. Teruah Jewish Music Blog called the album “Mystic Hebrew jam-band folk. Fun!”
Don’t forget – the party starts tonight at 7:30 pm at the Acadia Cafe on Cedar Ave near The U. Until then, here’s a taste of what you’ll catch by grabbing a copy of Ahava Raba for yourself:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvLcY2HYMO8
Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t make the show, But I just took a listen to some of the tracks on the CD page. Really cool stuff. Great tunes and simply fantastic guitar. I can’t wait to catch Matthew live sometime!