• ■• I Arts & Entertainment please place order by Thursday, Sept. 25 is nng our am: and Friends a Happy Healthy Sweet New Year Glatt F 248 967 1605 25270 Greenfield Road Oak Park, MI 48237 Online Menu: UnqueKosherblogspot.eom YON G HU4 FINE CHINESE DINING Invites You To 'A wonderful adventure in fine dining" — Danny Raskin Featuring Gourmet Oriental Cuisine Excellent Lunch and Dinner Selections Complete Menu 7 Days a Week 11 a.m.- Carryout • Midnight Certificates Available Gift • Musician Daniel Kahn does his part to keep the Yiddish language alive. Esther Allweiss lngber Special to the Jewish News Free Round Holiday Challah, with purchase of 8 or nioro dinners P. 248.967.1161 Travelin' Troubadour C abaret musician-actor Daniel Kahn, formerly of Farmington Hills, travels solo or with his band playing edgy, original Yiddish music. He also performs old favorites at festivals, theaters and clubs throughout Europe, Israel, the United States and Canada. Kahn, 30, now of Berlin, will give a free Yiddish concert for the home crowd 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 21, at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield. He'll per- form with New York clarinetist Michael Winograd. Yiddish Alive, an independent group headed by Alva Dworkin of Southfield, Daniel Kahn is the sponsor. "We're just a group that wants to see Yiddish presented annually at the JCC under its auspices:' said Dworkin, who met Kahn at his local concert of Yiddish songs last year. Kahn spoke to the Jewish News while appearing at the Ashkenaz Festival in Toronto. JN: What are some of your We Cater To Private Parties 27925 Orchard Lake Road, north of 12 Mile • Farmington Hills 248.489.2280 Detroit connections? DK: I graduated from Roeper School in 1997. My bachelor of theater arts is from the University of Michigan in 2001. I've acted in Old Wicked Songs and other shows for Jewish Ensemble Theatre. JN: What interests you • Catering available at all locations • Coupons are for all locations including Hercules Family Restaurant at 12 Mile & Farmington Receive 10%o Total Bill Not valid with Specials. Not valid with any other offers. With coupon. Expires 12/31/08 Visit us at www.leosconeyisland.com C14 September 18 • 2008 iN about Yiddish? DK: I grew up with very little Yiddish, though I had a pretty inten- sive Jewish education at Temple Israel. Yiddish is a beautiful language with a rich history and literature. I've studied it intensively at the YIVO Institute in New York. JN: How do you incorporate Yiddish into your fife? DK: When I discovered Yiddish song and literature, I became aware of its very diverse, radical, political and lyrical culture. I like bringing Yiddish into new contexts with my music, to challenge accepted definitions of cultural identity and politics. I trans- late Yiddish and German songs into English and vice versa. JN: Why did you move to Germany? ▪ DK: After graduating from U-M, I traveled around a lot, includ- ing New Orleans for a few years. My friend Alan Bern, a klezmer musician, invited me to Berlin. That appealed to me because I'm inter- ested in Bertol Brecht, German theater and political cabaret. I didn't come with a plan to focus on Jewish music, per se. It developed out of my experiences to create a klezmer band, the Painted Bird (from the Jerzy Kozinski novel). We're a loose-knit association of like-minded people. Some members live in Russia and New York. The Painted Bird mixes Yiddish material with things like punk, cabaret and gothic folk. JN: What can you say about your Sept. 21 program? DK: We will be doing old Yiddish songs, new Yiddish songs and Jewish songs. I'll sing and play accordion, piano and ukulele. We'll cover politics, love, war, biology, alcohol and God — well, not so much about God. We don't do much religious material. JN: Is what you do fun? DK: Being a musician is the eternal loophole — you get to travel around the world, meet people and get paid for sing- ing songs. It's pretty amazing. 0 Daniel Kahn and Michael Winograd perform 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 21, at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield. No charge. Details: (248) 557-8599.