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The New York City band Golem will bring their unique blend of rock, punk-Klezmer music to ������ý��Ƶ�����ƹۿ�’s Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts on Monday, October 27, 2014, at 7:30 p.m. Free and open to the public, the event is part of Daniel Pearl World Music Days, an international network of concerts that uses the power of music to reaffirm a commitment to tolerance and humanity.

Since 2002, Daniel Pearl World Music Days has grown to include the participation of more than 11,000 performances in 129 countries. It is an awareness-raising program, not a fundraiser, and honors the memory of Daniel Pearl, the slain Wall Street Journal South Asia Bureau Chief.

������ý��Ƶ�����ƹۿ�’s Carl and Dorothy Bennett Center for Judaic Studies is sponsoring the annual concert at Fairfield. No tickets are required, but call (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066, to reserve a seat.

Golem is a Klezmer rock band featuring Yiddish and Eastern European music with a contemporary edge.

Klezmer is a musical tradition of the Ashkenazi Jews of Eastern Europe, often played at joyous occasions and usually accompanied by dancing. Making use of such instruments as the clarinet, fiddle, and accordion, Klezmer infuses centuries-old Jewish music with the sounds of Eastern European folk music, Roma (gypsy) music, and early jazz.

To borrow a line from NPR, “Golem ain’t your grandparents’ Klezmer.”

The Washington Post observed of the band: “Golem produces the sort of music you'd expect if the shtetl were filled with punks instead of peasants.”

Its four albums and concerts around the world prove just that. The six-member group was founded in 2000 in New York City by Annette Ezekiel Kogan, an accordionist. Since then, the band has become a leading re-interpreter and innovator of Yiddish and Eastern European music, pushing tradition forward into the 21 ^st century.

After their self-released album, Homesick Songs (2004), Golem released two albums, Fresh Off Boat (2006) and Citizen Boris (2009) on the independent Jewish label, Jdub Records. Their new release, Tanz , (2014), is on the prestigious Mexican label Corason Digital and produced by Tony Maimone of Pere Ubu. It marks a conscious move into new territory with mainly original material, according to the band. The album was critically acclaimed.

Music critic Milo Miles of NPR commented that with Tanz , the group manages to find new ways to balance urban irreverence with folk tradition.

Golem has performed across the globe, from Joe’s Pub in Manhattan to Mexico City and Poland. In addition to having its music featured in several films, the band’s music was heard on a recent episode of the TV series Louie .

To hear Golem’s music, visit .

A goal of the Bennett Center for Judaic Studies is to enrich the intellectual, cultural, and spiritual life of ������ý��Ƶ�����ƹۿ� and the greater community through lectures, programs, and other special events.  For more information, call (203) 254-4000, ext. 2066 or .