BIO: Seth Watters
FACULTY - MUSIC THEORY & SONGWRITING
PERFORMANCE COACH - BASS, DRUMS
Born and raised in the Atlanta area, Seth Watters has extensive professional touring and recording experience. His technical aptitude spreads across various musical genres and his multi-instrument talent has landed him roles in both regional and national productions. Averaging nearly two hundred scheduled performances per year, Seth has spent countless hours honing his craft. In the studio, clients consider him a “first-call” session player because of his proficiency in musical skill and professionalism on the job.
Seth has also pursued musical education as a path for spreading his passion beyond the stage. Working to create self-sufficient and creative musicians, Seth’s practical approach to instruction has developed aspiring musicians through one-on-one and group sessions. As his drive and passion carry him towards the future, Seth hopes to continue on his endless quest toward musical improvement.
Next Teen Open Mic - ATL
One of our founding sponsors, AJMF has announced their next Teen Open Mic will be 5:00-7:00 PM on Sunday, December 11 at Crema café. Want to perform? RSVP to Jake at ufrubin@gmail.com to reserve your time slot. You can also RSVP on Facebook here.
In related news, March 12 is confirmed for the 2nd annual Teen Battle of the Bands. Many of last year's bands will be invited back. If you want to perform but have never played an AJMF stage, you must attend the December open mic night. They need to see you live before inviting you to BOTB.
First Baltimore Single, "See The Change" Released
Our first-ever JUDAIC MOSAIC: BWI session was so much fun! We tracked two amazing songs and are absolutely thrilled to share this first single with you today, "See The Change" by Gabrielle Zwi:
Gabrielle is passionate about community involvement and being active in USY. Her song will be featured in the Winter 2016 video!
Want more music? Check out our ATL sessions:
Engineer Mike Froedge Speaks At SoundCorps
Our favorite ATL engineer, Mike Froedge was one of only three guest speakers at this year's SoundCorps Take Note panel (R-L: Froedge, Lex Dirty, Charlie Brocco, moderator). Click here to read a great article summarizing the talks, which centered around "insights on recording."
Do YOU want to record with Mike? Register for summer camp today!
You can stream Mike's work on previous ATL camp session recordings [for free] at music.nessrecords.com.
Appearing in the Atlanta Jewish Times
Our first appearance in a print newsweekly was March 2015, when AJT profiled our Summer camp program. So, we are thrilled to announce a string of showings this March - beginning with page 7 of the "AJMF Preview" issue!
New video featuring B'Yachad BBG is live!
Music and pics from B'Yachad BBG's recording workshop, plus some timeless gems! Subscribe to our YouTube channel! (youtu.be/JcgPyJ5kAlQ)
Etz Chaim Kadima Songwriting Workshop!
Director and founder, Nick Edelstein brought our acclaimed Judaic Mosaic Songwriting Workshop to Congregation Etz Chaim Kadima on Sunday afternoon. Here's what the kids created in just one hour!
BIO: Mat Leffler-Schulman
Mat has spent the better part of his life fascinated by recording and manipulating sound. Known as a “musician’s producer”, he’s a drummer, is analog synth-obsessed and takes great pride in his collection of theremins, vocoders and vintage tube gear. He’s worked with an eclectic and diverse range of artists, including Future Islands (Thrill Jockey / 4AD), Waka Flocka Flame (Warner Bros.), Sun Club (ATO), Mark degli Antoni (David Byrne/Soul Coughing) and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Mat earned a BS from the renowned Music Recording program at Middle Tennessee State University in Nashville. His career spans 20 years, including stints at Warner Bros. Records and DC101.
Mat is a producer, mixing engineer, and co-owner of Mobtown Studios in Baltimore.
BIO: Shira Solomon
We are thrilled to have Shira on team Judaic Mosaic. She has been very helpful around the office with data entry, composing emails, calling shuls, and spreading the word about summer camp. Prior to accepting the glorious olive wreath of Intern, Shira was one of our 5775/2015 campers. She co-wrote "The Flame," sang lead vocals, and played ukulele and guitar!
Atlanta Auditions To Be Held at Steve's Live Music
Auditions for the 2016 Atlanta Judaic Mosaic Summer camp sessions will be held at Steve's Live Music on Sunday, March 27th.
We are thrilled to announce this year's first round of Summer camp auditions will be held at Steve's Live Music in Sandy Springs, GA on Sunday, March 27 from 4:00 - 6:00 PM.
We strongly urge applicants to contact us ASAP to reserve your 15-minute block. There is no fee to audition, but you should still make an appointment. Walk-ins will be heard only if there are empty time slots or we finish early. We must end promptly by 6:00 PM so the venue can prepare their evening show.
Drummers will most likely be able to use the house drum kit, but check with us in advance to be certain. We will definitely have electric guitar amps and acoustic amps on stage.
TIPS: bring a tuner, and use it before you play for us;-)
Jake Steel joins team Judaic Mosaic
We are thrilled to announce that Jake Steel has joined team Judaic Mosaic as our new Recruiter! If you attended BBYO IC within the past few years, you may recall seeing Jake perform on Thursday night. He is passionate about music and the Jewish community, which makes him a perfect addition to our staff.
Jake was one of our first campers. He co-wrote "No Hesitation" and plays the second guitar solo at the song's end (alternating with violin). Jake is currently majoring in Global Liberal Studies at New York University (2019).
BIO: Seth Kibel
FACULTY - MUSIC THEORY & SONGWRITING
PERFORMANCE COACH - WOODWINDS
Seth is one of the Mid-Atlantic’s premier woodwind specialists, working with some of the best bands in klezmer, jazz, swing, and more. Wowing audiences on saxophone, clarinet, and flute, Seth has made a name for himself in the Washington/Baltimore region, and beyond. He's the featured performer with The Alexandria Kleztet, Bay Jazz Project, Music Pilgrim Trio, The Natty Beaux, and more. Winner of 28 Washington Area Music Awards (Wammies), including “Best World Music Instrumentalist” (2003-11) and “Best Jazz Instrumentalist” (2005, 2007-8, 2011-14).
Weber High School Guitar Clinic
Judaic Mosaic founder/director Nick Edelstein taught two guitar clinics at Weber High School in Roswell, GA to help prepare the band for an upcoming concert. The song? Frank Zappa's Jazzy masterpiece, "Peaches en Regalia!" Follow us on Instagram for more pics @judaicmosaic
Julie Peters joins camp Judaic Mosaic
We are thrilled to welcome Julie Peters to our staff as Media Director. Julie has a Bachelor’s in Consumer Marketing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, an MBA from Chicago's IIT Stuart School of Business, and has been an innovative leader in the field of marketing for over 20 years.
Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, Julie involved herself in Jewish studies, piano, dance, and an overall love of music. Julie received her Bachelor’s Degree in Consumer Marketing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Later, she completed her MBA at IIT Stuart School of Business in Chicago, IL where she co-founded Stuart School of Business Student Association. Julie has been an innovative leader in the field of marketing for over 20 years, designing, creating, and managing campaigns that resulted in establishing new brand opportunities, increased brand awareness, and presence in the marketplace.
New Studio Address
Hello and happy Labor Day weekend :) Hope your school year is off to a great start. Now that the dust has settled, we have an exciting announcement to share ...
NESS Records, which produces/releases our Summer camp singles, has opened a new studio in historic Avondale @ 122 N Avondale Road, 30002.
This new location will be open (by appointment) to Judaic Mosaic alumni as a songwriting space, for demo recordings, rehearsals, meetings, etc.
Gear includes a vintage Wurlitzer piano, Hammond organ, mics, amps, and plethora of guitars/basses/other. Follow on Instagram @JudaicMosaic
BIO: Samantha Staviss
INTERN
We are thrilled to have Sami on board as our fabulous 5776 intern. She's a senior violist at Lassiter High School, and can be heard on two 5775/2015 recordings. Sami also plays piano and guitar, and hopes to someday visit the Rue du Rome in Paris. She will be attending Ga Tech in Fall 2016!
Modern Israeli Music Combines Old and New
Here at Judaic Mosaic, we recognize that today's music is rooted in the past. We give campers a healthy dose of Israeli music history, so they can better understand the complex perspectives of modern Jewish artists - both within our homeland and abroad.
Our favorite Israel specialist, Eli Sperling spoke on this subject last Monday at Moishe House. Atlanta Jewish Times writer Benjamin Kweskin observed:
In the mid-1960s, Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, refused to allow the Beatles to perform in Israel so as not to corrupt the youth. It’s hard to imagine he would have allowed Elton John, Ozzy Osborne, Lady Gaga, Madonna or Rhianna, all of whom have recently performed in Israel.
A dozen young people gathered in the spacious living room at Moishe House Decatur on Monday, Aug. 24, happy to see their friends and to fill their bellies with falafel, baba ganoush, tahini, Israeli salad, and a special drink mix of Tito’s vodka and pomegranate juice — a Tel Aviv staple introduced by the evening’s presenter, Eli Sperling.
An Israel specialist and assistant project coordinator at the Institute for the Study of Modern Israel at Emory University, Sperling conveyed how Israeli music has changed and been affected by fluid political and demographic realities the past 70 years.
Sperling provided several songs picked to represent changes in Israeli culture, from pre-state to today. They represented different time periods, socio-political realities, racial tensions, and political and ideological expressions.
He said the pre-state yishuv (Jewish community) focused on building a “new Jew” through political and cultural cohesion focused on molding a “new Hebrew culture” for the immigrants, mostly Ashkenazi Jews from Europe. The first song Sperling presented, “Kinneret” (Sea of Galilee) by the poetess Rachel, spoke to the strong connection to the land. But the romantic melody was offset by the second song, “Shir Betar” (Song of Betar), a militaristic march highlighting strength and renewal. Both songs, representing the two main conflicting political streams of Zionism, were hits.
From 1950 to 1952, Sperling said, nearly 1 million Mizrahim (Jews from Muslim-majority countries) arrived in Israel, causing a huge demographic change. Israel’s cultural and political dynamics began to shift. Many of the new immigrants were Middle Eastern Jews: They spoke Arabic, Farsi and Turkish and listened to Middle Eastern music. Essentially, Mizrahim represented the “culture of the enemy” because of Israel’s lack of regional recognition.
By the 1970s, Mizrahim made up nearly half of Israel’s Jewish population but did not feel equally represented culturally and politically, and economic disparities were abundant. To show the dual Israeli realities, Sperling played a ’70s hit by Miri Aloni, “Shir L’Shalom” (Song for Peace). The message spoke to an external peace with Israel’s neighbors while neglecting to address the internal woes of Israel’s underclass.
As a counter, Sperling played the counterculture band Ha’Brera Ha’Tivit’s hit “Yeladim zeh Simcha” (Children Are Happiness), a satire aimed at the elite’s assumption that Mizrahim were there only to make babies and were content to do menial work.
Sperling reiterated that music in Israel, like everywhere else, is a reflection of the population — its diverse cultures, ideologies and political realities. Mirroring American culture to a degree, hip-hop has become increasingly popular in Israel.
The first of two hip-hop songs Sperling played was “Tikva” (Hope) by Subliminal and the Shadow, a Mizrahi duo raised in underprivileged neighborhoods. The song references the daily struggles and realities of Israelis. In stark contrast, Mooki D’s “Kulam Medabrim al Shalom” (Everyone’s Talking About Peace), performed by a middle-class Israeli, is friendlier and lighter.
The last song — a crowd favorite — was performed by the new trio A-wa, three Yemenite-Israeli sisters whose Arabic song, “Habib Galbi” (My Love, My Heart), is infused with an uptempo, hip-hop dance beat. The song epitomizes the convergence of the music of the first generation with the music of the current generation.
The new Israeli music to a significant degree has successfully combined the old and new, Western and Eastern.
The original article is here.
Judaic Mosaic Invades Møog
I can't honestly say the Møog factory in Asheville is the coolest factory tour on the planet. After all, the Gibson factory tour in Memphis is pretty amazing (more big machines, less tiny circuit boards). But Møog definitely takes the cake when it comes to their products - which you can demo in the showroom, their history, and their employee interaction. You can walk right up to any workstation and watch the magic. This 100% FREE guided tour will actually make you smarter and probably a better musician, too. I can't wait to go back with our 5776 campers.