Ever since the recordings of Belf's Romanian Orchestra re-appeared during the late 20th century "klezmer renaissance," musicians have been fascinated by the ensemble's highly idiosyncratic sound. Is it somehow typical of an earlier Yiddish music aesthetic, or an exotic outlier, or possibly even a parody? How would we know? Who was V. Belf? Where did he come from? How many Belf orchestras were there and why? Who and how large was his audience?

One thing is for sure: every major contemporary klezmer musician has had to come to terms with the Belf repertoire and sound in one way or another. As the answers to the historical questions have begun to emerge, performers have tried to unlock the secret of the Belf sound.

To surprise of many, four young musicians from France have now discovered some of the most important keys. Listen to the samples on this website if you doubt! 100 years after the first Belf recordings, the Freylekhs Brider – Amit Weisberger (violin), Jerome Block (piano), Laurent Clouet (clarinet) and David Brossier (sekund) - guide us in this very special workshop dedicated to the mysteries of the Belf sound, its history and its meaning for klezmer musicians today. For advanced intermediate through professional klezmer musicians, this is a rare opportunity to focus on one of the most challenging repertoires and sounds in all of klezmer music.