RebbeSoul Interview

INTERVIEW WITH REBBESOUL FROM TheCelebrityCafe.com ARCHIVES

DM) There aren't many artists recording songs with an influence of Hebrew roots. What inspired you to start doing this?

BB) I was searching for my own sound. As a studio musician, playing guitar in LA, I had to be a chameleon of sorts. It requires having a vast palette of sounds and styles at your fingertips. A bass player friend of mine once remarked that he wanted to hear Bruce Burger- MY sound. I ultimately found it in my roots. Hebraic music goes way back. Many of the traditional songs in RebbeSoul are hundreds, even thousands of years old. Even the original RebbeSoul material I write contains elements of the ancient traditions, linking people from generation to generation.

DM) Do you sing any of the traditional songs on this album?

BB) The other singer, Lynn sings "Eliyahu" on the new Common Tongue album. That's a traditional song to the prophet Elijah. We do a sort of hip-hop version of it. On the various RebbeSoul albums, I sing many traditional songs.

DM) You recently formed Common Tongue after recording on your own. Do you prefer working in a band or solo?

BB) They're both quite different. The band has a certain interaction between the players that is unique to that format. I like the spontaneity and for that reason, do not rehearse the band very often. Every night is always a little different and that's especially fun when the players are slammin'. They always keep me on my toes.The solo show is more intimate and there, I interact with the audience. They're the ones who keep me on my toes. I experiment even more when I play solo because there's no one else that needs to follow me. Of course, it's also more nerve-racking because I don't have a group of other musicians to cover for me in rough spots!Cassio (the percussionist) and I have been playing some duet shows lately and that's been really cool because it's kind of a cross between the band and the solo performance. We try all kinds of things and experiment a lot. Often we bring extra percussion for the audience.

DM) Where do you hope your musical career will go from here?

BB) I already have plans for two more RebbeSoul albums. We also have a few tracks done for the next Common Tongue album. I look forward to these recordings and releases and want to play and tour a lot more, both in the US and outside. I've also been producing some other projects, bands, and artists and really like it. It gives me a chance to help others grow as well.I'm just finishing up an unusual album where a group of artists including myself went into a juvenile detention hall (prison) to do music with the incarcerated youth. We actually made a CD of their work. They're between ages 13 and 18 and it was incredible seeing how this project turned some of these kids around. Maybe they'll get a chance to better themselves. It was very rewarding.

DM) Do you still keep in touch with the kids?

BB) Impossible. We only knew their first names and they move on to other prisons all the time. It's a constant revolving door.

DM) Do you feel your music is geared more towards Jewish listeners or all listeners?

BB) When I first started RebbeSoul, I assumed that my audience would be mostly Jews but when RebbeSoul and Fringe Of Blue got on the radio, I found I had a large non-Jewish audience. I began receiving mail from people with names like Christian Smith or Takashi Akagi telling how they liked songs like Avinu which is a traditional Jewish prayer.Common Tongue is clearly more universal as the material comes out of many ethnic traditions like Arabic, Brazilian, Jewish, R&B, jazz, etc. It's a real combination of things but played pretty radically. Those people who expect to hear us play ethnic music in a traditional way that has been done for years will fall out of their chairs. Nothing is sacred and everything is sacred- at the same time.

DM) What do traditional Jewish leaders and other religious leaders say about how you play the music?

BB) My music has run the spectrum of being called sacred to sacrilegious. I've played in synagogues to people who openly weep when I play "Avinu". Yet, I've been banned in certain religious neighborhoods where teenagers have confided in me that they listen behind closed doors with headphones on.Either way, as RebbeSoul, I'm just playing music from the Jewish soul. It's a glimpse into a world of who we are as a people. Whether, one is Jewish or not, we are all still part of a bigger group which is the human race. We all have that in common and if we can appreciate each other for our differences, then what a more pleasant world it will be. Our differences can be a source of fascination rather than of divisiveness. That's why I wrote Prayer For Peace (Harachaman) and recorded it on my Fringe Of Blue and RebbeSoul-O albums. It's about peace in the Middle East and I've gotten both flack and praise for it.

DM) Do you feel that people enjoy your work more musically or spiritually?

BB) Music can bring out spiritual meaning from the depths of the soul. Most of the great rebbes were known to be wonderful singers and rhythms have been used ceremonially in many religions for thousands of years. There is a connection between music and spirituality and what separates them is blurry line at best. A very blurry line.

DM) Then maybe a better question is, what is a Rebbe?

BB) Actually I thought it was a fine question but I'll answer this one too. The Rebbes were the mystics, the shamans of the Jewish people. They were mostly known in Hassidic communities in Eastern Europe and there are many stories and legends about them. They were also very musical and music is considered very holy and spiritual in Judaism. There are still some Rebbes around today. That mystical element with music is where the name RebbeSoul comes from.