Eduard Tumansky, third from left, with fellow Simcha musicians, Sept. 3, 2013. (Courtesy of Simcha)
KAZAN, Russia (JTA) — When the six members of the Simcha klezmer band hauled their instruments into a dilapidated rehearsal space, no one suspected they were about to hijack a government building in this large, clean city some 450 miles east of Moscow.
But that’s exactly what happened in 1995 when this popular ensemble — founded in 1989 by Jewish musicians during the Soviet Union’s twilight years — entered the Teacher’s House, a government-controlled building that had once been a synagogue. For three years, city officials had …read more
Source: JTA
