"People swipe a new song and they decide if they like it or not within the first ten seconds"
Monsey-based musician,
is lead guitarist for the Freilach Band. Born in Jerusalem’s Meah Shearim neighborhood, he began to study guitar as a teenager, and was soon performing with clarinetist Chilik Frank and saxophonist Ahrele Bender. Over a decade ago, he joined the top-tier Freilach Band, under the direction of Avrumi Schreiber. Nachman also teaches and does private studio work for many leading artists in the industry
Playing for Rav Mota Frank’s son’s wedding in Uman, Ukraine, last winter. While I’m a Breslover chassid, I usually only travel to Uman for Rosh Hashanah, so even the journey itself felt very special. Even before the plane touched down in Kiev, I felt an incredible burst of energy. Then there was the whole magical evening itself: to be next to Rebbe Nachman, playing at a wedding that overflowed with genuine joy for a mashpia with whom I’m personally very close. Everyone who was there was fully absorbed in the simchah — this was nothing like a regular, nice wedding party.
The song “Ahalelah” — composed by Yaakov Yosef Buksbaum of Skver and released as a single by Ahrele Samet — is one of those. We’ve been playing it at every wedding for the past few years, somewhere toward the beginning of the first dance. It’s definitely here to stay. Then there’s “Baruch Hashem” by Zusha and Pumpedisa. If I look down at the crowd when we play it, it’s always pumping.
People swipe a new song and they decide if they like it or not within the first ten seconds. That’s faster than it took in the old days just to unwrap the plastic from the cassette and put it in your tape deck.
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