Jewess Interviews Beth Schafer and Galet Dardashti

I ran into a new blog recently. (I should give credit to whichever blog or website pointed me to it, but I forgot which one it is. Sorry). Jewess covers Jewish women's issues and has done interviews with the Jewish women musicians Beth Schafer and Galet Dardashti. (Schafer interview here, Dardashti interview here) I'm a fan of Dardashit's group Divan. They play an idiosyncratic and compelling blend of Mizrakhi and Sephardi music.

I didn't know Beth Scafer, though. Reading her interview makes it clear why. She's part of the "contemporary Jewish music" scene that includes Debbie Friedman, Rick Recht, Craig Taubman, and Dan Nichols. I honestly haven't had much exposure to these folks. Part of it is the sound. What I've heard has been pretty folky, poppy, and (to me) bland. Part of it is religious. Most of these folks seem to come out of the Reform community. I don't have a problem with that, I just haven't been around it much. Another gap for me to fill, I guess. I'll make a point of listening to more of these folks over the next month or so and report back on what I find.