At first blush, the overlap between European Jewish musical forms and African-American spirituals may seem unclear. But singer Anthony Russell says the connection is not only deeply rooted in the histories of these two peoples, but in the history of American pop music.
Russell, who trained as an opera singer, is African-American and Jewish - a conversion prompted by both his love of Jewish culture and his husband, who happens to be a rabbi.
Russell will be in Milwaukee for a performance called, "Convergence," along with the Klezmer group, Veretski Pass. They will be at Anodyne Coffee in Walker's Point on April 11, and Russell will have two other shows, presented by the Stahl Center for Jewish Studies at UWM.
