Mames Babegenush

Mames Babegenush is a Danish klezmer band formed in 2004 in Copenhagen by a group of friends with an ambition to reform the world music and klezmer scene in Denmark. The six-piece ensemble—featuring Lukas Rande on saxophone, Emil Goldschmidt on clarinet, Nicolai Kornerup on accordion, Bo Rande on flugelhorn, Andreas Møllerhøj on double bass, and Morten Ærø on drums—fuses Scandinavian roots with the vibrant dance music traditions of Eastern Europe. The band's name means Mom's aubergine salad (baba ghanoush) in Yiddish, and they began by playing at Jewish weddings and bar mitzvahs before pioneering klezmer attack—spontaneous, unannounced concerts in public spaces. Since then, Mames Babegenush have established themselves as one of Europe's premiere klezmer-jazz ensembles, performing at festivals and venues across the US and Europe.