Salamander Duo

Beautiful and emotional folk music from various Jewish traditions!

Salamander Duo playing music from various Jewish traditions. The repertoire consists of Sephardic Jewish songs from the Mediterranean area, spiritual songs from the Hasidic Jewish tradition and a little klezmer. In exceptional cases, folk music from other traditions sneaks into the repertoire - and also early music from the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Baroque in a folk musical style - but the group's main focus is on Jewish music. The group was originally a trio but now only exists in duo format.

The group was founded in 2010 and has since performed on everything from intimate café scenes and cultural centers to churches, museums and festivals. The debut album from 2014 received enthusiastic reviews, as well as the group's second album "Como La Rosa" which was released in May 2018. In October 2023, the group's third album was released, called "Jojnes Trojm: Music from Jewish Traditions & Beyond" which was recorded in Studio Epidemin in Gothenburg. This album has also received very good reviews and has been played on the radio all over the world.

Salamander Duo conducts an extensive collaboration with various Jewish organizations in Gothenburg and Stockholm, and both "Como La Rosa" and "Jojnes Trojm" were financed through scholarships from the Katz Jewish Cultural Fund.

In addition to the usual concert format, Salamander Duo can also offer a combined lecture and concert with a focus on Jewish history, culture and music. The lecture is given and has been written by Salamander's fiddle player Jonas Liljeström, who is a music ethnologist trained at the University of Gothenburg and himself has a partial Jewish background. If the intended audience is not obviously used to lectures, the lecture concert is also available as a "light version" - it is then structured like a regular concert but with monologues between the songs that tell about the subject in a concise and easily accessible way.

The salamander, which gave the group its name, is a fire in ancient and medieval symbolic worlds and mystery traditions - one of the four elemental spirits. Salamander is, among other things, the image of courage and the power of action that subdues the fire of pain.

Salamander Duo's recently recorded demo is available in its entirety on Soundcloud, see link below.

Marita Johansson: vocals, guitar

Jonas Liljeström: violin, frame drum, vocals