Australian music with a strong Jewish flavour

IT is unlikely klezmer will be heard in the top 20 any time soon, but Australian music has now got a strong Jewish connection.

Last month, music executive, musician and lawyer Dan Rosen was appointed chief executive of the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA).

The new position has seen Rosen return to Sydney after six years based in New York working for a digital music and entertainment company.

He has also had to leave his fellow band members from Second Dan, the 2003 winner of Triple J’s Unearthed competition, to take the position.

“We released an album earlier this year called Angeline, which is getting great reviews and airplay around the world,” he said. “I promised the rest of the band, who are American, that we would tour Australia, so they are waiting for me to deliver on that.”

But Rosen is hardly a struggling muso waiting to make it big. He has plenty of experience in the industry, was an adviser to former communications and arts minister Richard Alston, and holds a masters in international law and business from New York University.

He seemed a perfect fit for the ARIA position, but said it was not on his radar.

“I had not thought about it before, but I was certainly very interested when I was asked about coming home for the role,” he said.

“It brings together my background in law, politics and digital media with my passion for music as a recording artist and performer.”

Asked how he is going to push forward a local industry that is battling a dearth of live music venues and ubiquitous illegal file-sharing, Rosen was optimistic.

“More people are listening to music than ever before and attendance at music festivals is also growing,” he said. “Digital technologies allow people to discover music in new ways.

“The industry needs to continue to embrace these changes and develop business models that reflect the new ways people are consuming and engaging with music.”

And what about Australian music, is this country a hotbed of talent?

The new ARIA CEO listed bands The Temper Trap, Empire of the Sun, Cut Copy and The Cat Empire as some of Australia’s “world-class artists”.

He also praised a handful of Jewish performers.

“I recently met Ilan Kidron from The Potbelleez,” he said. “They are a great Sydney-based band and are playing the pre-show of the ARIA awards on November 7. In Melbourne, Emily and Jesse Lubitz from Tin Pan Orange are making great music.

NAOMI LEVIN