Kleztory was formed from members of several other klezmer music combos, and is one of the most dynamic klezmer ensembles in Montreal today This story begins in 1997, when guitarist Alain Legault founded Les Gitan Sedentaires, a group dedicated to performing Jewish music from Eastern Europe. In 1998 he was joined by contrebassiste Mark Peetsma and the group proceeded to perform more than 200 shows in the following 2 years. This finely tuned rhythm section encountered the perfect clarinettist, in the classically trained veteran Airat Ichmouratov, giving birth to the newly formed Simha. In 2002, the trio became a quintet, with the integration of the violinist Elvira Misbakhova and the accordionist Henri Oppenheim rounding out the traditional instrumental configuration for a Klezmer band.