Elaine and Susan at Philadelphia Folklore Project

Klezmer Concert: The Philadelphia Folklore Project presents award-winning drummer Elaine Hoffman Watts and her daughter, acclaimed vocalist and trumpeter Susan Lankin Watts in an evening of klezmer music devoted to saying good riddance to all the mishegas (Yiddish for craziness or insanity ) in our world today. Klezmer is the celebratory music of Eastern European Jews. Goodnight Mishegas is a line in the Hoffman family s Goodnight Waltz, composed close to a century ago, with words recently penned by Susan. The Folklore Project invites people to sing along at the concert and, in celebration of family and community traditions, to reflect on possibilities for turning our woes into joy. Visit www.folkloreproject.org for music and words!

Presenter: Philadelphia Folklore Project (PFP)
Date: December 11, 2011
Location: Calvary United Methodist Church, 801 S. 48th Street, Philadelphia
Time: 7:30 pm
Tickets: $20 general admission / $15 PFP members / $5 children under 12
Call 215.726.1106 or visit http://crossroadsconcerts.org/

Ensemble Sirenot

Women's Singing Group: Ensemble Sirenot in Israel
אנסמבל סירנות "לונדון" - חנוך לוין "אסור לי לשיר


מילים: חנוך לוין מוזיקה: חוה אלברשטיין עיבוד: עמית פוזננסקי ניצוח: שוש לגיל פסנתר: שחר בורק הקונצרט "אסור לי לשיר"

Summer on the Hudson: FREE Riverside Park Divahn Concert

Galeet Dardashti and Divahn
Sunday, August 7 · 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Location Riverside Park South, NYC
Summer on the Hudson: Amplified Sundays -
7:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m.
FREE
Featuring:

Galeet Dardashti: lead vocals, guitar, back-up percussion
Eleanor Norton: cello, vocals
Elizabeth Pupo-Walker: congas and cajon, vocals
Sejal Kukadia: tabla, vocals
Rebecca Cherry: violin, vocals

Pier I in Riverside Park South between between 65th/72nd Streets
Map of Location: http://maps.google.com/?t=​h&daddr=40.7797%2C+-73.988​9+%28Pier+I%29

Iranian-descended singer Galeet Dardashti leads Divahn's edgy all-female power-house ensemble. The group has engendered an international following, performing in venues ranging from international concert halls to the most prestigious clubs in NYC. Infusing traditional and original Middle Eastern Jewish songs with sophisticated harmonies, entrancing improvisations, and funky arrangements, Divahn's thrilling live shows feature lush string arrangements, eclectic Indian, Middle Eastern, and Latin percussion, and vocals spanning Hebrew, Judeo-Spanish, Persian, Arabic, and Aramaic. “Divan,” a word common to Hebrew, Persian, and Arabic, means a collection of songs or poetry. Through their music, the group creatively underscores common ground between diverse Middle Eastern cultures and religions.

The Jewish Women of Rebetika

Monday, June 20, 2011
7pm
Legendary Greek Jewish Singers of the '20s. '30s, & '40s
Songs and Personal Histories of
Roza Eskenazi, Amalia Baka, Stella Haskil, and Victoria Hazan
featuring:
Carol Freeman - Vocals
Beth Bahia Cohen - Violin
Haig Manoukian - Oud

LOCATION: The JCC of Manhattan
334 Amsterdam Ave. at 76th St.
New York City
Information: 646-505-5708
www.jccmanhattan.org/multicultural
Admission $20, $15 members

Within the provocative world of the early twentieth century urban Greek Cafe Amans and Rebetika Houses, where flamboyant characters sang about desperate love, life, and death, and the seedy side of life, there were a surprising number of celebrated Greek Jewish female vocalists. Included among them were Roza Eskenazi, one of the most renowned Greek singers of all time, and Stella Haskil, who performed with the most famous musicians and composers of the time. On this side of the Atlantic, Jewish women, notably Amalia Baka and Victoria Hazan, found center stage in the immigrant Greek nightclubs and community centers of major urban centers, as well as within the American ethnic recording industry.

Although remarkably celebrated for their musical contributions to urban Greek cafe music and Rebetika, their life stories as Jewish women are not widely known. Using live performance and excepts from personal and family interviews, acclaimed vocalist Carol Freeman, together with virtuoso musicians Haig Manoukian and Beth Bahia Cohen, pay tribute to these Greek Jewish singers with a fascinating look into the songs and lives of these extraordinary women.

Information: 646-505-5708
www.jccmanhattan.org/multicultural
Admission $20, $15 members

Gila Carcas Chamber Works

Israel Composers League member, Jerusalem-based Gila (Gillian) Carcas, has a new website biography and a listing of compositions. There is an mp3 for her work "Beside the Lake" for Violin, Cello and Piano. Her works are available for puchase through the website. Gila has written over 50 pieces for small chamber ensembles, solo works, a chamber opera and some orchestra compositions.
http://www.israelcomposers.org/Members.aspx?lang=English&letter=Chttp://www.israelcomposers.org/Members.aspx?lang=English&letter=C

Women's Klezmer Summit (Not for Women Only!)

Come for a day, or come for the week! July 5-10 At Circle Lodge, Workmen’s Circle’s famed adult lodge adjacent to historic Camp Kinder Ring in Hopewell Junction, Dutchess County NY.

Featuring leaders of the klezmer and new Yiddish song revivals: violinist Alicia Svigals, vocalist Adrienne Cooper, trumpeter Susan Watts, drummer/film historian Eve Sicular, vocalist Shauna Kanter, and more.

To reserve call 845.221-2771 ext. 110, check out the link at www.circle.org or email office@campkr.com

Each day begins with a voice workshop conducted by Shauna Kanter of the famed Voice Theater Workshop. Catch daily lectures, panels, concerts, and hands-on workshops and coaching on klezmer history and making new Yiddish music personal – from Eve’s J. Edgar Klezmer and her famed Yiddish Celluloid Closet lec/dem on the gay subtext in Yiddish film to Alicia’s Klezmer Unfettered, amazing collaborations and road stories, to Susan Watt’s wild tales of klezmer family life, and Adrienne’s legendary Memoir of Gluckl of Hameln and her Every Mother’s Son antiwar song concert. Everything from traditional to the frontiers of Jewish music. And then there’s great food, great lake, swimming, boating. Great rates! Reserve now – mention that you came from Alicia’s mailing list for special offer.

Click here for Circle Lodge brochure and registration form http://klezmerbyaliciasvigalsllc.c.topica.com/maanblYabQ7WUbIFEx6eafpQav/

For more about Alicia, visit her website www.aliciasvigals.com http://klezmerbyaliciasvigalsllc.c.topica.com/maanblYabQ7UpbIFEx6eafpQav/

Women in Music Festival at Eastman

The Women in Music Festival being held at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester has several concerts of interest to our readers. On Monday, March 23 will be a concert that includes the new composition of Eva Wasserman-Margolis, "The Generation of Hope". On Wednesday, March 25 will be an all Judith L. Zaimont concert, featuring her "Four Seasons". Ms. Zaimont will be present at the concert. For further information, visit: http://www.esm.rochester.edu/wmf/schedule.php.

Like a Rushing Spring

Nomi Teplow launches her CD "Like a Rushing Spring" . This is the premier show for Nomi's new concert series featuring songs from the new CD "Like A Rushing Spring" as well as some of her popular hits. After the show -- A pull-out-the-stops dance!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009 at 8:30pm
Location:
Matnas Karnei Shomron מתנ"ס קרני שומרון
Street: Rechav'am Zeevi St., Karnei Shomron רח' רחבעם זאבי, קרני שומרון

Keyboards: Odeliya Berlin
Drums: Michal Rahat
Guitars: Daniella Boss
Flute: Keren Golan,
Violin: Avital Nir
Featuring the Shir E-l and Or Y-a Choirs
**This show is by women for women only**
Tickets: 30 shekels
girls: 15 shekels
Advance ticket sales: 09-7920201/3 (recommended!)
NOMI TEPLOW'S CD LAUNCH/"THANKSGIVING" BASH What People Are Saying About Nomi: "Nomi is very polished…The energy on stage at the Duhal Amphitheatre…[southern Tel Aviv] can light up the entire Ramat Gan [city north of Tel Aviv]." -Shai Lahav, Maariv, Weekend Magazine "The energy in the hall was electric, the colors spinning around everyone but above all stood out the mighty voice of Teplow...with masive vitamins of smile, with a storm-wind spirit and lots of faith, she sings from the heart, and vibrates hidden veins." -Dikla D. Gal-Ed, Nashim Magazine, Makor Rishon "Do yourselves a favor and listen ... In her music there is delicacy, tenderness, and attention to the inner voice, the one that always knows before we do." Einat Barzelai, Maariv NRG "I was very impressed with her voice, her musicianship and her captivating personality. " -Yoni Rechter, Kaveret Band (Poogy) Nomi Teplow is a unique phenomenon on the Jewish music scene... When this soul singer gets up on stage and begins to sing, the audience is riveted with wonder for she sets a different standard, higher than anything else known to date." -Roni Maimon, Besheva

Talia Applebaum Flashes in the Darkness Album

Several times in the last year (or so) there have been concerts for women based on the album by Talia Applebaum Flashes in the Darkness. It deserves another look for the humour, fun, a bit of blues, a little jazz, a bit of funk, but mostly American folk. Talia is writing about the stuff of her chosen life with the Breslov Hassidmi, and the way religious devotion permeates her life, blended into 'the everyday.' The music gives a window into that world --that Talia obviously relishes-- for the rest of us. All music and lyrics are by Talia, including blending English and Hebrew with an all female accompaniment. Occasionally the melody and words don't quite make it, but most often they do, and music cleverly wraps into the lyric.The best piece, (or maybe better to say, the one more universally related to all Jews' experience), is "Perservere" with arrangement and piano by Shana Friedman, which could fit into any Jewish denomination's repertoire. The CD is labeled "for women only." Clips are available through CD Baby: http://cdbaby.com/cd/talia. To contact Talia directly, email her at: flashes@bezeqint.com

Faith Steinsnyder featured in Forward article

An article in the Forward about Faith Steinsnyder and her impact on the American cantorate on the July 9th worth viewing. http://www.forward.com/articles/13728/

Neshama Carlibach and Nomi Teplow together in Jerusalem

1. Maabada (The Lab) in Jerusalem. Thursday night July 3. Doors open at 9pm
Tickets: 02-6292000 or 1-700-700-920

2. Matnas Karnei Shomron. Sunday night July 6. Tickets available at the door. Doors open at 8:30pm
For info: 052-6162430

www.myspace.com/nomiteplow

Judith Shatin Compositions -- Upcoming Performances

Chai Variations on Eliahu HaNavi, for solo piano, will be performed by noted pianist Jose Lopez at the Bass Museum in Miami on 8/17/08 at 3:00 p.m. The address is 2121 Park Ave., Miami Beach. For more information, visit www.bassmuseum.org.

A new version of Chai Variations on Eliahu HaNavi, for string quartet, has been commissioned by the Cassatt Quartet. It will be premiered by them on 10/2/08 at 8:00 p.m. at the Thalia Theatre of Symphony Space (Broadway and 9th St), in New York City. For more information visit www.cassattquartet.com.

And for more information on the composer, who frequently composes on Jewish topics, visit www.judithshatin.com. More about Florida program:

Sunday, August 17
3:00PM

Concert - A Program of Music by Jewish Composers

The program features works by Jewish composers from the 19th and 20th centuries. Selections include the astounding "Fairy Tales" composed in 1910 by the 13-year-old Erich Wolfgang Korngold, possibly the greatest musical prodigy of all time, the enigmatic French virtuoso Charles Valentin Alkan’s "Petites Fantaisies," and the works of two women composers from different centuries: 19th-century composer Fanny Mendelssohn (older sister of Felix Mendelssohn) and contemporary composer Judith Shatin.

Performed by pianist José López, Coordinator of Keyboard Studies at the Florida International University School of Music.

Free with museum admission

For more information about Judith Shatin, visit her webiste at: http://www.judithshatin.com/

what a Jewish gal was singing 50 years ago or so

Everyone knows YouTube. Occasionally you find real gems. Here is Dinah Shore and Peggy Lee singing a medley as swinging jazz.

Dinah Shore, born Frances Rose, who grew up in Winchester, Tennessee (and later, Nashville) was a daughter of Jewish immigrants. Her mother was a contralto and her father a merchant. She suffered from polio, but was not hampered in her educational pursuits to go on to Vanderbilt University. From there she went to New York to be a singer. She cut her first recording in 1940, and from there went into radio and later television.Her first live engagement was with Ed Wynn on NBC. She remained with that network for most of her tv career.
For more information on Dinah Shore, see Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinah_Shore or the Dinah Shore Fan Club website at http://www.dinahshorefanclub.com/dsbio2.htm

CELEBRATING THE EARTH, MAY 3 - 4 AT ST. LUKE IN THE FIELDS

Force of Nature: Celebrating the Earth performed by Melodia Women's Choir

Melodia Women s Choir/Cynthia Powell, Artistic Director, now celebrating their fifth season and acclaimed by WNYC for their elegance and ringing tones, has scheduled several spring performances: on Saturday and Sunday, May 3 and 4, 2008, they will present Force of Nature: Celebrating the Earth, music about the natural world, at St. Luke in the Fields Church in New York City.
487 Hudson Street
New York, NY
212-924-0562
Saturday May 3 at 8 PM
Sunday May 4 at 4 PM.
Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the door, discounts for students and seniors: $20 in advance, $15 at the door.
Call 212-252-4135, or visit www.melodiawomenschoir.org.

The program will feature Samuel Barber's Sure On This Shining Night; Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály s Mountain Nights Songs Without Words For Women s Voices; Ronald Perera's Earthsongs; Zhou Long's Four Seasons, a setting of ancient Chinese poetry; A Goodly Heritage by British composer Gordon Jacob; Spring Song by Israeli composer Yehezkel Braun; Hotaru Koi (Firefly) by Japanese composer Ro Ogura; and Wellsprings (New York Premiere) and Contemplations (U.S. Premiere) by Welsh-born composer Hilary Tann.

For these concerts, Melodia is partnering with Water is Life Kenya, a project that brings water to drought-affected regions of Southern Kenya. Water is Life Kenya was founded by Joyce Tannian, a former member of Melodia, who moved to Southern Kenya to dedicate her life and energy to drilling wells so people have easier access to clean and safe water. The project is funded by money raised by Joyce Tannian and her family and friends in the U.S. $1 of each ticket sold will be donated to Water is Life - Kenya. Tax deductible donations may also be made by visiting www.kenyawaterislife.com.

Working with the Maasai community, the project has just completed its first well in Imisigyio, already visited by more than 800 women daily and sustaining the lives of their families and livestock. The drilling of the new well means that the 10-12 hours a woman used to spend fetching water every day are now reduced to 2 or 3. Water is Life Kenya helps people improve their lives, and preserve their culture and customs by giving them a chance to survive in an environment catastrophically affected by global warming.

Following the May 3-4 concerts, Melodia Women s Choir will be featured at the Symphony Space Wall to Wall Bach May 17, performing excerpts from Bach Cantatas 4 and 78. They then return to Symphony Space June 5 as guest artists with the New Amsterdam Symphony in Gustav Holst s The Planets, and in selections from the Melodia repertoire. Melodia is also currently sponsoring its first Women Composers Commissioning Competition, and the deadline for submissions is April 1, 2008. Details on all these events are available at www.melodiawomenschoir.org.

Melodia Women s Choir creates, discovers and performs works for women s voices, and the repertory of the ensemble includes an eclectic mix of rarely performed classical and contemporary works. Their recent concert, Sweet Interlude, presented the World Premiere of Becca Schack s In My End Is My Beginning, and Vivaldi s Gloria in D in the all-female setting for which it was probably intended. Previous concerts have celebrated female composers and ensembles from 12th to 21 centuries, and premiered Allison Sniffin s Hear Me With Your Eyes, based on love poems of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. Melodia has rediscovered numerous neglected works. The group was founded in 2003 by Jennifer Clarke, an arts consultant who has worked with London s Royal Festival Hall, Royal Court Theatre, and companies in New York including the American Music Center, Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana and Dancing in the Streets. The ensemble appeared last year in the Symphony Space Wall to Wall Stravinsky marathon.

Cynthia Powell, Melodia s Artistic Director and conductor since its inception, also serves as Artistic Director of Stonewall Chorale, has directed the choral program of Sarah Lawrence College and was a guest conductor at the Festival Internacional de Coros in Havana, Cuba. Equally at home as a pianist and organist, she has toured with Meredith Monk's opera, Atlas and Celebration Service in Europe, at the Spoleto USA Festival, the Walker Arts Center and Lincoln Center 2000 Festival.

Philadelphia Folklore Project Presents Elaine Hoffman Watts & Susan Watts

The Philadelphia Folklore Project Presents: Elaine Hoffman Watts & Susan Watts PLAY KLEZMER!

Sunday May 11, 2008, doors open at 6 pm
World Cafe Live (www.worldcafelive), 3025 Walnut St., Philadelphia, PA
Tickets $20, or special price of $16 for PFP members through PFP
www.folkloreproject.org; 215-726-1106.

This special concert promises an unforgettable Mother’s Day celebration, featuring the outstanding Elaine Hoffman Watts & Susan Watts mother-daughter team, and their band of klezmer stars from the east coast and Canada. The concert will feature never before heard songs from a book compiled in 1927 by Susan’s great-grandfather, Joseph Hoffman, including his compositions, songs by his son Jake Hoffman, and other rarely performed Philly tunes in brand-new arrangements by Susan Watts. The concert will be followed by a Q&A discussion with the artists.

PFP will be filming for its documentary on Elaine Watts at this event; come be a part of the project. Elaine was the first woman percussionist to graduate from the Curtis Institute of Music, and is a recent winner of a prestigious National Heritage Award from the National Endowment for the Arts (one of just a handful of Pennsylvania artists to be so honored).

This project occurs with the support of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Philadelphia Music Project (funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts and administered by the University of the Arts), the PA Humanities Council, the PA Historical & Museum Commission, and Philadelphia Folklore Project Members.

For more info: Philadelphia Folklore Project, 735 S. 50th St., Phila., PA 19143. 215-726-1106. info@folkloreproject.org, www.folkloreproject.org. PFP is a 21-year-old independent public interest folklife agency committed to cultural equity: we work to sustain diverse Philadelphia vernacular traditions as real resources for vital local communities. Give a listen!

ISLE OF KLEZBOS at Drom NYC

www.metropolitanklezmer.com

Isle of Klezbos & The Lascivious Biddies together at Drom NYC
Wednesday, March 12th
Dynamic double bill of women's bands, back by popular demand!

8:00pm - ISLE OF KLEZBOS klezmer sextet
http://myspace.com/klezbos

9:30pm - The LASCIVIOUS BIDDIES cocktail pop quartet
http://biddiesmusic.com http://myspace.com/biddies

$12 for both sets + club minimum
Drom: World Music/jazz nightclub & restaurant
85 Avenue A (near 6th St), East Village
212-777-1157
http://dromnyc.com
Isle of Klezbos & The Lascivious Biddies join forces once again, premiering at Drom after their exciting musical pairing at Comix last fall. Tag-team girl-band rematch, guest Klezbian vocals by Mira Stroika!

::: Newsflash ::: Isle of Klezbos are 2008 NYSCA/LMCC Grant Award recipients from the Fund for Creative Communities! Supporting our June 9th KlezBiGay Pride show in El Sol Brilliante community garden, East Village NYC. (Please scroll down for full schedule and more info.)

Formed in 1998, Isle of Klezbos has toured North America & Europe, playing concerts from Vienna to Vancouver with many festival reprises. Their music has enjoyed world-wide airplay, OutMusic awards, critical acclaim, and appearances on Showtime's "The L Word," PBS' "In The Life," CNN "Worldbeat," and live radio from WFMU to NPR.

Among Klezbos bandmates are graduates of Juilliard, Eastman, and Manhattan Schools of Music as well as Harvard and Yale. Their individual performance resumes include onstage appearances and/or recording sessions with artists such as Rufus Wainwright, David Krakauer, Indigo Girls, Arrow, Natalie Merchant, Natalie Cole, and Bonnie Raitt, as well as experience in styles from samba to Balkan to funk, and reggae to classical to Latin jazz.

In the thrilling November 2007 double bill debut by Isle of Klezbos with The Lascivious Biddies at Comix, creative collaborations included Klezbos players sitting in on prog-rock original "Celestial Delight" by Biddies pianist/vocalist Diedre Rodman; and Biddies onstage to join in on Klezbos' grooving Latinesque Yinglish version of "Comes Love."

"Comes Love" is also the Klezbonus track on Metropolitan Klezmer's new live concert album TRAVELING SHOW, named Best of 2007 by Jewish Week and papers from coast to coast, and praised for "originality, expert musicianship and a keen world music sensibility" by All About Jazz. Isle of Klezbos' own hit CD, the OutMusic Award-nominated GREETINGS FROM THE ISLE OF KLEZBOS, prompted the UK's Phat Planet to call the sextet "one of the finest young klezmer bands ever to appear on the block." All Isle of Klezbos and Metropolitan Klezmer CDs are distributed internationally by Stern's Music (New York & London), released by Rhythm Media Records.

Isle of Klezbos "tests the elasticity of the genre" (The New Yorker), and offers "talent is as strong as its name is provocative" (Courier News). The group recently played their triumpant return engagement for Vienna's KlezMORE Festival (2007 & 2004), as well as Seattle's Bumbershoot, St Louis' Edison Theatre with Cowboy Envy, NYC's Merkin Hall with the Stonewall Chorale, Joe's Pub, BAM Cafe, Brooklyn Museum's First Saturdays, Jewsapalooza with Pharaoh's Daughter, Southpaw with Golem and Metropolitan Klezmer, The Knitting Factory with Marga Gomez' Groundhog Spectacular, and with guest star Bitch (aka Capital B) for downtown Purim shows. They are perennial favorites at Michigan Womyn's Music Festival and the National Yiddish Book Center.

ISLE OF KLEZBOS at Drom NYC, Wednesday March 12th

Pam Fleming (Hazmat Modine, Burning Spear, RadioDread) - trumpet & flugelhorn Debra Kreisberg (Los Mas Valientes, D'Tripp) - clarinet & alto saxophone Saskia Lane (The Lascivious Biddies, Dan Zanes) - upright bass Eve Sicular (Voodoobillies, Mazeltones) - drummer & bandleader with special guest Klezbians... Patrick Farrell (Panorama Jazz Band, Staggerback Brass, Veveritse) - accordion & Klezbos guest debut by singer Mira Stroika! http://myspace.com/mirastroika

Wednesday, March 12: dynamic double bill of womens bands... Isle of Klezbos & The Lascivious Biddies, rematch by popular demand! Drom NYC - Klezbos (vocalist Mira Stroika), 8pm; Biddies cocktail pop quartet, 9:30pm http://dromnyc.com

Looking ahead, METROPOLITAN KLEZMER & ISLE OF KLEZBOS Spring '08:
• Wednesday, April 9: live octet & original arrangements, plus archival sound film clips! Metropolitan Klezmer's "Music of Yiddish Celluloid" Michael Farkas (Wiyos) vocals The Museum at Eldridge Street, NYC 7pm http://eldridgestreet.org

• Sunday, April 13: Parents Weekend show Isle of Klezbos with vocalist Judith Berkson Vassar College, Poughkeepsie NY, 3pm til 5pm

• Thursday, April 24: Special Pesakh show, followed by NY Gypsy All-Stars Seventh night of Passover! Drom NYC, 7:30pm Metropolitan Klezmer with vocalists Melissa Fogarty & Judith Berkson http://dromnyc.com

• Tuesday, June 3: Rain or shine, outdoors if weather permits - our 13th year here... Metropolitan Klezmer at Museum Mile Festival Free at The Jewish Museum on Fifth Avenue 6pm - 9pm http://thejewishmuseum.org

• Monday, June 9: Tenth Annual show, and NYC Pride Month tradition! Isle of Klezbos - KlezBiGay Pride, supported by The Fund for Creative Communities: funding from New York State Council on the Arts & Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Free & open to the public, El Sol Brilliante garden: E. 12th St, Ave's A/B, East Village

• Thursday, June 19: Lunchtime set Metropolitan Klezmer at Abe Lebewohl Park NYC rain or shine! Free & outdoors, front of St Mark's Church, East Village 12:30pm - 1:30pm http://thirdstreetmusicschool.org

Also coming up... • Sunday, March 23: Eve Sicular, Yiddish Celluloid Closet film clips/lecture National Yiddish Book Center, Amherst MA 2pm http://bikher.org

• Eve Sicular is an award recipient of NYC's Department of Cultural Affairs & LMCC for "J. Edgar Klezmer & Songs from My Grandmother's FBI Files" at Dixon Place, late '08

International CD reviews. Metropolitan Klezmer's TRAVELING SHOW... • "A fun-filled live recording with lots of great klezmer tunes and wonderful Yiddish songs. Guys & Dolls and Bagels is an interesting attempt to make klezmer accessible to a non-klezmer literate audience." - fROOTS Magazine, UK ('thumbs up' rating)

• Traveling Show CD: "Best of 2007!" LISTS: Jewish Week NYC, Jewish Journal LA, Detroit Jewis News, Boston Jewish Chronicle

SHAINA ETTEL releases CD YA'ALE

New CD Release: Ya’ale is for sale through CDBaby - http://cdbaby.com/cd/shainaettel

With Ya’ale, her first solo recording, Shaina Ettel expresses her love of Torah and song. She brings a fresh approach to traditional Jewish music. She captures the heart and soul of Chabad niggunim. The songs are powerful . The CD comes with an 8 page insert with text in English and Hebrew. Shaina Ettel’s voice has an “ethereal” quality and has been compared to Judy Collins, or Sarah Brightman. This CD, consists of 13 selections with Shaina Ettel accompanied by both piano and full orchestration.

Shaina Ettel grew up in Saratoga Springs, New York. She is a professionally trained vocalist, and has performed in many concerts and shows. She made Aliyah 2½ years ago and presently lives in the picturesque Nachlaot neighborhood. She recently played the title role of Ruth the Gush Etzion’s RSY original musical production of Ruth and Naomi in the Fields of Bethlehem. Google Shaina Ettel or visit her website www.ShainaEttel.com

SHIDDUCHIM AND SURVIVAL TONIGHT October 21st in Monsey

SHIDDUCHIM AND SURVIVAL-A BA'ALAS TESHUVA'S TALE-REPEAT PERFORMANCE!

Partners in Torah will present once again SHIDDUCHIM AND SURVIVAL (A BA'ALAS TESHUVA'S TALE) a One-Person Musical Play featuring Chana Rochel Eller (nee Sommerstein) on
Sunday Evening, October 21st, 8:30 P.M.,
at the Rockland County Community College Theatre,
145 College Rd.,
Suffern (Monsey), New York.
Exclusive performance for ladies and mature girls. Tickets $18.00. Proceeds for Partners In Torah, a division of Torah Umesorah. Purchase tickets at the door, or for reservations call 973-473-3575
More Upcoming Events:
Sunday, November 4
Ten Yad Fundraiser in Crown Heights! See Caroline Cohen, Marion Hermes and others - the London performers who are blowing away audiences worldwide! $36, plus a Chinese Auction beginning at 3 pm to raise money for Ten Yad, helping KALLAHS!

Some Misc AMAZING Resources....

A NEW BLOG FOR JEWISH WOMEN's MUSIC!
Made by J-Indie Artist Talia Applebaum!
Check it out and post your event or new CD release!
www.jewishwomensmusic.blogspot.com

Another Cool Place to Post Your Music Event...
http://www.jmwc.org/announcements/

A WOMEN'S ONLY....RADIO SHOW!!!!
Send your Demo or give a call to THE ROCKIN' REBBETZIN Michelle Garner, broadcasting LIVE on "The Kol Isha" Show.. EVERY SUNDAY... http://www.wsia.fm/schedule/Kol_Isha.shtml

J-Indie CDs Available @ CD Baby*
Flashes in the Darkness by Talia Applebaum
My Sister by Leah Sigal

* - Anyone else have a women's only CD to sell? Please let me know your album and where it is sold... Thanks!
CDs to look out for.... *Aliza Dubin on her SECOND ALBUM!!
*Miriam Sandler! Former vocalist with Gloria Estefan!!
And Last But Not Least...
THE WOMEN'S ONLY EVENT OF THE SEASON!!!
ATARA's Torah & Arts FIRST CONFERENCE!
November 10-12, 2007
Sign up for anything & EVERYTHING!

Main Features of the Conference

*Motzi Shabbat, November 10 8:30 pm FILM SNEAK PREVIEW Hollywood's first orthodox Jewish woman film director ROBIN GARBOSE brings to NY her sneak preview of A LIGHT FOR GREYTOWERS, a musical feature-length MOVIE for women and girls only! Q & A with Garbose and starring actress Judy Winegard after the debut. http://ataraconference.eventbrite.com See more of Robin's work at Kolneshama.org

*Sunday, November 11, 9-5 pm CONFERENCE DAY
Workshops and Master Classes in drama, music, writing, dance, and the technical side of being a performing artist! Presenters from mutiple cities and have professional training in their fields. http://ataraconference.eventbrite.com

*Sunday, November 11, 5:15 pm NETWORKING DINNER
Meet other creative women, music, drama and film directors from cities throughout North America, as well as music managers, recording artists and distributors. Buy, sell and promote women's only CDs.

*Sunday, November 11, 6:15 pm FREE - JEWISH INDIE HOUR!!!!
See the up and coming original Jewish women singer-songwriters!!! From NY, Boston, Toronto and elsewhere! Cheer for all of their amazing and different works....

*Sunday, November 11, 8 pm
TOP PERFORMERS IN THE JEWISH WOMEN'S PERFORMING WORLD - ALL ON STAGE TOGETHER!!!!
Chanale Fellig! Miriam Sandler! Judy Winegard! Aliza Dubin! Chana Rochel Eller! The Scwadron Sisters! Yachad Dance! And others. http://ataraperformance.eventbrite.com

Posted by jmwc at 05:02 PM

All About Women Cantors

The Journal of Synagogue Music Fall 2007 issue features articles celebrating 25 years of women as Conservative cantors. There are articles about, by, and for women and Jewish music in this issue (vol. 32) and will be of interest to many who may want to know more women and Jewish music. There are many excellent articles of interest, including a biographical sketch of Barbara Ostfeld by Bruce Ruben (readers are also invited to take a look at my article on Barbara in Encyclopedia Judaica), histories of women in the cantorate, a history of the Khazntes, (women who sang cantorial music albeit not in synagogue), issues of Kol Isha, and an especially interesting piece by Victor Tunkel on the music of the first women composer, Leonora Duarte (1610-1678). (I'm sure someone will want to take up that score, perform it and bring it to life.) There's also a wonderful article on the Songs of Naomi Shemer by Sam Weiss, an article about the piyyut craze of Mizrahi songs in Israel by Galeet Dardashti, and another on contemporary Ashkenazic synagogue music in Israel by Amalia Kedem..and several good reviews. The Journal of Synagogue Music is published by the Cantors Assembly.

Melodia Women's Choir in Manhattan with Becca Schack World Premier

The Melodia Women's Choir will present an all female performance of Vivaldi's Gloria in D Major and contemporary works, including the world premiere of Becca Schack's new commissioned piece "In My end is My Beginning" based on a text by T. S. Eliot. The concert is being held
Saturday November 17 at 8 PM, and
Sunday, November 18 at 3 PM at
St. Peter's Church,
346 West 20th Street, New York City, New York.
Melodia will be joined by an all-women instrumental chamber ensemble.

Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.
For information, call (212) 252-4134, or visit
www.melodiawomenschoir.org.

Melodia Women s Choir, the 32-voice ensemble praised by Margaret Juntwait for their ringing tones, will perform baroque and contemporary works, plus the world premiere of Becca Shack s new commissioned work In My End Is My Beginning. The centerpiece of the program, conducted by Cynthia Powell, will be Antonio Vivaldi s Gloria in D Major, RV589. Many scholars believe that Vivaldi originally composed his Gloria for the women and girls of the 18th century Ospedale della Pietà (hospital/orphanage), where he was working at the time as composer and music teacher. Melodia will be giving a rare performance of the Gloria as it would have been performed in Vivaldi s time.

Becca Schack s In My End Is My Beginning is a piece in four movements based on excerpts from T.S. Eliot s Four Quartets, and contemplates the fragility of life. The composer has written numerous classically-driven pieces for full orchestra and chamber groups. She was a finalist in the 2004 John Lennon Songwriting Contest (Electronic Category) and she received honorable mention in two ASCAP Young Composers competitions, the first one at age eleven. Her compositions have been played by members of the New York Philharmonic and she has performed at the Apollo Theater and Lincoln Center in New York, as well as in Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London.

The balance of the program will include:
Wir Eilen Mit Schwachen from Cantata 78, by J.S. Bach; Five Hebrew Love Songs, by Eric Whitacre (poem by Hila Plitmann) She Weeps Over Rahoon, by Eric Whitacre (poem by James Joyce) Lift Thine Eyes from Elijah by Felix Mendelssohn

Melodia Women s Choir creates, discovers and performs works for women s voices, and the repertory of the ensemble includes an eclectic mix of rarely performed classical and contemporary works. It has rediscovered numerous neglected works, presenting U.S. and New York premiere performances of pieces by Peter Warlock, E.J. Moeran, and Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel in celebration of her 200th birthday. Their Spring 2007 concert, Shout Sister Shout! celebrated female composers and ensembles from 12th to 21st centuries, and their November 2006 concert featured the World Premiere of Allison Sniffin s new commissioned work: Hear Me With Your Eyes, based on love poems of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. The group was founded in 2003 by Jennifer Clarke, an arts consultant who has worked with London s Royal Festival Hall, Royal Court Theatre, and companies in New York including Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana and Dancing in the Streets. The ensemble appeared last year in the Symphony Space Wall to Wall Stravinsky marathon.

Cynthia Powell, Melodia s Artistic Director and conductor since its inception, also serves as Artistic Director of Stonewall Chorale, has directed the choral program of Sarah Lawrence College and was a guest conductor at the Festival Internacional de Coros in Havana, Cuba. Equally at home as a pianist and organist, she has toured with Meredith Monk's opera, Atlas and Celebration Service in Europe, at the Spoleto USA Festival, the Walker Arts Center and Lincoln Center 2000 Festival and performed at the Spoleto, USA Festival in a revival of Monk's opera, Quarry.

An accomplished composer, conductor and lecturer, Eric Whitacre s works have entered the standard choral and symphonic repertories. Most recently, Whitacre has received acclaim for Paradise Lost, a cutting edge musical combining trance, ambient and techno electronica with choral, cinematic and operatic traditions. Winner of the ASCAP Harold Arlen award, this musical also won Whitacre the prestigious Richard Rodgers Award for most promising musical theater composer. He has received composition awards from the Barlow International Composition Competition, the American Choral Directors Association and the American Composers Forum. The first recording of his music was hailed by The American Record Guide as one of the top ten classical albums of 1997. In 2001, he became the youngest recipient ever awarded the coveted Raymond C. Brock commission by the American Choral Directors Association

Elaine Hoffman Watts 2007 winner of a National Heritage Fellowship

Elaine Hoffman Watts wins National Endowment for the Arts, National Heritage Fellowship
The Jewish Music WebCenter already knew how great Elaine is, having conducted an extensive interview with her at KlezKanada a few years ago, not to mention hearing all those concerts with her. Now she's getting a national honor... nice!
http://www.nea.gov/honors/heritage/fellows/NHFIntro.php?year=2007

The NEA writes about Elaine:

"Elaine Hoffman Watts' family came to the United States from a town near Odessa in the former Soviet Union. Her father, Jacob Hoffman, was a prominent member of a klezmer band that was recorded in the 1920s. Elaine received training from her father and uncles in the family's repertoire of polkas, freilachs, mazurkas, shers, and other tunes of Eastern European Jewish musical tradition. She became the first woman graduate in percussion from the Curtis Institute of Music. With many opportunities before her, Watts chose to maintain the three-generation family tradition of playing klezmer music at weddings, bar mitzvahs, and other social events. She points out that being a woman and a drummer often was a barrier in her career but as one klezmer scholar observes, "Elaine is an important role-model to young players who otherwise would have no clue that women were indeed a part of traditional Yiddish music. Because those of us who study traditional Yiddish culture have no homeland in Europe to which we can return, we rely heavily on the 78-rpm recordings that were made during the early years of the 20th century. The vast majority of musicians on those recordings were men, and Elaine's presence is critical in redressing this imbalance."

Molly Picon: Yiddish Star, American Star

Molly Picon: Yiddish Star, American Star
From June 26, 2007 through September 22, 2007
Vincent Astor Gallery
The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts,
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Hours: Tues, Wed, Fri & Sat: 12 to 6; Thurs: 12 to 8
Learn more:
http://www.nypl.org/research/calendar/exhib/lpa/lpaexhibdesc.cfm?id=446
Look at the NYPL brochure on Molly Picon (pdf) http://www.nypl.org/research/calendar/imagesexhib/mollybro.pdf Molly Picon Exhibit Info:
http://www.nypl.org/research/calendar/exhib/lpa/lpaexhibdesc.cfm?id=446

Please see below for full details on the exhibition and related public programs.
For years she was the "sweetheart" of New York’s Lower East Side Yiddish-speaking community. Her shows, her sheet music, her records, her films, her radio programs, won her a special place in their hearts. Then, as she increasingly began appearing in more English language shows, television programs, and films, an even larger audience fell in love with her: the American public. Picon's changing career reflects the contributions immigrant cultures have made to our entertainment industry, our city, and our nation.

This exhibition, in cooperation with the Museum of the City of New York, includes more than two hundred photos, programs, posters, sheet music, records, radio scripts, set renderings, costumes and more. Just a sampling of some of the items on view: photos from Molly Picon’s 1923 New York Yiddish Theatre debut in the Jacob Kalich/Joseph Rumshinsky production Yankele; Picon’s costume from Yankele; photos and selected sheet music by Abraham Ellstein for the Joseph Green 1936 Yiddish film Yidl mitn fidl (Yidl with a Fiddle)and the 1938 Yiddish film Mamele; radio scripts from her 1941 series Nancy from Delancey; memorabilia from the Jerry Herman/Don Appell 1961 production of Milk and Honey, her 1960s appearances on the television show Car 54, Where are You? and the Norman Jewison film Fiddler on the Roof.

The exhibition is curated by Dr. Diane Cypkin, Professor of Media and Communication Arts at Pace University, and herself a performer who has appeared in many Yiddish and English language productions. The institutions' look at Yiddish culture in New York continues at the Museum of the City of New York with The Jewish Daily Forward: Embracing an Immigrant Community, April 22, 2007 - September 17, 2007

New York Film Premiere in NY about Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman

The League for Yiddish and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research are pleased to Invite you to
An Evening In Honor of Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman
Poet, songwriter, singer
Featuring the NEW YORK PREMIERE of the second film in the series
Worlds within a World: Conversations with Yiddish Writers
BEYLE SCHAECHTER-GOTTESMAN
SONG OF AUTUMN
Yiddish (with English subtitles)

A film by Josh Waletzky produced by the League for Yiddish
Musical Program: Janet Leuchter, Esther Gottesman and Binyumen Schaechter,
Refreshments
Admission $10.00, Wednesday, July 11th 2007, 6:30 P.M.
at the Center for JewishHistory, 15 West 16 St, NYC.
Please reserve your tickets 917-606-8200
Di Yidish-Lige un der Yidisher Visnshaftlekher Institut-YIVO
Hobn dem fargenign aykh tsu farbetn af
An ovnt lekoved Beyle Shaechter-Gottesman
Poetese, kompozitorn un zingerin
In Program: Di Nyu-Yorker Premyere fun dem tsveytn
film in der serye
A Velt mit Veltelekh: Shmuesn mit yidishe Shraybers
Beyle Shaechter-Gottesman
Harbstlid
A film fun Dzhash Valetski, Produtsirt fun der Yidish-Lige

Muzikalishe Program - Frimet-Mirl Loykhter, Ester Gotesman, Binyumen Shekhter
Kibed vet servirt vern, arayntret $10.00
Mitvokh, dem 11tn Yuli 2007, 6:30 in Tsenter far yidisher geshikhte
15 Vest 16ste Gas, Nyu-York
Tsu bashteln biletn klingt 917 606-8200

Hidden Talent! for Purim

Following the trend started by Queen Esther, a new women's arts organization reveals...

Hidden Talent!
Women performing only for women!

Come see vocalists - songwriters - dancers and more!
THIS SUNDAY

for women only!

Shir La Maalote: Elevating the World Through Song & Dance
Sunday, February 25, Shows at 4 pm and 7:30 pm
Schottenstein Cultural Center of Yeshiva University
239 East 34th St, near 2nd Ave, NY 10016

Tickets: www.pwt-concert.eventbrite.com Questions: pwta@verizon.net

Featuring....
Chanale Fellig, Adena Kozak, Nehedar, Rena Needle, Tziporah Miriam Halperin, Leslie Ginsparg, Yachad Dance, Debra Landau, Leah Sigal, Sara Gita Sobel, Rachel Kohl Finegold, Chaya & Faige Glaser, Claudia Amzullag, Anna Shoen, Gabrielle Orcha, Lori Leifer, Chana Leah Schwartz, Tsivia Glinert, Penny Klein, Elena Merlis, Kol Isha A Cappella, & Kol Neshama!

Do not miss this spectacular performance by the rising stars of the Women's Only Performing World!

A production of Professional Women's Theater February 2007
www.chanalesings.com
Believer, Crown of Creation, Vatispalel Chana, Chanale & Friends, all available at a Judaica store near you or www.jewishjukebox.com.

An All-Women's Music & Dance Festival!

SUNDAY, February 25, 2007
SHIR LA MA'ALOTE: Elevating the World Through Music and Dance A concert for women only to benefit Professional Women's Theater, an organization which seeks to promote all-female performance opportunities, featuring known and rising stars in the Jewish women's performing world! Singer-songwriters, dancers, vocalists....
Chanale! ~ Debra Landau ~ Rachel Kohl Finegold ~ Emilia Cataldo ~ Gabrielle Orcha ~ The Light Peddler's Band ~ Rena Needle ~ Tziporah Miriam Halperin...And MORE!
Show I: 4:00 pm
Show II: 7:30 pm
Reception & CD Fair: 6:15 - 7:15 pm
Yeshiva University's Schottenstein Cultural Center
239 East 34th St. between 2nd & 3rd Aves. NY, NY 10016
Tickets: http://pwt-concert.eventbrite.com/
$30 in advance, $36 at door / $15 students / all proceeds considered charity For further information, please contact pwta@verizon.net or 646-234-1542.
"Elevating the World through Music and Dance"

Metropolitan Klezmer and Isle of Klezbos in East Village

Metropolitan Klezmer and Isle of Klezbos perform together at Nuyorican Poets Cafe, an East Village cultural landmark for 30 years!
Tuesday, November 21st
8pm double bill, $8 cover charge
as part of the club's monthly Women Take the Bandstand series
236 East 3rd Street (between Avenues B & C), NYC
hotline: 212-505-8183

www.nuyorican.org
www.metropolitanklezmer.com
www.myspace.com/metroklez
www.myspace.com/klezbos

Metropolitan Klezmer octet and the Isle of Klezbos sextet are internationally-acclaimed NYC-based bands treating tradition with irreverence and respect. Savoring a panorama of Yiddish-based music while subverting stereotypes, both groups specialize in fabulous arrangements of lesser-known gems found in hidden archival niches such as obscure vintage feature soundtracks and Soviet Yiddish theater newsreels, as well as composing genre-defying originals. Both groups include vibrant versions of rollicking folk dance, melodic trance, hard-swinging Yiddish classics and tango in their repertoire, while each creates exuberant, eclectic covers such as a Balkan-driven "Pick a Pocket or Two," a Yiddish/boogaloo-styled "Comes Love," and even the cantorial/klezmer versions of hits from Guys & Dolls.

Metropolitan Klezmer and Isle of Klezbos have released four award-winning CDs on Rhythm Media Records to date, with several more releases currently in post-production. The bands have appeared in broadcasts on CNN Worldbeat, PBS In The Life, the German network ARD's Rhythms of New York, as well as on radio stations worldwide, in soundtracks and soundscapes from Showtime's The L Word to the SITI Theatre Company's Score Off-Broadway to Covent Garden's Royal Ballet, as well as at concert halls, nightclubs, college campuses and music festivals internationally since 1994.

Isle of Klezbos has toured from Vancouver BC to Vienna Austria. Metropolitan Klezmer plays Yiddish music from all over the map on an astonishing array of instrumentation; bandmate backgrounds range from Albanian to Zydeco. Both groups are led by drummer Eve Sicular, bringing together the best of New York's downtown and World Music scenes for a collaborative adventure in sounds from delightfully rambunctious to ethereally exquisite. Versatile and virtuosic, their CDs thus far: 'Yiddish For Travelers,' 'Mosaic Persuasion,' 'Greetings from the Isle of Klezbos,' and 'Surprising Finds.' The two latest releases include studio cuts as well as live tracks from shows at Joe's Pub, The Knitting Factory, and Tonic. Other bonus tracks include home-audio excerpts of tenor Phillip Karpel, grandfather of MetroKlezmer/Klezbos vocalist Deborah Karpel. Latest projects also include live band performance in the multi-media program, The Celluloid Closet of Yiddish Film.

ABOUT METROPOLITAN KLEZMER: "Anything but stereotypical, and nothing but terrific... one of the best klezmer bands in the world today" - Shaun Dale, Cosmik Debris

"Influences that range from old school Arabic music to Latin Jazz to Motown... not only exuberantly eclectic but also very danceable. Expect an eccentric cultural lesson from these modern-day purveyors of time-honored traditions." - J. Bachman, flavorpill

"One of the best traditional klezmer bands around" - George Robinson, Jewish Week

ABOUT ISLE OF KLEZBOS:
These women will make you shake your tushies.” - Richard Gehr, Village Voice “Talent as strong as its name is provocative” - Bob Makin, Courier News “Isle of Klezbos tests the elasticity of the genre” - The New Yorker “Great ears and great hearts” - Catherine Madsen, Der Pakn Treger, National Yiddish Book Center

Metropolitan Klezmer and Isle of Klezbos bandmate bios include performance, touring and/or recording with the likes of Rufus Wainwright, The Microscopic Septet, Indigo Girls, Amy Sedaris, Jimmy Scott, Toshi Reagon, Natalie Merchant, Natalie Cole, Burning Spear, David Krakauer, Sarah MacLachlan, Bill Frisell, Robert Palmer, Charming Hostess, Arrow, Andy Statman, Maxi Priest, Hot Keys, and Bruce Springsteen, among many others. Various members are graduates of The Eastman School of Music, Manhattan School of Music, and the American Institute of Musical Studies, and other individual studies include teachings from masters from Mohammed El Akkad to Licia Albanese.

Chanale Sings with new CD

"Chanale and Friends", a new CD has just been released and is now available through Jewish Jukebox. You can check the sound samples out at:
http://www.jewishjukebox.com/products/jewish_female_songwriters/1970.asp
To learn more about Chanale and her music, see her website at: www.chanalesings.com.

Journey of Spirit Travels to TV

The world premiere of A Journey of Spirit, the award-winning independent documentary on wsinger/songwriter Debbie Friedman, will air on two consecutive Sundays, October 15th and 22nd at 7 a.m. ET/PT (6 a.m. CT) on Hallmark Channel. A Journey of Spirit which won the best film award from the National Council for Jewish Women, and the Detroit Jewish Film Festival award for best new Jewish film , among others, chronicles the inspirational story of Ms. Friedman and how she has affected contemporary Jewish music. Check your local times and listings.

Posted by jmwc at 05:25 PM

Performance for Women in Jerusalem

Sunday, October 8th @ 8:30pm
Performance for Women
5 Women, 1 Truth Opera Singer, Ballerina, Rock Star, Broadway Dancer, an Academic
Sharing their Stories about their Journeys to Torah
Benefit for the Bnos Miriam, Performing Arts Center for Women
@ Heichal Shlomo, 58 King George St. Jerusalem
Tix: 60-500 NIS
Call 02-622-3810 for info & to purchase tickets or see
www.bnosmiriam. org

Ellen Finn Website

Ellen Lippman Finn has a website that features some of her Jewish compositions. http://www.ellenfinnmusic.com/ Ellen is a composer, jazz bassist and music teacher with a special interest in writing Jewish music. Check out the website for more information.

Mikveh in Philly

Mikveh, Philadelphia, PA, Saturday, October 28,2006, Mikveh at the Tin Angel in Philadelphia
www.tinangel.com
One reader of JMWC says: 'You're not goin' to get klezmer better'n this.'
'Supergroup' Mikveh features the top women in Klezmer, including renowned Yiddish singer Adrienne Cooper, Klezmatics founder Alicia Svigals on fiddle, charismatic trumpeter Susan Watts of the Hoffman klezmer dynasty, ethnic accordion wizard Lauren Brody and jazz bass phenomenon Nicki Parrott. Together, they rock out with sizzling dance music and riveting Yiddish/English songs, both ancestral and brand new. Directions: http://www.tinangel.com/directions.html

Women musicians Needed

Yoheved Friedland, (aperfecthealing@cs.com), a Jewish woman songwriter in N. Miami Beach, Florida would like to create a Jewish women's musical group with other singers and songwriters. Please contact her if you would like to join this sort of women's music ensemble. Please contact her directly at the email address.

SISTERS OF SHEYNVILLE CELEBRATE THE START OF SUMMER

Toronto, Ontario: The high-energy female sextet Sisters of Sheynville
will be performing their upbeat Yiddish, English and original material at the Al Green Theatre located in the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre, Thursday May 25, 2006, at 8:30pm.
The Sisters are: Lenka Lichtenberg and Isabel Fryszberg (vocals), Fern Lindzon (vocals and piano), Kinneret Sagee (clarinet, Lorie Wolf (drums), and Rachel Melas (double bass).
Tickets are available $12 in advance and $15 at the door, Sun - Fri
(8:30am until evening hours) -from the Front Desk at the MNjcc, (Bloor & Spadina)
or at the door one hour before the performance.
FOR MORE TICKET INFORMATION CONTACT the Al Green Theatre Info Line at 416 924-6277 ext. 143 or email harriet@mnjcc.org.

Celebrate the start of Summer at the MNjcc with the sensational all-women Yiddish band The Sisters of Sheynville.Come and enjoy a fun-filled night of foot-stomping swing and klez tunes, arranged with zest and imagination that will make you smile and dance - and a Yiddish dance animator will show you the steps!This month, the band is celebrating its first birthday - a culmination of a busy year which has seen the band push the boundaries of their vintage Yiddish swing to include more jazz, improvisation, and original material centered around lush 3-part harmonies. Notable performances in often sold out houses include Distillery Jazz and Toronto City Roots festivals, Leah Posluns Theatre, the Rex Jazz Bar and the Toronto Centre for The Arts.

Devora Gila in Concert

Devora Gila presents a benefit concert for Midreshet B'erot Bat Ayin
Saturday night, April 8 at 8:15pm
Bat Ayin, Gush Etzion
Also featuring Guest Choreographer/Dancer Yocheved Polanski from Cli Institute of Dance, A Judaic Dance and Arts Program for Women and Girls (Ohio, USA)
Donation requested: 15 NIS

For more information about Midreshet B'erot Bat Ayin: http://www.berotbatayin.org/
For Jewish women's dance, contact: www.cliinstitute.com
For more about Devora Gila: www.cdbaby.com/cd/devoragila

Chanale for women Website

Chana Fellig announces a new website for Jewish women 'Chanele' at www.Chanalesings.com. She's got photos of some of her visits and gigs, information on her CDs, and contact information.

Miriam's Drum

A new CD, Miriam's Drum has been released with all original new songs by Tziona Achishena Zilbershtein. This recording, intended for women, features a diverse group of musicians performing on everything from traditional oud to Indian tablas, tampura, bendir, bowls, flutes, harmonium and drums. A children's choir also appears as well as women's vocals. Most of the texts come from Psalms, or prayerbook liturgy, yet the settings are new and spirited. Tziona is a 'mulit-instrumentalist who plays guitar, piano, riq (a Middle Eastern tambourine), harmonium, and the Persian santur.' Recordings can be purchased directly through the artist at: Tziona Zilbershtein Ohr HaGanuz, D.N. Merom HaGalil, ISRAEL 13909. For more information, visit: http://www.koltziona.com/
Originally from the US, Tsiona's diverse background includes "intensive studies of Ballet, Tap, and Jazz, Traditional dance in Indonesia, Tai Chi, Western vocal training, Persian classical singing, and creative writing, through a lens of Torah and Mitzvot." She has three other albums: Aleynu –2004; "Shema" Hebrew Chant –1999 Two Disc Set ; and The Future –1996.

Shoshana Damari dies in Tel Aviv

Shoshana Damari, with a completely distinctive voice, and a career as one of Israel's favorite singers, died on Tuesday, February 14, 2006 at a hospital in Israel from pneumonia. She was 83. Damari was called by Haaretz newspaper as the "Queen of Israeli Song" , others the "diva of popular song". Damari was born in Yemen, in the city of Damar, migrating with her family to Israel in 1924. She was a child prodigy and sang at many functions in her community. As a young teenager, she went to seek her career in Tel Aviv, landing a job at the Li-La-Lo Theater and becoming a permanent cast member. One of her solo numbers was by Shlomo Wilenski, called "Kalaniot" (Anemones) and it became her signature song. The hospital reported that this song was played for her minutes before her death with friends and family singing along. Damari's songs became identified with the Israel War of Independence of 1948. She was widely honored and beloved in Israel, winning the Israel Prize in 1988. This musician will be buried with a state funeral. Read Israel newspapers about it: http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/682676.html And the Jewish Agency biography: http://www.jewishagency.org/JewishAgency/English/Jewish+Education/Eye+on+Israel/Gallery+of+People+%28Biographies%29/Damari+Shoshana.htm

Her death marks yet another of the founding generation's passing in recent years along with Uzi Hitman (Chitman), Naomi Shemer, and Ehud Manor.

Shalom Eitan has a biography of his escape from the Holocaust and arrival in Israel. While in a British detention camp on Cyprus, around 1947-48, Shoshana Damari came to sing. Here's a small, but poignant quote from that article that gives a glimpse of the power Damari had the meaning of her work to that generation:

"Life in the camp began to fill with meaning. The course, my job, the cultural life which was expanding, soccer, volleyball and the like. Even a Yiddish theatre came into existence. We were in a detainment camp but it was more like a vacation camp. There were parties and weddings. Children were born and there was no worry about supporting them. Everything, except for the inability to reach Israel, was OK One of the most moving events was the performance of Shoshana Damari. Every detainee in the summer camp gathered on the soccer field where a stage had been built in the centre. On the stage stood a beautiful, dark-skinned woman like those seen only rarely in Europe. Very tanned with wonderful black hair; but most of all, the voice. Her songs electrified us and even though her accompanist did not manage to work the accordion, which apparently had been damaged during its travels. She hypnotised us with her songs and gave a complex to anyone who thought he or she knew how to speak Hebrew.

I was educated speaking Hebrew with Sephardic style and even so, it was the first time I heard authentic Hebrew. I didn't even know there were Ashkenasi Jews and Sephardic Jews until I reached Bucharest. There I learned that the Sephardic Jews were the elite of the people and they descended directly from King David's kingdom and after the destruction of the second temple, were deported or compelled by circumstances to leave their home land to the Diaspora then lived a flourishing period in Spain until the expulsion by and during the Spanish Inquisition.

In Cyprus, I met Jews from Morocco and Shoshana Damari exemplified the Jews in Israel. Only later did I learn that she was from Yemen. The melodies of her songs accompanied me for years to come and even though I have heard her sing tens, if not hundreds of times, her songs still remind me of that unforgettable experience in Cyprus. In the television show, "This Is Your Life," I heard her say that the most emotional event in her long, rich career was "the performance she gave, the songs she sang before the refugees in Cyprus." How very true! " To read Eitan's full article go to the JewishGen website: http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/lipkany/lipkany.html#TOC and click on "Survive and Tell"

Shoshana Damari in Cyprus at British Camp of Jewish Detainees circa 1947.

Photo credit: Shalom Eitan from JewishGen.

Two Women's Events in Jerusalem

Wednesday, February 15 at 8PM Women's Hachnoses Calla Event, featuring Anita Tucker from GK speaking, and musical entertainment by Ayelet Hashachar, visiting from Baltimore. At the Matnas in Ramat Bet Shemesh. Bring a gift or cash donation. More info, call: Yehudis Schamroth at 0545-91-6673 or Shoshana Schillet at 999-2805

February 28, at 7:30pm Women's Performance for Rosh Chodesh Adar: "THE SWITCHBOARD OPERATOR" an original funny musical set in the 1920's, written, produced and directed by Rebbitzen Devorah Green. At Beit Ha'Am "Gerard Bechar Theater" 11 Bezalel St. Tickets: 45, 50, 60 nis (Proceeds to support Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah). Info: call 054-808-4746

Meira Warshauer Works To Be Performed by Slovak Radio Orchestra

Three major works by American Jewish composer Meira Warshauer, Ahavah (Love), Shacharit (Morning Service) and Like Streams in the Desert, will be performed in “Music of the Jewish Heart,” a concert by the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Slovak Philharmonic Choir, soprano Jennifer Hines, mezzo soprano Stephanie Gregory and tenor Michael Hendrick, all under the direction of Maestro Kirk Trevor on Thursday, February 2 – 7:00 PM at The Concert Hall of Slovak Radio in Bratislava, Slovakia. For more about these works, visit http://home.sc.rr.com/meirawarshauer/#Compositions.

You can follow Ms. Warshauer’s trip to Bratislava online through her new blog at http://www.sequenza21.com/warshauer.html.
Ahavah and Shacharit both address a universal respect for life as human and spiritual values. “After the Holocaust, there is a great need for healing, reconciliation, and mutual understanding,” writes Ms. Warshauer. Ahavah communicates the message of love and justice essential for preserving life in the earth. Shacharit journeys through the prayers and chants of the synagogue morning service and ends with a prayer for universal peace. Like Streams in the Desert, was commissioned in honor of the 50th anniversary of the state of Israel, was inspired by Psalm 126, whose theme is the return of exiles to Zion.

For more about these works, visit http://home.sc.rr.com/meirawarshauer/#Compositions. They are being performed in preparation for a CD recording by the same performers in the days immediately following the concert.
For more about Maestro Kirk Trevor, visit
http://www.musicinternational.us/conductor.htm.
For more about Jennifer Hines, please visit
http://www.jenniferhines.voxpage1.com/
and for more about Michael Hendrick, log on to
http://www.michaelhendrick.com/.
Stephanie Gregory has been soloist in a wide variety of works by Stravinsky, Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Puccini, Verdi and many others She has been featured in concerts with symphonies including the Bridgeport Symphony and has presented recitals throughout the eastern and southern U.S. Ms. Gregory was the 2001 winner of the Jenny Lind competition, and was awarded an extensive recital tour of Sweden. More about the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra at
http://www.slovakradio.sk/sosr/index.php?page=orchestra_e&menu=menu_e&head=head_sosr_e&title=orchestra and more about the Slovak Philharmonic Choir at
http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Bio/Slovak-Philharmonic-Chorus.htm.

Meira Warshauer’s compositions have been performed and recorded to critical acclaim throughout the United States and in Israel, Europe, and Asia. A graduate of Harvard, New England Conservatory of Music, and the University of South Carolina, Dr. Warshauer studied composition with Mario Davidovsky, Jacob Druckman, William Thomas McKinley, and Gordon Goodwin. She has received numerous awards from ASCAP as well as the America Music Center, Meet the Composer, and the South Carolina Arts Commission, which named her Artist Fellow in music composition in 1994 and 2006. In 2000, she received the first Art and Cultural Achievement Award from the Jewish Historical Society of S. Carolina.
,br /> Ms. Warshauer is an Associate Music Faculty member at Columbia College, Columbia, South Carolina . Her CDs include the soundtrack to the documentary “Land of Promise: The Jews of South Carolina” and "Spirals of Light", chamber music and poetry (by Ani Tuzman) on themes of enlightenment, on the Kol Meira label and "Revelation" for orchestra, included on the MMC CD “Robert Black Conducts”. Her music is published by Oxford University Press, MMB Music, World Music Press, and Kol Meira Publications. You can find much more about her at - http://home.sc.rr.com/meirawarshauer/
,br /> For more information about Meira Warshauer, please contact Jeffrey James Arts Consulting at 516-586-3433 or jamesarts@worldnet.att.net.

Miriam Sandler Sings for Girls in Boca

Miriam Sandler will be performing at the Boca Raton Synagogue on Sunday, January 8, 2006 at 1pm. Concert is for women and girls only. Boca Raton Synagogue address is: 7900 Montoya Circle, Boca Raton, FL 33433. Miriam Sandler is an orthodox singer. She has a website at miriamsandler.com where you can sample some of her music.

Fanny Mendelssohn's music featured at New Center for Arts and Culture

The New Center for Arts and Culture in Boston is bringing to the McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College the exhibit "The Power of Conversation: Jewish Women and Their Salons". As part of the season of interest in this subject a series of events in Music, Lectures, The creative Process and Films, and Jewish Identity will take place throughout the Fall in Boston. On Sunday September 25, 2005 at 3pm at the Boston College, Gasson 100 building will be a FREE concert of the music of Fanny and Felix Mendelssohn. The concert features's Felix Mendelssohn's Overture to A Midsummer Night's Dream for two pianos, and Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel's Piano Trio in d minor, which is her masterpiece. For more information, call the music department at Boston College, 617-552-6004.

Oh, Lovely Parrot! - Jewish Women's Songs from Kerala

A New CD was released by The Jewish Music Research Centre in Jerusalem on the music of the Jewish women of Cochin, India. For centuries, the Jewish women of Cochin have been singing Jewish songs in the Malayalam language of Kerala, their ancient homeland on the tropical southwest coast of India. Here's the info to buy it and more descriptions below:
Title: Oh, Lovely Parrot! - Jewish Women's Songs from Kerala
Editor(s): Barbara C. Johnson
Publisher: The Jewish Music Research Centre, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Place: Jerusalem
First Edition Year: 2004
Language: Malayalam
Tradition: Cochin
Country: India
Category: Folk Songs
Price: NIS 60 / $ 20
for more info....

The 42 songs on this CD represent just a fraction of their traditional repertoire as preserved in more than 300 written texts, though the melodies of most of the songs have been forgotten. Until recently, the performance of these songs was in danger of being lost altogether with the immigration of almost all the Cochin Jews to Israel, where younger generations no longer understand Malayalam. Fortunately, a collaborative project is now under way, with a team of international scholars, studying and translating the songs, and a group of Cochin women dedicated to reviving their performance. This CD is one result of this collaboration.
http://www.jewish-music.huji.ac.il/GetDetails-green.asp?id=57&TableName=CDs_T

Melodia Women's Choir Features Yehezkel Braun

Melodia Women's Choir of NYC,/b> will delight New York audiences with three exciting and rarely-performed works by Israeli composer Yehezkel Braun in its upcoming concert, November Song. The three works by the highly-regarded composer from Tel Aviv are written to songs and ballads by H.N.Bialik, Israel�s first national poet and one of the country�s most revered and influential writers.
The concert will be presented on November 20, 2004 at 7:30PM, at St. Peter�s Church in Chelsea (346 W. 20th St., between 8th and 9th Avenues) in New York City.

Conducted by Cynthia Powell, the 24-member Melodia Women�s Choir will perform the three works in Hebrew. Yehezkel Braun wrote the works expressly for women�s voices. Rife with lyrical freshness, the Bialik ballads probe the passage of time in The Lovely Linden Tree, the wonders of natural mystery and the fears of aging in Neither Daylight Nor the Darkness, and the joy and burdens of love in With Window Opened Wide. Braun, a Professor Emeritus at Tel Aviv University, was born in Russia and emigrated to Israel in 1922. He has taught in England, France, the United States and Germany, and is considered one of Israel�s finest musical treasures.

In honor of Braun, Melodia has been specially invited to concertize November Song (which also includes classical repertoire by Sir Edward Elgar, Serge Rachmaninoff and Rebecca Clarke) at Temple Sinai in Tenafly at the Sabbath service on Friday, November 19. Melodia's conductor, Cynthia Powell, serves as Organist and Choirmaster of Temple Sinai in Tenafly

New York audiences can hear November Song in a public performance on Saturday November 20, 2004 at 7:30 p.m., at the newly restored St. Peter�s Church, a landmark site on 346 West 20th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues in Manhattan�s Chelsea neighborhood.

Tickets are $15 in advance; $20 at the door.
For ticket reservations, call 212-561-0167;
e-mail womenschoir@mindspring.com; or
visit http://womenschoir.home.mindspring.com.
Information about the Temple Sinai concert is also available on the website.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Cindy Cooper, 212-265-8997.