YIVO’s Continuing Evolution: Yiddish Folksong Today is a music festival celebrating Yiddish folksong. The festival includes premieres of contemporary classical works reimagining Yiddish folksongs; classic compositions which engage with Yiddish folksongs; little-known settings of Yiddish folksongs from YIVO’s archival collections; discussions of archival work related to the study and preservation of Yiddish folksong; and performances by contemporary artists engaged with Yiddish folksong.

Learn more about the festival from Alex Weiser, YIVO’s Director of Public Programs.

CO-SPONSORS:
American Society for Jewish Music, The Center for Traditional Music and Dance’s An-sky Institute for Yiddish Culture, Congress for Jewish Culture, Lowell Milken Center for Music of American Jewish Experience, Milken Archive, The Neighborhood: An Urban Center for Jewish Life, and Yiddish New York

The Sidney Krum Young Artists Concert Series is made possible by a generous gift from the Estate of Sidney Krum. 

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.

Programs

Concert

MONDAY, MAY 9, 2022 | 7:00pm ET
In person at the YIVO Institute (Manhattan, NYC) and livestreamed on Zoom

This concert features music by Sergei Prokofiev, Maurice Ravel, Joel Engel, Alexander Veprik, and Aaron Copland, alongside the premiere of new works by Martin Bresnick, Annie Gosfield, Paul Alan Levi, and Alex Weiser. Performances will be by mezzo-soprano Lara Nie, clarinetist Moran Katz, violinists Yevgeny Kutik and Adelya Nartadjieva, cellist Julian Schwarz, and pianist Marika Bournaki. This evening also features performances by Joshua Waletzky and Eléonore Weill.

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Concert

WEDNESDAY, MAY 18, 2022 | 7:00pm ET
In person at the YIVO Institute (Manhattan, NYC) and livestreamed on Zoom

This concert features music by Stefan Wolpe, Lazare Saminsky, and Joseph Achron, alongside the premiere of new works by Marti Epstein, Aaron Kernis, Anthony Russell/Uri Schreter, Judith Shatin, and Anat Spiegel. Performances will be by members of the Bard College Conservatory: soprano Abagael Cheng, soprano Maria Giovanetti, soprano Francesca Lionetta, soprano Montana Smith, and bass-baritone Michael A.M. Aoun. This evening also features performances by Carol Freeman and Zachary Scholl.

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Concert

SUNDAY, MAY 22, 2022 | 4:00pm ET
In person at the Jalopy Theatre (Brooklyn, NYC) and livestreamed on Zoom

This concert, a collaboration with The Neighborhood: An Urban Center for Jewish Life, is taking place at the Jalopy Theatre in Brooklyn and features a showcase of contemporary artists engaged with Yiddish folksong performing material collected as a part of YIVO’s 1973-1975 Folksong Project: East European Jewish Folksong in its Social Context. Performing artists include Eléonore Biezunski, Carol Freeman, Sarah Gordon, Janet Leuchter, Jerry Marcus, Sarah Myerson, Ethel Raim, Miryem-Khaye Seigel, Ilya Shneyveys, Lorin Sklamberg, Josh Waletzky, and Eléonore Weill.

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Panel Discussion

The YIVO Folksong Project
MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 | 1:00pm ET
Live on Zoom

Join YIVO for a discussion of the YIVO Folksong Project including examples of material from the project, and a demonstration of how to access this material. This panel will feature the original project director Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, ethnomusicologist Mark Slobin, singer and composer Joshua Waletzky, and YIVO Sound Archivist Eléonore Biezunski.

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Concert

THURSDAY, MAY 26, 2022 | 7:00pm ET
In person at the YIVO Institute (Manhattan, NYC) and livestreamed on Zoom

This concert features music by Frederic Rzweski, Solomon Rosowsky, and Hugo Weisgall alongside the premiere of new works by Derek David, Lainie Fefferman, David Ludwig, Daniel Schlosberg, and Dan Shore. Performances will include current and former students of the Bard College Conservatory: soprano Jardena Gertler-Jaffe, soprano Meg Jones, and tenor Max Jansen with special guest pianist Ryan MacEvoy McCullough. This evening also features performances by Eléonore Biezunski, Zhenya Lopatnik, and Sarah Myerson.

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