Continuing Evolution: Yiddish Folksong Today is a music festival celebrating Yiddish folksong, presented by YIVO, and features four concerts and one panel discussion. 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.
Concert - Monday, May 9, 4PM PT | 7PM 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 cellist Julian Schwarz, pianist Marika Bournaki, and more. Register here.
Concert - Wednesday, May 18, 4PM PT | 7PM 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 Eptsein, Aaron Kernis, Anthony Russell/Uri Schreter, Judith Shatin, and Anat Spiegel. Performances will be by members of the Bard Graduate Vocal Arts Program: soprano Abagael Cheng, soprano Maria Giovanetti, soprano Francesca Lionetta, soprano Montana Smith, and bass-baritone Michael Aoun. Register here.
Concert - Sunday, May 22, 1PM PT | 4PM ET
In person at the Jalopy Theatre (Brooklyn, NYC) and livestreamed
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. Register here.
Panel Discussion: The YIVO Folksong Project - Monday, May 23, 10AM PT | 1PM 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. Register here.
Concert - Thursday, May 26, 4PM PT | 7PM ET
In person at the YIVO Institute (Manhattan, NYC) and livestreamed on Zoom
This concert features music by Frederic Rzweski 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 Graduate Vocal Arts Program: soprano Jardena Gertler-Jaffe, tenor Max Jansen, and Mezzo-soprano Megan Jones with special guest pianist Ryan MacEvoy McCullough. Register here.
CO-SPONSORS:
Lowell Milken Center for Music of American Jewish Experience, American Society for Jewish Music, The Center for Traditional Music and Dance’s An-sky Institute for Yiddish Culture, Congress for Jewish Culture, , Milken Archive, The Neighborhood: An Urban Center for Jewish Life, and Yiddish New York.