22nd Jewish Culture Festival, Krakow, Poland, Jun 29 - Jul 8, 2012
From Jeff Warschauer to the Jewish Music list:
Come to the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow this summer!
For several years now I've had the great privilege of teaching the Yiddish Song workshop at the festival in Krakow. We truly have a wonderful time, and you will make new friends from all over the world. Here's the description for this year:
22nd Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow, 2012
Yiddish Song Workshop: Answering the Big Questions Through Yiddish Songs
We all confront the big questions: What is the meaning of life? Why are we here? What shall we have for Shabbes lunch? And Yiddish songs attempt to answer these kinds of questions, too! Each year, a wonderful, international community comes together in Krakow to sing, dance, learn and have fun. All are welcome, with no previous experience necessary. Join us!
Info on the whole festival: www.jewishfestival.pl/index,en.html
Very happy to announce that our klezmer-feminist-historical-magic realism audio drama, "The Witches of Lublin", has been nominated for three Audie Awards! Co-written by Ellen Kushner (of PRI's "Sound and Spirit"), Elizabeth Schwartz and Yale Strom, with music by Strom, "The Witches of Lublin" was directed by Sue Zizza and stars Tovah Feldshuh, plus featured actors Neil Gaiman, Simon Jones, Barbara Rosenblat, and beloved actors from the Yiddish stage like Yelena Shumlenson, Sam Guncler and Joanne Borts. The music was performed by Strom, Sprocket, Alexander Fedouriok, Peter Stan and Schwartz (and the companion CD, "The Devil's Brides" with narration by Miriam Margolyes, is released by Arc Music UK). For more info: 
You're invited!
So, a while back, someone clueless in the UK wrote about how only jerks ignorant of "current" Jewish culture would be caught up in lifeless klezmer concerts vs., say, the Ramones or Leonard Cohen. Personally, I dig both, but don't actually think of their work as "Jewish" or substitute for same.
While my back was turned, Keith Wolzinger has zipped out three more reviews which are now copied here to the KlezmerShack. First, he beat me to the punch and reviewed the most recent 
Next up is singer 
Finally, what Keith calls "neo-klezmer," Toronto's klez-jazz fusion band, 
I have been slowly gathering in reviews written by Keith Wolzinger over the last few months. There are many more to come, but in the meantime, check out his wide-ranging examination of the post-klezmer sounds of 
With great frustration, I look at reviews and tips that I wanted to get online two months ago. Hold them for next year? Present them now? The latter wins. After all, these are great CDs, reviewed by Elliott Simon, which means that the reviews are thoughtful, insightful, and intelligent. So, travel back a skip in time and consider Simon's article, 
From Israel: Check out new cd "From Grey To Blue With Itzik Manger" with Yiddish Songs
and Klezmer music!
Living Traditions has just released a new CD anthology of the beloved Yiddish actor Zvee Scooler's selected radio performances, poetry, and even commercials. This is the first in a series in Living Traditions' releases—in the original Yiddish—of rare selections from the
Yiddish Radio Project archives.
ZINGT! A CELEBRATION OF YIDDISH CHORAL MUSIC
the brand new CD with mainly never-before-recorded Yiddish choral music, is available!
Just wanted to share the website for a wonderful new CD "Oyfn Veg" by the
Russian-based duo *Igor Beliy* and *Yevgeniya Slavina* - some fresh
executions of old chestnuts, some originals, and some more rare numbers. I
don't know the performers personally, but I do love their style, and
hopefully will see them perform live one day (meanwhile, there are several
mp3s on the site under the "Music in Mp3" section.
From 
I don't know how many times I have seen 
Brave Old World
Hi. I am happy to report that a new CD of Yiddish folksongs sung by Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman has just come out.
Announcing a new CD by Rebecca Kaplan & 
The new 
Michael Fein writes about Lori Cahan-Simon's recent tribute to the music of Mikhl Gelbart on his "
Freylach Time!, based in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina is a tradtional klezmer gem. It is also a community treasure. Now that the band has finally recorded, you can hear for yourself: 
London's Oi Va Voi has been impressing audiences from the UK to KlezKamp and everywhere in between for years. Whatever they are playing, it isn't klezmer any more, except insofar as it gets people up to dance. This new album, "Laughter Through Tears" just made the New York Time's "10 Best" list for 2003. For a change, I agree!: 
César Lerner and Marcelo Moguilevsky are two amazing musicians from Argentina. I've seen them perform in the UK and Canada. Now you can year why audiences love them and their brand of passionate klezmer infused with South American jazz. The new album, Sobreviviente, is live: 
A year with a new release from the Klezmer Conservatory Band is a good year. This latest contains many new gems - more than a taste of paradise: 
I got carried away. CDs were falling off the shelf, so I sat down this weekend and stayed sat down until I got several reviewed. We've got some great new Jewish music, some avant garde and jazz, some klezmer (lots of klezmer), some Sephardic and Mizrahi music, more klezmer and Yiddish folk.... That's not the whole gamut, but odds are that something in this weekend's stack will be just what you were looking for:
Rob Burger's recent Tzadik release, "
Jeanette Lewicki is better known to many of us as the accordion and voice of San Francisco's anarcho-klezmer street trio, "The Gonifs," or from her work with the 
A most fascinating concert is coming up on Mar 26th at UConn/Storrs. Yiddish folk-rocker Wolf Krakowski headlines, backed with the Lonesome Brothers. Also on the bill is Mawwal, described as a "Middle Eastern roots music" with violin wizard Alicia Svigals making a guest appearance.
It's about time, but we finally have a short review up of the marvellous recent CD by Laura Wetzler,