CARNEGIE HALL PRESENTS
David Krakauer Young Artists Concert

Zankel Hall
Sunday, April 13th, 2008 at 7:30 PM

David Krakauer, one of the world’s leading exponents of Eastern European Jewish klezmer music, leads a five-day workshop with classical, jazz, and klezmer musicians, alongside his renowned colleagues Socalled, Alicia Svigals, and Michael Alpert. In this culminating concert, they explore a range of works from traditional to experimental klezmer styles.

Yotam Baruch, Cello
Adam Berkowitz, Clarinet
Conor Brown, Clarinet/Laptop
Jay Dubin, Clarinet
Alexander Fiterstein, Clarinet
Yehoshua Fruchter, Guitar
Nathan Giem, Violin
Emil Goldschmidt, Clarinet
Lily Henley, Violin/Vocals
Christian Hørsted, Drums
You-Young Kim, Viola
Nicolai Kornerup, Accordion
Samuel Künstler, Cello
Yael Manor, Piano
Andreas Møllerhøj, Double Bass
Bo Rande, Trumpet
Lukas Rande, Saxophone
Carmel Raz, Violin and Viola
Jessica Ruiz, Clarinet
Amanda Scherbenske, Violin
Karl Schwonik, Drums
Stephen Solook, Percussion
Robert Spady, Clarinet
Sarah Whitney, Violin
Jacob Wise, Clarinet/Laptop

This Professional Training Workshop was made possible, in part, by the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation.

Programs of The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall are generously supported by the City of New York: Office of the Mayor, the Department of Cultural Affairs, and the New York City Council; and by the New York State Council on the Arts.

Yotam Baruch, Cello
Cellist Yotam Baruch made his Carnegie Hall debut in December 2007 playing with pianist Efi Hackmey. At the age of 18, he was appointed cellist of the Israeli Defending Force Quartet. Mr. Baruch received his bachelor’s degree from the Rubin Academy of Music of Tel Aviv University. In May 2007, he finished his graduate studies at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, where he was a scholarship student of Amit Peled. In the fall of 2007 he began his doctoral studies at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, studying with Janos Starker.
Recently, Mr. Baruch received the Israel Dorman Memorial Award from The Peabody Conservatory. Solo recitals include Mendelssohn House in Leipzig, Germany, and Clermont Hall in Tel Aviv. Mr. Baruch has participated in master classes with János Starker, Bernard Greenhouse, Frans Helmersson, Boris Pergamenschikow, and Steven Isserlis, and has collaborated in chamber music with cellists Maria Kliegel and Jens-Peter Maintz and violist Atar Arad.

Adam Berkowitz, Clarinet
Clarinetist Adam Berkowitz combines his reputation as soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player with a notable teaching career. In addition to being an active clarinetist, he has extensive experience with the bass clarinet. On both instruments he passionately pursues an interest in contemporary music and klezmer. In the fall of 2007 Mr. Berkowitz joined the artist faculty of the Hartt School of Music—Community Division.

Mr. Berkowitz received his Bachelor of Music degree in a dual degree program (performance and music education) from Ithaca College School of Music, where he studied with Michael Galvan. In 2004 he completed a Master of Music degree in Clarinet Performance at the Conservatory of Music at SUNY Purchase; he was a student of Ayako Oshima. Mr. Berkowitz completed the requirements for a DMA in Clarinet Performance at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University; he was a student of Maureen Hurd.

Conor Brown, Clarinet/Laptop
Conor Brown is from Boulder, Colorado. He is currently an undergraduate at Bard College and the Bard College Conservatory of Music in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, where he is pursuing degrees in clarinet performance, music composition, and dance choreography. He is studying clarinet with David Krakauer and Laura Flax, and composition with Joan Tower and George Tsontakis. Mr. Brown recently performed Osvaldo Golijov’s The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind for klezmer clarinet and string quartet, as part of the Wordless Music Series in New York City.

Jay Dubin, Clarinet
Jay Dubin is currently at freshman at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying classical clarinet with Franklin Cohen, principal clarinet of The Cleveland Orchestra. Mr. Dubin has held positions as the principal clarinet of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra and the New Jersey Second Regional Orchestra. He has played alongside members of The Philadelphia Orchestra and the New York City Opera. He has performed throughout the US and internationally in Canada and Brazil. As a jazz and klezmer musician he has performed with David Krakauer, Aaron Alexander, and with Frank London and his Klezmer Brass All-Stars. Mr. Dubin frequently performs with his own jazz trio, and can also be seen playing clarinet and saxophones in pit orchestras for community theater in his native New Jersey. He is making his Carnegie Hall debut as a part of the David Krakauer Klezmer Workshop.

Alexander Fiterstein, Clarinet
Alexander Fiterstein is a first-prize winner of the Carl Nielsen International Clarinet Competition and the Young Concert Artist International Auditions (YCA). He appeared with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s at Lincoln Center, the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Polish Chamber Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Symphony, the Tokyo Philharmonic, and the China National Symphony Orchestra. In recital, Mr. Fiterstein has appeared on the ‘Music at the Supreme Court’ Series, at the National Gallery of Art, the Kennedy Center, the 92nd Street Y, the Vancouver Recital Society, the Louvre in Paris, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, and the Tel-Aviv Museum. Mr. Fiterstein was a member of Chamber Music Society II of Lincoln Center (2004–06). He participated in the Marlboro Music Festival for four summers and toured with Musicians from Marlboro. He performed as principal clarinet in Daniel Barenboim’s West East Divan Orchestra. He was born in Belarus, raised in Israel, and now lives in New York.

Yehoshua Fruchter, Guitar
Yehoshua Fruchter is a freelance guitarist and composer based in Brooklyn, New York. He has been greatly influenced by the music of John Zorn, Marc Ribot, and Ornette Coleman, among many others. An accomplished performer, Mr. Fruchter has played in numerous venues and locations including the Blue Note, Blues Alley in Washington, DC, and the Breskaya in Moscow. His current creative project Pitom, an avant Jewish jazz/rock outfit, performs in venues throughout New York and is releasing its debut album on Tzadik Records this summer.

Mr. Fruchter’s interest in Jewish music stems from his strong religious roots and a musical family. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from the University of Maryland.

Nathan Giem, Violin
Nathan Giem was born in 1983 in Loma Linda, California, and by the age of 10 was studying violin with Mehli Mehta, father of acclaimed conductor Zubin Mehta. At age 15, Mr. Giem began his undergraduate studies at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where his teachers included Franco Gulli, Henryk Kowalski, and Federico Agostini. Mr. Giem has also received a performance diploma and master’s degree from Indiana University.

In 2005 Mr. Giem was granted a Fulbright Fellowship to the Netherlands, where he studied with Alexander Kerr at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. Most recently Mr. Giem was a participant in the 2007 Open Chamber Music Festival in Prussia Cove, Cornwall.

Mr. Giem is currently an artist diploma candidate studying with Alexander Kerr at the Jacobs School of Music, where he is first violinist of the Kuttner Quartet and associate instructor of violin.

He plays on a 1740 J. B. Guadagnini violin on loan from the Jacobs School of Music.

Emil Goldschmidt, Clarinet
Emil Goldschmidt has played klezmer almost all his life. While growing up in a Jewish community in Denmark, he started playing professionally at the age of 12. He began in The Tivoli Boys Guard, where he was trained in classical music and ensemble playing. At the age of 15, he attended the music high school Sankt Annae Gymnasium, where he formed his first klezmer band, The Girl and the Klezmonauts. The group performed frequently at different holidays and weddings. After graduation he attended the Music School of Ishoej.

Since then Mr. Goldschmidt has worked as a musician in different bands and ensembles. Last year he began teaching at Lirum Larum Music School. In 2004 he formed the band Mames Babegenush, which has been widely praised among both audience and critics. Mames Babegenush performs at some of the biggest concert halls and venues in Denmark.

Lily Henley, Violin/Vocals

Christian Hørsted, Drums
Christian Hørsted is a 26-year-old drummer from Denmark, living in Copenhagen. He graduated from the Rhythmic Music Conservatory of Copenhagen (RMC) in June 2007 with a Master of Music degree (drums and music education). He began playing music at the age of 8, beginning with classical piano and changing to the drums at the age of 10. Since then he has played all kinds of genres. During high school and later at the Conservatory, jazz was his main focus. He has studied with Danish drummers Jonas Johanssen, Aage Tanggaard, and Morten Lund. Over the last three years he has become more interested in the music of the Jewish and Balkan tradition as a result of playing the drums in Mames Babegenush. Mr. Hørsted has also recently played in the Karen Bach Trio, with whom he has recorded two highly acclaimed records, Samtale (2005) and Flash Forward and Back (2007).

You-Young Kim, Viola
You-young Kim is a living example of how music (and musicians) can bridge cultures and traditions. She has shared her music with many different genres of musicians around the globe, including klezmer violinist Yale Storm, Turntable player D. J. Radar, and Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Project. She says, ‘I want to experience the different cultures and traditions of the world as much as I can with an open mind, and share my experience with my audiences.’ After receiving her bachelor’s degree from the Curtis Institute of music and a master’s degree from The Juilliard School, she is now earning an advanced certificate in music education from New York University as a Sacher Scholarship recipient; she is also adjunct faculty at the school. Ms. Kim has attended New York String Ensemble, Kneisel Hall, Henry Mancini Institute, Malta International Music Festival, the Mark O’Connor String Conference, and La Jolla.

Nicolai Kornerup, Accordion
The 26 year-old pianist Nicolai Kornerup graduated from the Rhythmic Music Conservatory of Copenhagen in June 2007. Besides the piano, Mr. Kornerup has played both keyboards and laptop with various artists, in a great variety of genres.

In 2004 Mr. Kornerup and a handful of friends formed the group Mames Babegenush with the goal of reforming the klezmer scene in Denmark. During this process he picked up a new instrument: the accordion.

Mames Babegenush has contributed to the world music scene in Copenhagen, enjoying great underground success within the first two years of the group’s existence. In 2007 the band was noticed more widely and has been booked for several events, including a concert with the Middle East Peace Orchestra at the Danish Royal Theater.

Samuel Künstler, Cello
French cellist Samuel Künstler is an artist whose debut CD included masterpieces by Rachmaninov and Prokofiev. A versatile cellist, he has also performed with Hankus Netsky’s Jewish Music Ensemble, the NEC Ragtime Band, and in an ensemble of Turkish and Western instruments performing works by Mehmet Ali Sanlikol. Mr. Künstler has been a participant in the Salzburg Festival Summer Academy, Casals Festival in Prades, Heifetz Institute, and Orford Art Center. He performs regularly in retirement centers, schools, and hospitals throughout France. A graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music, he is completing a Master of Music degree at The Juilliard School as a student of Richard Aaron. He studied cello with Paul Katz and Philippe Müller, and chamber music with Paul Biss, Natasha Brofsky, Martha Strongin Katz, Paul Katz, and Vivian Weilerstein. He is a recipient of grants from the Rotary Club of France and the Heifetz International Music Institute.

Yael Manor, Piano
Born in Israel, Yael Manor earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees with honors from the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel-Aviv University. A winner of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation Scholarship (2004–06), Ms. Manor also received several Excellence Awards from the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music.

Ms. Manor performed in Israel and in the US as a solo recitalist and as a chamber musician. She participated in master classes with Naum Shtarkman, Ruth Laredo, Ronan O’Hora, Donald Berman, Bruce Brubaker, Daniel Hoxter, and Vladimir Shakin, among others. Ms. Manor has a keen interest in contemporary music; her performances include appearances at the International Hindemith Festival, the Jerusalem Music Center, and Mishkenot Sha’ananim (where she also recorded for Kol Hamusica radio station).

In 2006 Ms. Manor founded Kolot Ensemble, which performs music by Israeli and Jewish composers. Currently Ms. Manor is pursuing a doctoral degree in piano performance at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, where she studies with pianist Arnaldo Cohen.

Andreas Møllerhøj, Double Bass
Andreas Møllerhøj is about to end his education at the Rhythmic Music Conservatory (RMC) in Copenhagen, Denmark. He has been studying at RMC for five years, while playing professionally at the same time. Among his teachers are the late Niels Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Ben Street, Jeff Ballard, and Klavs Hovman. His main instrument is the bass, which he plays in a broad variety of genres from klezmer to modern jazz and rock.

Mr. Møllerhøj was 10 years old when he started playing the violin. Soon after, the guitar seemed more interesting, and at the age of 23 the bass took its place as his main instrument. In the future Mr. Møllerhøj hopes to make a living playing all the music he loves.

Bo Rande, Trumpet
Besides his activites in Mames Babegenush, Bo Rande is also active in indietronica collective Blue Foundation; he produces and plays horns and keyboards. He received the Danish Critics’ Prize for ‘Best Producer 2005’ as well as a Grammy at the Danish Music Awards (2005) for ‘Best Urban Release’ for the record Blue Foundation: Sweep Of Days (Virgin/EMI). The band has released four albums; played festivals; toured all over Scandinavia, Faroe Islands, Germany, England, and Japan; and is featured on the soundtrack of Miami Vice (2006), directed by Michael Mann. Mr. Rande has composed music for several films, series, short films, and documentaries, and is frequently used as a session and live instrumentalist (horns, keyboards, percussion, backing vocal) for groups like Mew, Efterklang, The William Blakes, PACE Percussion Trio, Japanese producer Calm, The Zapolski Quartet, Doug Raney, Lee Oskar, and Blood & Fire Soundsystem.

With Mames Babegenush he has played at the Danish Royal Theater as a part of The Middle East Peace Orchestra.

Lukas Rande, Saxophone
Lukas Rande has been playing saxophone since the age of nine. As a teenager, he joined the Tivoli Boys Guard and received intensive instruction until the age of 15. Since then he has been playing with many different bands, including the klezmer band Mames Babegenush. As a member of Mames Babegenush, founded in 2004, he has performed all over Denmark and Sweden at various venues and music festivals. In 2007 the group appeared on the Roskilde Festival with Kenneth Bager and at the Royal Danish Theater with The Middle East Peace Orchestra.

Mr. Rande is also a musicology student at the University of Copenhagen.

Carmel Raz, Violin and Viola
Experimental musician Carmel Raz has been gathering international recognition for her activities as a composer, violinist, and improviser. She was concertmaster of Daniel Barenboim’s West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, and has performed in the Berliner Symphoniker, das Symphonie Orchester Berlin, and the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester, appearing across Europe and Asia under the batons of Pierre Boulez, Ingo Metzmacher, and Claudio Abbado. This season she has performed at the Klangspuren Festival in Schwaz, Austria, with the Ensemble Modern Academy, and toured Eastern Europe with the Israel Contemporary String Quartet. In addition to her activities as a classical performer, Ms. Raz is active as an improvising musician, comfortable a variety of genres ranging from jazz to world music and electronica. She has collaborated with artists including klezmer trumpeter Paul Brody, jazz singer Patricia Barber, soul singer Motep, Chris Adler, and Thai music band Wong Krajaukthet, as well as with electronic music artists Ido Govrin and Amnon Wolman.

Jessica Ruiz, Clarinet
Jessica Ruiz began playing the clarinet at the age of 10, continuing her studies at the Manhattan School of Music Pre-College Division and the University of Southern California, with teachers including Ricardo Morales, Yehuda Gilad, and Mitchell Lurie. A former member of New York Youth Symphony and a participant in festivals including the Bowdoin Summer Music Festival and the California Traditional Music Society’s Summer Solstice Festival, Ms. Ruiz was immediately drawn to klezmer the first time she heard it. Following months of intensive study and lessons with David Krakauer, she moved to Los Angeles, where she continued to learn from local klezmorim. For nearly 10 years, Jessica has been an active member of the Los Angeles klezmer community, where she can frequently be heard performing at weddings, bar mitzvahs, and concerts throughout the area. Through klezmer, she has also developed a passion for music from the Balkans, which she plays as well as sings.

Amanda Scherbenske, Violin
Amanda Scherbenske is a graduate student and performer based in Middletown, Connecticut. In May 2007, she completed her Master of Arts degree thesis entitled ‘The Making of Folksmentshn: The Culture of Klezmer Transmission’ in ethnomusicology from Wesleyan University. Ms. Scherbenske has recently begun coursework for doctoral studies in ethnomusicology at Wesleyan. She is interested in exploring issues of music and the body, music and dance, and music of eastern Europe for her graduate work. She has studied with such musicians as Walter Zev Feldman, members of Brave Old World, Jeff Warschauer, Deborah Strauss, Hankus Netsky, Cookie Segelstein, and Marvin Katz. Currently, Ms. Scherbenske plays with the Wesleyan Klezmer Ensemble and the Anthony Braxton Ensemble. She is also working on a project involving free improvisation and traditional Ukrainian styles with bandurist Julian Kytasty and Wesleyan dance professor Katja Kolcio.

Karl Schwonik, Drums
Blind drummer Karl Schwonik grew up in rural Alberta, where he was exposed to countless musical situations ranging from polka music to jazz. Fresh out of high school, Mr. Schwonik embarked on a tour with four-time Canadian Country Music Award nominee Heather-Dawn. This was followed by an invitation to study at the Banff Centre, where Mr. Schwonik was the youngest artist ever to be a part of the long-term career residency program.

The past year Mr. Schwonik was awarded an Alberta Foundation for the Arts Grant, an Arts for Career Development Grant, and an RBC Youth Excellence Scholarship. He performed with Sonny Fortune, Dave Douglas, Jan Jarczyk, Joel Miller, and Jeff Johnston; was a featured performer on NBC and ABC network television; and received a full scholarship to study at the Banff Centre’s International Jazz and Creative Music Workshop.

Stephen Solook, Percussion
Critically acclaimed percussionist Stephen Solook is an active classical, world, and solo musician in New York City. As a driving force in new music, he has been responsible for over 30 premieres, working with such composers as Pulitzer Prize winner Paul Moravec, Bruce Adolphe, and David Loeb. Currently Mr. Solook is the principal percussionist/timpanist with Park Avenue Chamber Symphony, New York Repertory Orchestra, and Ensemble 212 orchestras. As a chamber musician Mr. Solook is a member of the New York Composers Circle, the trio Tonal Center, and the duo Aurora Borealis. Recently, Mr. Solook has been working with the internationally renowned José Limón Dance Company. His concerto engagements include Darius Milhaud’s Concerto for Percussion, Ney Rosauro’s Marimba Concerto, and the New York premiere of Davide Zannoni’s Concertino dell’ Incenso. Mr. Solook has performed in concerts and/or recorded with such artists as Judy Collins, Lauren Flanigen, The Four Tops, Joseph Alessi, Glen Velez, and Bob Becker, under such conductors as John Rutter, JoAnn Falletta, Paul Nadler, and Edwin Outwater.

Robert Spady, Clarinet
Robert Spady, a native of Edmonton, Alberta, is currently a doctoral student studying
with clarinetist Eli Eban at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where he is
an associate instructor. Previously he studied with Joaquin Valdepenas at the University of Toronto.

Mr. Spady has performed in concert with groups such as the Brentano String Quartet and the Hilliard Ensemble. In addition he has soloed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and has played under such conductors as Leonard Slatkin, James DePreist, and David Zinman. Mr. Spady was a fellowship student at the Aspen Music Festival and School; he won the Woodwind Concerto Competition in 2004. He has been a finalist in the International Clarinet Association’s Young Artist Competition and was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada. He has played with the Columbus (Indiana) and Richmond symphonies as well as with the Naples Philharmonic in Florida. This summer he will play with the Missouri Symphony for their 2008 summer season.

Sarah Whitney, Violin
Sarah Whitney, an active solo, orchestral, and chamber musician, has been heard worldwide across stages in Europe, Asia, South America, and the US. As a chamber musician, Sarah has performed as guest artist on the Memphis Chamber Music Society Solo Concert Series, the Cleveland Institute of Music Faculty Concert Series, and the Cleveland Composer’s Guild. She also received second prize in the 2000 Philharmonic Society of Arlington, Masachusetts, Young Artists Competition and recently led the Cleveland Central Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra as concertmaster on tour to Carnegie Hall. Additionally, she has held the position of concertmaster for the Livonia Symphony and the Michigan Opera Works Orchestra. Ms. Whitney received her Master of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music and her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Michigan, and continues her studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Her teachers include Kathleen Winkler, Aaron Berofsky, Cyrus Forough, Stephen Shipps, Paul Kantor, and William Preucil.

Jacob Wise, Clarinet/Laptop
Clarinetist Jacob Wise works in a variety of musical settings, including classical, jazz, klezmer, contemporary classical, open and structured improvisation, electronic music, and contemporary dance. He holds bachelor’s degrees in clarinet performance and computer science from Oberlin College and Conservatory, where he studied with clarinetist Richard Hawkins and saxophonist Gary Bartz. Mr. Wise recently spent a semester pursuing a degree in contemporary improvisation at New England Conservatory, where he studied with pianist/composer Anthony Coleman and composer John Mallia. Mr. Wise performs in the groundbreaking Ohio-based Ensemble 46, has played alongside Fred Frith and Don Byron, has had pieces premiered at New England Conservatory and in the Boston-based Femme Show, and performs with the new music ensemble Juventas. He is also an alumnus of the School for Improvisational Music, where he studied with Matana Roberts, Ralph Alessi, Mark Helias, and Jim Black. He plans to move to New York in the very near future.

WORKSHOP LEADERS

Internationally acclaimed clarinetist David Krakauer redefines the notion of a concert artist. Known for his mastery of different styles, he is one of the world’s leading exponents of Eastern European Jewish klezmer music, and at the same time a major voice in classical music. As one of the foremost musicians of the vital new wave of klezmer, David Krakauer tours the globe with his celebrated Klezmer Madness! ensemble. While firmly rooted in traditional klezmer folk tunes, the band ‘hurls the tradition of klezmer music into the rock era’ (Jon Pareles, New York Times). Mr. Krakauer’s compositions also pay homage to R&B, jazz, classical, and funk.

In addition to his annual European tours to major international festivals and jazz clubs, recent seasons brought Mr. Krakauer and his band to the Library of Congress, Stanford Lively Arts, San Francisco Performances, Hancher Auditorium, and packed performances at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall, Symphony Space, and Joe’s Pub in New York. European venues have included the Venice Biennale, Krakow Jewish Culture Festival, BBC Proms, Saalfelden Jazz Festival, Transmusicale de Rennes, La Cigale, New Morning in Paris, and many others. In addition, Mr. Krakauer is in demand worldwide as a guest soloist with the finest ensembles, including the Emerson and Orion string quartets and Trio Solisti.

Mr. Krakauer’s discography contains some of the most important klezmer recordings of the past decade. His CD The Twelve Tribes (2002) was designated album of the year in the jazz category for the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik in Germany. His newest CD, Bubbemeises: Lies My Gramma Told Me, features his cross-generational collaboration with master sampler Socalled. David Krakauer is on the clarinet and chamber music faculties of Mannes College of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, and the Bard College Conservatory of Music.


Michael Alpert has been a pioneering figure in the current renaissance of East European Jewish klezmer music for over 25 years. He is internationally known for his performances and award-winning recordings with Brave Old World, Khevrisa, Kapelye, David Krakauer, and other artists. Raised in a Yiddish-speaking family, he is considered the finest traditional Yiddish singer of his generation, and is noted for his original Yiddish songs on contemporary themes. Adept at 20 languages and recognized for his command of ethnic vocal styles from Russian to Mexican, Alpert’s appearances have included concert halls, festivals and clubs throughout North America, Europe, Israel, and Australia. He is active as a scholar, writer, producer and educator in the Jewish ethnomusicology and cultural history fields, and is the leading contemporary researcher and teacher of East European Jewish traditional dance.

Mr. Alpert is the Emmy Award–winning musical director of the PBS Great Performances special Itzhak Perlman: In the Fiddler’s House. He is featured in numerous documentaries, including A Jumpin’ Night in the Garden of Eden, Fiddler on the Hoof and The New Klezmorim.

A former Research Associate in Ethnomusicology at New York’s YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, Mr. Alpert currently serves as Project Director of Nashi Traditsii (Our Traditions), the Soviet Jewish Community Cultural Initiative of New York’s Center for Traditional Music and Dance.

Over the past 20 years Alpert has taught and lectured on traditional East European music, dance and cultural history at Columbia University, Oxford University, Yale University, Indiana University, UCLA, The University of Oregon, The University of Mainz, the European Summer Academy at the University of Weimar (Germany), KlezKamp (LivingTraditions’ Yiddish Folk Arts Program), and the East European Folklife Center’s Balkan Music and Dance Workshops.


Socalled is a musician, photographer, magician, and writer based in Montreal.
He was born Josh Dolgin in Ottawa, Ontario, and raised just north, in Chelsea, Quebec. As a kid he was always in musicals and drew cartoons for the Ottawa Citizen. He hated soccer. He was bribed by his mother to continue piano lessons until high school, then he picked up the accordion. He wrote for the newspaper and played in any kind of band— salsa, gospel, rock, funk—then discovered MIDI and hip-hop. He worked with rappers, he made madd beats, he got into studios. He graduated from McGill and made a 50-minute animated film for the Canada Council, meanwhile writing for Hour Magazine and performing. He has now appeared on a dozen recordings as pianist, singer, arranger, rapper, writer, and producer. He rocks the machine in David Krakauer’s Klezmer Madness!, sings with Toronto-based Beyond the Pale, performs with home-base band Shtreiml in Montreal and with Los Angeles–based the Aleph Project. He conducts the Addath Israel choir for High Holidays. Socalled performs and records widely with a crew of mixed-up freaks and geniuses from around the world, including Killah Priest, Susan Hoffman-Watts, Frank London, and Irving Fields.


Alicia Svigals, violinist/composer, a founder of the Klezmatics and of the all-women band Mikveh, is considered by many to be the world’s foremost klezmer fiddler. During the past decade, she revived klezmer fiddle playing, which came close to extinction in this century; traditional klezmer violin style is now being played again by hundreds of her students, including most of today’s best professional players. She taught and toured with violinist Itzhak Perlman, who recorded her compositions as duets with Ms. Svigals accompanied by the Klezmatics, and she was awarded first prize at the Israel International Klezmer Festival Competition in Safed.

Ms. Svigals plays and writes in genres ranging from heavy metal to New Age to Greek island fiddle, and she has recorded for everyone from Lipa Shmelzer to the L-Word. She has composed for the Kronos Quartet, and has been written for by composer Osvaldo Golijov, who was commissioned by Merkin Concert Hall to create a work featuring Ms. Svigals and clarinetist David Krakauer (soon to be released on CD as Rocketekiya). She has appeared as a soloist on NPR’s New Sounds Live and at festivals such as FiddleFest in New York’s Central Park; Fiddle Tunes in Port Townsend, Washington; and the Winnipeg Folk Festival. Her debut solo album Fidl (Traditional Crossroads) is the world’s very first klezmer fiddle CD.

In Svigals’s band, the Klezmatics, she and five other musicians created contemporary Jewish roots music that combined the joyous and mystical Yiddish folk tradition with a postmodern aesthetic and an overtly political world view. For 16 years, Svigals toured internationally with the Klezmatics and recorded five albums that reached the top ten of Billboard, College Music Journal, and European World Music charts.