J-ARTS

Shlomit Levi is a gifted & powerfully voiced singer, blessed with a joyful spirit and dynamic personality. Born in the small town of Keryat Ekron in Israel, Shlomit grew up listening to the traditional folk music of Yemen which is one of her main influences. After touring in Europe with the band Orphaned-Land, Shlomit began to focus on learning the classical Yemenite musical repertoire of her ancestry.

In addition to specific meloldies, Temanim (Yemeni Jews) have a distinct pronunciation of the Hebrew language and a musical trope all their own. To these classic techniques, Shlomit has also added a contemporary twist and western influences. She most recently performed as a featured guest alongside the legendary Boaz Sharabi

At present, Shlomit is working on her debut album and performing across Israel, delivering her intimate songs with powerful melodies & soaring voice. She grew up listening to traditional folk music of Yemen as well as western-modern music. As a result, Shlomit has an eclectic palette, from which she draws inspiration.

Her performance combines ancient Yemenite rhythms & music; original songs influenced by her unique family story, known Israeli music and soul music in English. At present, Shlomit is working on her debut album and performing across Israel, delivering her intimate songs with powerful melodies & soaring voice. Not since the days of Ofra Haza has there been such an enigmatic singer to come out of Israel

Joining Shlomit is Tomer Koren , a talented arranger, guitar, keyboard and bass player who has performed with Simanim, Melechet, Fusion ensemble, Brit Olam, Adama festival, Haifa symphony, Universities and for the Prime Minister’s office. Shlomit is also backed by percussion artist Yatziv Caspi, specializing in Indian Tabla. Yatziv has performed in many ensembles, including Orphaned Land, Amit Varshetzki, Eliel Abecassis, Yuval Ron and Residents of the Future.

Shir HaShirim
Asalk

El Nora

Anyone who thinks Jewish music equals klezmer needs to hear Divahn’s Middle Eastern and Sephardic grooves. Fans first heard Divahn’s energetic music deep in the heart of Texas. Today, this dynamic New York City-based quintet delights audiences throughout the country and has made numerous live radio appearances. Divahn infuses traditional songs with sophisticated harmonies and arrangements using tabla, cello, rabel, doumbek, violin and other acoustic instruments, plus vocals in Hebrew, Judeo-Spanish, Persian, Arabic, Aramaic and Turkish.
Their beautiful lyricism flows through an intense rhythmic drive. The group distinguishes itself as the only all-female ensemble performing Mizrakhi-influenced music (Jewish music from the Middle East and North Africa) in the US, and has performed with some of the world’s most renowned master musicians, including Glen Velez and Anindo Chatterjee. Divahn, a word common to Hebrew, Persian, and Arabic, means a collection of songs or poetry. Through its music, Divahn seeks to underscore common ground shared between diverse Middle Eastern cultures and religions. The group captures the breadth and diversity of Mizrakhi and Sephardi music throughout the centuries, while simultaneously creating and redefining innovative directions for the music in the present.

El Nora
Ayni Tzofiah
Hamavdeel
Vashti

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Sarah Aroeste leads the world’s only Ladino Rock band, performing a funky fusion of Spanish, Mediterranean and American musical styles. Inspired by her family’s cultural heritage–orginally from Spain and later settling in Salonika, Greece– the Aroeste sound combines and updates aspects from her unique family background.

Most influenced by the music and language of her Spanish roots, Aroeste grounds her music in Ladino, or castillian Spanish, the language originated by Spanish Jews after their expulsion from Spain in 1492. This medieval form of Spanish was carried by Spanish Jews to the various points where they later settled, primarily along the Mediterranean coast and North Africa. In time, ladino came to absorb bits and pieces of languages all along the Mediterranean coast, including Greek, Turkish, Portuguese, French, Italian and Hebrew.

This exotic pan-Mediterranean language has, unfortunately, been fading away and is hardly spoken anymore. But the musical legacy of Spanish Jews highlights the strength of an oral tradition that spans many centuries and unites a linguistic group. Until WWII the vibrant Spanish Jewish communities, particularly throughout the Mediterranean, had been able to perpetuate a significant Hispanic influence throughout the region. Following the War, Mediterranean Jews emigrated in large numbers to the U.S and Latin America, where their proud communities continue to retain a link, in many ways through music, with their medieval hispanic past.

American born, Aroeste has decided to revive this rich body of music by combining it with more contemporary musical influences. Encouraged by an influx of Latin-based music in America over the past few years, Aroeste hopes to make Sephardic music more recognized and accessible as well. Her family’s original Spanish-Greek name, Aroeste, or “of the West,” truly reflects her style of music by combining traditional Mediterranean sounds with contemporary rock, funk, jazz and blues. Using traditional instruments such as oud and dumbek, alongside electric guitar, bass and drums, Sarah Aroeste seeks to bring new life and energy to the beautiful and mysterious sounds of Sephardic music. Her sets include contemporary takes on traditional Mediterranean ladino songs, as well as original songs written in English, set to Spanish Mediterranean backgrounds.

A La Una
Arvoles
Hija Mia
Puertas

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RebbeSoul performs melodies from throughout the Jewish world, from Sephardic romanceros in Ladino to Lubavitch niggunim to tunes from Ashkenazi nusach. Carlebach melodies and Mizrahi piyyutim collide with a World beat rhythms- its the sound of the Jewish Diaspora coming home. And in after a Rebbesoul show, everyone will go home humming something new!

A rock guitarist and studio session musician, Bruce Burger (RebbeSoul) was inspired by the haunting beauty of a prayer heed heard one night in synagogue. From memory, he reconstructed the melody and lyrics, and so began a spiritual and musical journey that brought him back to his Jewish heritage. That song tapped something inside Burger, who recorded the song and submitted it to local radio stations.

Months later his acoustic rendition of Avinu Malkenu garnered record high listener call-ins when maverick San Francisco station aired it. Now, Burger leads his percussion trio, bringing a new voice to the sometimes-stagnant realm of Jewish music, blending rock sensibilities, world fusion stylings and traditional Hebrew melodies for an ageless yet progressive sound. RebbeSoul mixes Mizrahi chant and electronic beats with the funk/ethnic rock style, layerng balalaika, guitar and mandolin over of a percussion trio using darbouka, djembes, riq and cajon. Having toured Israel repeatedly, he made Aliyah in 2006.

He returns to the US for periodic tours to teaching about Israel and the Jewish people through music that reflects its melodies and those of Jewish Diaspora communities. A Rebbesoul performance is a musical ingathering, mirroring the diverse Israeli society. The sound of the Jewish journey home is at the heart of a RebbeSoul performance.

Kol Dodi
Esa Enai
Shmelke’s Nign
Maoz Tzur

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ESTA is a multi-ethnic band with innovative compositions and imaginative arrangements - deeply rooted in Israel’s diverse traditions. Founded in 1979 by Shlomo Deshet and Ori Beanstock, Esta has created a distinctive new sound, incorporating Jewish, Balkan, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, African and Celtic genres into its own pan-global sound, propelled by Rock’s energy and Jazz’s musicianship.

Performing as a group for over 25 years, Esta is among a handful of visionary artists to fuse contemporary music with folkloric styles and sounds. World Fusion isn’t just a genre Esta performs. It is its soul.

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Pithi Li

With her dazzling free improvisational style, brilliant compositional facility, global music palette and her ability to sing in her native Hebrew, in English and with no words at all, Ayelet Rose Gottlieb is unlike anyone you’ve heard before. Only 27, Ayelet has a level of musical sophistication, daring and curiosity that enables her to seamlessly meld her many influences including Ornette Coleman, Laurie Anderson, Egyptian chanteuse Oum Koulthm, Eastern European melodies and Middle Eastern scales all in a breathtaking improvisational approach.

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Ko Amar

Shakshuka is an ensemble raised on folk, pop and jazz music with a deep love for Jewish music. They perform Israeli and Sephardic selections in Hebrew, Ladino and Yiddish. With two guitars, percussion and voice, their arrangements add creative elements to traditional melodies with a refreshing sound. Shaksuka’s music includes songs of the early Israeli pioneers, camp favorites, modern Israeli composers, dance songs, Yiddish and Sephardic music.

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