Interwoven: Phoebe Vlassis, Polina Shepherd & Members of Kitka. Oakland, CA, USA
2026-04-12 19:30 - 21:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | St Paul Lutheran Church, 1658 Excelsior Avenue, Oakland, CA, CA 94602, United States
An evening of songs inspired by textile arts.

The Kitka Institute and Glenview Classical Series present
INTERWOVEN
An evening of songs inspired by textile arts.
BOOK HERE
Artwork: Hung Liu, Woman Working: Loom (1999) National Museum of Women in the Arts

INTERWOVEN brings together three visionary forces in an evening of music inspired by the artistry of textile traditions. Greek weaver-musician Phoebe Vlassis transforms her loom into a percussive instrument, spinning rhythm and song into a living tapestry of sound. Siberian-born composer and vocalist Polina Skovoroda-Shepherd reimagines East European Jewish, Slavic, and Tatar folk heritage through original compositions and daring, spinning improvisations. Joining them are members of Kitka Women’s Vocal Ensemble, Oakland’s renowned women’s vocal ensemble celebrated for forty-five seasons of fearless exploration of Balkan, Baltic, Caucasian, Mediterranean, and Slavic vocal traditions. Together, these artists weave voice, rhythm, memory, and innovation into a radiant sonic fabric—where ancient threads are interlaced with bold contemporary expression.
Audience members will be invited to raise their voices and become a part of the sonic tapestry.
$30 per person suggested donation. Please consider a more generous pay-it-forward contribution if you are able, otherwise, pay what you can. NOTAFLOF, but a donation is required to reserve a seat.

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KlezNorth. Youlgrave, Derbyshire, UK
2026-04-17 - 2026-04-19 | Youlgrave Village Hall, Holywell Lane, Youlgrave, DE45 1UT, United Kingdom
KlezNorth is an annual festival of Klezmer music, dance and song welcoming both Jewish and non-Jewish people to the wonderful world of Klezmer. KlezNorth is based in Derbyshire, but in this context, “North” regularly includes the Midlands, the Southwest, Wales and Scotland, the North East, East Anglia, and, dare we say, London and the South East. We have a few overseas participants as well.
Read more and book here.
Led by brass player Frank London, all the way from the USA, and singer Polina Shepherd we have Gica Loening on fiddle, Avia Moore teaching dance, Szilvia Csaranko on accordion and the always amazing Michael Alpert.
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KlezNorth AllStar Concert. Youlgrave, UK.
2026-04-19 15:00 - 17:00 UTC | Youlgrave Village Hall, Holywell Lane, Youlgrave, DE45 1UT, United Kingdom
KlezNorth 2026 will be held in the beautiful Peak District village of Youlgrave. Musical Directors are Frank London and Polina Shepherd supported by Micheal Alpert, Avia Moore, Szlivia Csaranko and Gica Loening.
The weekend ends with a public concert – tickets available from our online box office.

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Songs of the Spring Meadow with Slavic Voices. St Leonards-on-Sea, UK
2026-04-26 15:00 - 17:00 UTC | kino-teatr, 43-49 Norman Road, St Leonards on Sea, East Sussex, TN38 0EG, United Kingdom
Kino-Teatr, St Leonards-on-Sea, TN38 0EQ

Sunday 26th April 2026 3:00PM
BOOK HERE

Slavic Voices Brighton choir presents music of all styles from the Slavic world: Orthodox chants, beautiful classics by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Schnittke and others, refined XVIII-XIX-centuries Art songs and gritty folklore from the far corners of Siberia to the banks of the Black Sea. The choir’s repertoire is sung mainly in Russian but also in Polish, Ukrainian, Czech, Serbo-Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Belorussian, sometimes even Yiddish or Romanian. Slavic Voices perform in a way that is rarely encountered in the choral world. There is freedom and spontaneity in their approach to folklore as well as precision and deep focus in their classical repertoire, presented with great attention to cultural context, history and style. Led by Polina Skovoroda-Shepherd, granddaughter of a Cossack, an internationally acclaimed performer, educator and cultural activist.
by @ManjaWilliams

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Midsummer Sounds. Slavic Voices and Paprika Balkan band. London.
2026-07-04 19:00 - 21:00 UTC | James Allen’s Girls’ School (JAGS), 144 East Dulwich Grove, London, Greater London, SE22 8TE, United Kingdom
BOOK HERE

Join us for a fiery celebration of culture and diversity, featuring the performances of SLAVIC VOICES LONDON & BRIGHTON CHOIR and the Balkan band PAPRIKA. This concert invites you to immerse yourself in a tapestry of sounds, featuring the mesmerising Slavic Voices and the dynamic Paprika. From the rich harmonies of Eastern European choral traditions to the exuberant beats of Balkan rhythms, prepare for a night that promises to uplift your spirit and ignite your passion for music.
SLAVIC VOICES LONDON & BRIGHTON CHOIR present music of all styles from the Slavic world: Orthodox chants, beautiful classics by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Schnittke and others, refined XVIII-XIX-centuries Art songs and gritty folklore from the far corners of Siberia to the banks of the Black Sea. The choir’s repertoire is sung in Russian, Polish, Slovak, Serbian, Ukrainian, Serbo-Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Belorussian, Bosnian, sometimes even Yiddish or Romanian. Slavic Voices perform in a way that is rarely encountered in the choral world. There is freedom and spontaneity in their approach to folklore as well as precision and deep focus in their classical repertoire, presented with great attention to cultural context, history and style.
PAPRIKA is one of the UK’s leading Balkan bands whose line-up consists of two accordions, violin, guitar, bass guitar, and percussion. This electrifying group fuses together Eastern European, Balkan, Gypsy and classical music in a whirlwind performance of frenzied virtuosity. Fiery melodies and foot-tapping rhythms are interspersed with lilting laments in high-energy sets from this exciting group. Specialising in bringing rare or lost traditional Balkan music back to life, both the curious listener and the well-versed aficionado are sure to enjoy a host of surprises and fast-paced entertainment.

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Caravan Orchestra & Choir. Germany.
2026-07-25 - 2026-08-16
Caravan Orchestra and Choir is an international young musicians exchange project between Yiddish Summer Weimar, the Department of Music of the University of Haifa and F. Liszt University of Music, Weimar, exploring East European Jewish, East Mediterranean and Middle Eastern music.
APPLICATIONS FOR 2026 ARE NOW OPEN HERE.
Performance schedule will be published in late spring.
Every year, the Orchestra invites around 40 young musicians from Israel / Palestine and Germany to for an intensive rehearsal period and concerts – originally in both countries, as well as fun social activities, workshops and excursions. Together with the artistic directors, participants explore both East European Jewish (Yiddish), East Mediterranean and Middle Eastern music traditions. It is the synthesis of those cultures that makes the sound of the Caravan Orchestra unique. While having clear differences in the repertoire and style, these traditions share some forms, tonal material and, most importantly, a performance philosophy with similar approach to improvisation, ornamentation, modality and many other concepts that we discover again each time.
Polina Shepherd is the Artistic Director of the project.
In 2026, she will be joined by these colleagues:
Veronika Varga is a Budapest-based Hungarian folk singer and double bass player, primarily representing both traditional and urban music from the Balkans and the Greek Mediterranean, in Hungary and abroad, as a member of various bands and as a soloist, over the past decade.
Josh “Socalled” Dolgin is a pianist, accordionist, journalist, photographer, puppet maker, rapper, composer, magician, teacher and producer based in Montreal, Quebec. He has lectured and led master classes in music festivals around the world, from Moscow to Paris, from London to LA, and from Krakow to San Francisco, and has performed on every continent. With 8-ish solo albums (and one with Vulfpeck’s Jack Stratton and Michael Winograd as Yiddishe Pirat) and 6 produced musical comedies to his name, he has performed solo or with his band all over the world for more than 25 years.
We are currently talking to one more specialist for Turkish music who will join the team soon.

Caravan Orchestra and Choir 2025 by Shendl Copitman
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Her:Kol – Yiddish Women’s Song Cultures. Weimar. Germany
2026-08-01 - 2026-08-08
Her:Kol – Yiddish Women’s Song Cultures. New musical settings of Yiddish women’s poetry by contemporary women composer / performers of Yiddish music. This will be part of Yiddish Summer Weimar Festival week. Polina Shepherd will be one of the featured artists. Watch this space for more.
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Dresden klemer event. Germany. TBA
2026-09-05 - 2026-09-06
This event is now in the planning. Please come back later for more information.
Saturday 5 September
10:00 – 13:00
Ilya Shneyveys +Tayfun Guttshtadt with instrumentalists
Polina Shepherd’s vocal class:
Between Steppe and Shtetl – the Yiddish-Slavic Connection
Come and experience this international Yiddish/Eastern European choir as an instrument of beauty and power. Learn new repertoires and styles. Open your heart and energise your mind.
Rooted in folklore, spiritual traditions, theatre and Art music, these songs describe people’s stories, struggles and resistance, hopes and celebrations. Songs that also echo the themes and melodies of their geographic hosts and neighbouring cultures: Ukrainian, Polish, Russian and many more. We will be singing in Yiddish and some of the other East European languages, exploring the “macaronic” tradition of interweaving tunes, themes and languages.
This workshop will introduce some specific musical elements of these styles – ornamentation, phrasing, modes, timbres etc.
With this multilingual and cross-cultural approach, we will explore the enduring power of Eastern European song and celebrate the connectedness of cultures and communities.
14:30 – 16:00 Together or separate Ilya + Tayfun / Polina with singers
16:30 – 18:00 – Polina with all students – big orchestra and choir
20:30 Karayam dance concert
Sunday 6 September
10:00 – 14:00 Ilya Shneyveys +Tayfun Guttshtadt with instrumentalists. Polina Shepherd with vocalists.
15:00 – 16:30 rehearsal with Polina and soundcheck
17:00 – 18:00 Student Concert
19:00 Lucidarium concert
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Festival of Song concert in Lewes, UK. TBA
2026-10-31 21:00 - 23:00 UTC
Merlin and Polina Shepherd Duo concert for Festival of Song
Late night series
More information is coming soon
Klezmer music and more.
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