Our goal in 2023 is to go more deeply into Yiddish music in the Ottoman context, an incredibly rich and centuries-old transcultural matrix. As always, we offer immersion-style workshops in Yiddish language, instrumental and vocal music and dance in a warm and supportive atmosphere. Our teachers are leading international artists and scholars in their fields. Everyone is welcome, and there are workshops for every level of experience, from absolute newcomers to professionals. We are proud to be a diverse, inclusive community.

All workshops begin at 10 am on the first day and end in the late evening on the last day. Please plan to be in Weimar the day before your workshop begins and leave no earlier than the day after it ends. If you have any questions, feel free to contact our office by email or phone and we’ll do our best to answer them.

YIDDISH LANGUAGE PROGRAM
July 29 – August 11, 2023
With Dr. Khayele Beer, Dr. Diana Matut, Janina Wurbs and Sharon Bar-Kochva
(If you’re planning to take this workshop, consider staying on for a few more days  to catch the Festival Weekend, August 12 & 13, with hands-on “taster” courses, concerts, lectures, sing-alongs and other events!)

INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED SONG WORKSHOP
July 18 – 25, 2023
With Sveta Kundish, Dilek Türkan, Tayfun Guttstadt, Vassilis Ketentzoglou, Alan Bern and Eftychia Mitritsa

INTRODUCTION TO YIDDISH SONG WORKSHOP
July 20 – 25, 2023
With Sasha Lurje, Sanne Möricke and Benjy Fox-Rosen

INTRODUCTION TO KLEZMER MUSIC WORKSHOP
July 19 – 25, 2023
With Szilvia Csaranko, Susi Evans and Johannes Gräßer

A SPEED DATE WITH JUDAISM: 3000 YEARS IN 3 DAYS
July 27 – 29, 2023
With Miriam Camerini

INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED INSTRUMENTAL WORKSHOP SESSION I
July 27 – August 3, 2023
With Tayfun Guttstadt, Ilya Shneyveys, Kyriakos Gouventas, Vassilis Ketentzoglou, Zoë Aqua, Marine Goldwasser, Yazan Alsabbagh, Alan Bern
Artist-in-Residence: Sanne Möricke
(Please note: to make room for more participants, there are two different Intermediate/Advanced Instrumental Workshop Sessions this year. Both workshops focus on the same basic topics and both are for intermediate and advanced participants. The differences between them are their dates and the teaching teams. It is possible to register for both sessions.

INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED INSTRUMENTAL WORKSHOP SESSION II
August 5 – 12, 2023
With Tayfun Guttstadt, Ilya Shneyveys, Susi Evans, Mark Kovnatskiy, Danai Loukidi, Alan Bern and Harel Shachal
Artist-in-Residence: Szilvia Csaranko
(Please note: to make room for more participants, there are two different Intermediate/Advanced Instrumental Workshop Sessions this year. Both workshops focus on the same basic topics and both are for intermediate and advanced participants. The differences between them are their dates and the teaching teams. It is possible to register for both sessions.
AND! If you’re planning to take this workshop, consider staying on for  a few more days  to catch the Festival Weekend, August 12 & 13, with hands-on “taster” courses, concerts, lectures, sing-alongs and other events!)

HASIDIC MUSIC WORKSHOP
July 30 – August 3, 2023
With Sasha Lurje, Craig Judelman
(for instrumentalists and singers)

YOUTH KLEZMER BAND
August 8 – 12, 2023
With Hannah Ochner
(If you’re planning to take this workshop, consider staying on for  a few more days  to catch the Festival Weekend, August 12 & 13, with hands-on “taster” courses, concerts, lectures, sing-alongs and other events!)

YIDDISH & GRECO-TURKISH DANCE ORCHESTRA
August 14 – 19, 2023
With Christian Dawid, Patrick Farrell, Jacobus Thiele and Michalis Kouloumis
(If you’re planning to take this workshop, consider arriving a few days earlier to catch the Festival Weekend, August 12 & 13, with hands-on “taster” courses, concerts, lectures, sing-alongs and other events!)

YIDDISH & GRECO-TURKISH DANCE WORSKHOP
August 15 – 19, 2023
With Erik Bendix and Mehmet Ali Orman
(If you’re planning to take this workshop, consider arriving a few days earlier to catch the Festival Weekend, August 12 & 13, with hands-on “taster” courses, concerts, lectures, sing-alongs and other events!)

YIDDISH CHOIR WORKSHOP
August 16 – 19, 2023
With Benjy Fox-Rosen, Esther Wratschko
(If you’re planning to take this workshop, consider arriving a few days earlier to catch the Festival Weekend, August 12 & 13, with hands-on “taster” courses, concerts, lectures, sing-alongs and other events!)

FESTIVAL WEEKEND
August 12 – 13, 2023
From the story of Joseph interpreting Pharaoh’s dream we know that there are both “fat years” and “lean years.” Under both circumstances, it’s our task to create as much joy and meaningful experience as we can. This year, we are working on a new concept – a Festival Weekend. There will be hands-on workshops, lectures, city tours, concerts and large-scale outdoor events, but concentrated in two days instead of spread out over four or five. For newcomers to Yiddish Summer Weimar as well as friends from past years, the Festival Weekend is the place to meet or re-connect with other festival visitors and to celebrate being together in a spirit of music and hope for the future.