Organizations, Societies, Conferences

American Society for Jewish Music

ASJM is a non-profit organization for all interested in Jewish music. Members include cantors, composers, educators, musicologists, ethnomusicologists, historians, performers, librarians and others interested in the field. Organizational memberships include libraries, universities, and synagogues. The Society presents a series of musical programs covering a wide range of Jewish music: sacred, secular, folk, concert and theater, often held at the Center for Jewish History in New York City. The Society also arranges and presents lectures on Jewish music by experts in their field. The American Society for Jewish Music publishes Musica Judaica, a scholarly journal in Jewish music. A quarterly Newsletter is also distributed to members. To encourage new compositions and performances, the Society established the Cantor Aaron J. Caplow Composition Competition which awards prizes for new Jewish works and assures their performance in the Society’s Annual Contemporary Composers’ Concert.…
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AMJ: L’Association Amis de la Musique Juive

L’Association AMJ: Les Amis de la Musique Juive –Friends of Jewish Music in Geneva, Switzerland sponsor exhibits, concerts, lectures, debates and music workshops. The organization’s goals are to share the breadth and depth of Jewish music with a larger audience. Events are open to all, but members get a discount on ticket prices. The types of music sponsored include liturgical, vocal and instrumental, operetta, popular songs, Israeli, and theater music. Their website is offered in English, French and German.
http://www.amj.ch/

Book Center of the Workman’s Circle/Arbeter Ring

“The Workmen’s Circle/Arbeter Ring, dedicated to fostering Jewish identity and participation in Jewish life, among its members through Jewish, especially Yiddish, culture and education, friendship, mutual aid and the pursuit of social and economic justice.”  The Jewish Workmen’s Circle sponsors concerts of Yiddish and other Jewish music. They also publish CDs, films and videos with music in Yiddish and English. The Book Center sells songbooks and CDs in Yiddish and of themtic concern to Arbeter Ring.
http://www.jewishbookcenter.com/

German Klezmer Page

The Klezmer-gesellschaft e.V. is a union of artistic amateurs, semiprofessional and professional musicians as well as friends and patrons of mutual cultural and artistic concerns. The klezmer-gesellschaft endeavours to take up and to support actual and traditional musical styles of different cultures. The klezmer-gesellschaft e.v. has been founded in 1990 in Berlin as a non-profit society. World famous clarinetist Giora Feidman is one of approx. 150 members. The page offers record reviews, links to webpages of musical groups, radio programs, and audio samples.
http://www.ta-deti.de/klezmer/english/dkg_e.html

Jewish Music Commission of Los Angeles

With uptodate news and twitter feed, this website is current to the mission of the commission to Los Angeles. “Since 1982, creating new opportunities for the performance of Jewish music, encouraging and educating composers to write new Jewish music, and bringing Jewish music to new audiences.” and the sponsoring the Jewish Creative Arts Festival and the Max Helfman Institute.
http://jewishmusicla.org/

The Israel Choral Organization

Hallel (ISCO) is a union of conductors and choirs in Israel. ICO was founded in June 1998 in order “to support and advance choral singing in Israel.” It promotes workshops, seminars, gatherings, pedagogy, activities, including international activities, publishes a quarterly bulletin and supports a website. The website is very out of date in terms of concert listings, but is maintained in Hebrew and English. Nevertheless contact information in provided.
http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/Studio/5379/

The Jewish Music Institute

“The Jewish Music Institute, formerly the Jewish Music Heritage Trust is a leading promoter of Jewish music in Britain. Since its work began, in 1983, the organization has gained recognition on the concert platform, in education and in community relations. The Institute encourages musicians, composers and scholars who are today rediscovering and extending the Jewish repertoire and helping to reveal the role Jewish traditions have played in the history of music.” The website links to their YouTube channel and facebook sites.
http://www.jmi.org.uk

Union for Reform Judaism

The Union for Reform Judaism, founded in 1873 as the Union of American Hebrew Congregations, publishes music and supplies needed educational materials to over 900 congregations and individuals throughout the world. It helps coordinate programs and activities for the Reform movement’s synagogue arm, including training for musicians, publication of music, festivals and events, consultation and education for accessing musical materials for congregations.
http://urj.org/worship/music/

Zamir Choral Foundation, Inc

The Zamir Choral Foundation, Inc. is dedicated to the promotion, advancement and perpetuation of the Jewish people through the music of its people, specifically Jewish choral music. Originally founded as an individual choir in 1960, the Zamir Chorale sparked a renewal of the Jewish choral movement, and the creation of several choirs with similar goals. Zamir, as a choral foundation, now provides unique leadership in the sustenance, development and advancement of the Jewish choral tradition in North America. The website contains information on the annual choral festival held each year.
http://www.zamirfdn.org/