Montclair Synagogue To Host ‘An Afternoon Of Klezmer Concert’

MONTCLAIR, NJ — The following news release comes courtesy of Congregation Shomrei Emunah. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site.

Congregation Shomrei Emunah will host a concert with the acclaimed Isle of Klezbos who will perform music ranging from neo-traditional folk dance and Yiddish swing, to unexpected rhythms like reggae, retro tango, and Latin grooves. Described by New York Magazine as "cutting-edge Klezmer," this powerhouse all-female sextet brings a beautiful balance of tradition and modern flair. At this performance, the group will be joined by renowned Klezmer clarinetist Michael Winograd. The concert, taking place on Sunday, November 8, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. at 67 Park St. Montclair, is sponsored by the Eric Singer Charitable Fund.

Isle of Klezbos has performed internationally and throughout the U.S. and their music has been heard on HBO, PBS and CBS Sunday Morning. They approach Yiddish musical traditions with loving irreverence and profound respect. The soulful, fun-loving powerhouse all-gal klezmer sextet has toured from Vienna to Vancouver since 1998. The group is renowned for soloing artistry from deeply grooving to rambunctious to ethereal. Isle of Klezbos arrangements and vibrant energy span styles from 2nd Avenue swing and Yiddish tango to klezmer reggae, cumbia, and boogaloo, as well as art song, lullaby, and balagan.

Tickets are $20 for adults and admission is free for college students with ID and children under 18. For security reasons adult tickets must be purchased in advance by clicking here no later than Thursday, Nov. 5 at 10 p.m.

Pam Fleming, a founding Isle of Klezbos member is a trumpet, flugelhorn and kudu player and has toured internationally with reggae stars Burning Spear, Maxi Priest, Dennis Brown, as well as global blues group Hazmat Modine, Black Rock Coalition's Nina Simone Tribute, and nationwide with Natalie Merchant for Lilith Fair and also guest soloing with Indigo Girls, Sarah McLachlan and Queen Latifah.

She has also performed with Government Mule, Easy Star All-Stars (RadioDread, Dub Side of the Moon, Lonely Hearts Dub Band), Cab Calloway, Bruce Springsteen, Robert Palmer, Soca star Arrow, ("Hot-Hot-Hot"), Buster Poindexter [David Johansen], Toots & the Maytals. Pam composes original world jazz for her own group, Fearless Dreamer and leads her entertaining Halloween group, The Dead Zombie Band. She is a graduate of Eastman School of Music.

Vocalist Melissa Fogarty began her career as a leading child performer at the Metropolitan Opera, making her adult debut with New York City Opera in Mark Morris' production of Purcell's King Arthur, then singing The Magic Flute at Battery Park. Other acclaimed roles include Ottavia (Opera Omnia's Coronation of Poppea at Le Poisson Rouge) and New York City Opera's Vox Fest for new opera (2007–2009). A favorite of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Del Tredici, she has performed many of his works, including world premieres at Symphony Space. She has also sung with Seattle Baroque, Pomerium, Ensemble for the Seicento, new music North/South Consonance, and Sequitur at Merkin Hall, among others. A graduate of Eastman School of Music, Melissa received the Adams Fellowship at Carmel Bach Festival and Giorgio Cini Fellowship for study in Venice.

Debra Kreisberg is a New York City-based professional saxophonist, clarinetist, and educator performing and teaching in a wide range of contemporary and world music genres. She performed in the Tony Award-winning play Indecent at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and in MacArthur "Genius" Grant winner Taylor Mac's 24-Decade History of Popular Music and with artists ranging from Natalie Merchant and Jill Sobule to Paquito D'River. Debra's playing and compositions have been heard on CBS Sunday Morning, CNN Worldbeat, WBGO, SiriusXM Radio, and on Showtime's The L Word. A graduate of the Eastman School of Music, with an MM from Manhattan School of Music, Debra has served as a woodwind teaching artist with the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance and Bronx Arts Ensemble, and on the faculties of Trinity School and Brearley School.

Saskia Lane is a Julliard-trained bassist, composer, performer and educator, whose work spans many genres. Most recently, the Brooklyn-based artist has appeared in numerous productions at the Salzburg Festival, including the Threepenny Opera and its celebrated annual production of Jedermann. Since 2010, Saskia has been a member of the noted theater company, Checkov at Lake Lucille, as performer and composer, and is set to appear in the group’s soon-to-be-released feature film of The Seagull. She has appeared with artists as diverse as Jay-Z and Beyonce, Damon Albarn, Phillip Glass and the Kronos Quartet and has recorded with Harry Belafonte and John Legend. Saskia has leveraged her songwriting expertise since 2008 in her work with Carnegie Hall’s Musical Connections Program, an outreach and education organization that brings music to New York’s homeless and incarcerated populations, as well as other underserved groups.

Shoko Nagai is a versatile musical artist who improvises and performs with world-renowned musicians on piano and accordion and composes original scores for films and live performances. Since moving to the U.S. from Japan and studying classical and jazz music at Berklee, she has adapted her mastery of the keyboard to prepared piano, accordions, the melodica and other instruments. Shoko’s soundtrack scores include HodoBuzz (2020) directed by Mari Kawade, a quartet of films directed by Linda Hoaglund, and L'Amour Cache (2007), directed by Alessandro Capone and conducted by Butch Morris.

Drummer, bandleader, composer/arranger and film scholar Eve Sicular leads both Isle of Klezbos sextet and Metropolitan Klezmer octet. She has produced the two bands’ eight acclaimed albums, as well as dozens of band tours throughout North America and Europe. In additional to releases on her bands’ own label Rhythm Media Records, her arrangements have been heard on Showtime’s The L Word, HBO’s Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags and CBS Sunday Morning. A Harvard graduate, she has published and lectured internationally on topics such as The Celluloid Closet of Yiddish Film and Music in Yiddish Cinema. She is also a former curator of Film & Photo Archives at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research.

Michael Winograd is an American klezmer clarinetist and composer and has performed with such groups and artists as Vulfpeck, Vulfmon, Tarras Band, Geoff Berner, Socalled, Adrienne Cooper, Daniel Kahn & the Painted Bird and Michael Winograd and the Honorable Mentshn. He is one of the leading musicians in the Klezmer world, initially with his Michael Winograd Trio, and soon collaborated with artists such as Socalled, Frank London, Budowitz, Daniel Kahn & the Painted Bird, the Klezmer Conservatory Band, Michael Alpert, and Alicia Svigals. Michael is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music and the former Artistic Director of KlezKanada.

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