Convergence: African American and Eastern European Jewish Musical Traditions

Three Tuesdays: January 13, 20 & 27 at 6 – 7:30pm Pacific, online

Presented by New Lehrhaus

Join this engaging series of conversations led by acclaimed multidisciplinary artist and educator Anthony Mordechai Tzvi Russell exploring the music, narratives and histories behind his 2018 EP covering a century of African American and Ashkenazic Jewish music, Convergence.

This class presents an interactive opportunity to engage with the distinct similarities and differences of Eastern European Jewish and Black American historical experience and examine how those experiences continue to intersect and resonate today.

Who this is for: Anyone curious about music, history, and culture, and interested in exploring the intersections of cultures.

What you’ll leave with: A deeper understanding of the stories and histories behind Convergence, insights from engaging discussions, and a richer appreciation of the cultural connections explored in the EP.

Anthony Mordechai Tzvi Russell is an American singer and musician who performs in Yiddish. He is an African-American convert to Judaism. After graduating from Holy Names University, he began a career as an opera singer in San Francisco and New York. After converting, he immersed himself in Yiddish songs and has performed in Yiddish both in the US and internationally, including in Toronto, Montreal, Mexico City, Berlin, Warsaw, Krakow, New York, and at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.