Columbus Arts and Music Festival Debuts September 18

                                  

Arkadiy Gips, well known Columbus violinist, envisioned sharing Jewish music, identity, and culture with the Columbus community. 

” It’s the first Jewish music festival in Columbus. We want to showcase talented musicians who play music in Columbus. We have a lot of different heritage festivals and now we’re bringing a Jewish art and music festival to Columbus.” said Gips. 

 This vision will become a reality on September 18, 2016 at the JCC, 1125 College Avenue. The Columbus Jewish Foundation, JCC, and Jewish Family services is supporting this great arts event. 

Children’s musician, Marc Rossio, will kick off the festivities at 1:00 P.M. Children and adults will enjoy Marc’s creative songs and great showmanship. 

Arkadiy and Friends includes Cheri Papier, Lucy Smirnov, and Lucas Holmes. They have played traditional Jewish music with an original music arrangement for over twenty years. 

American Gypsy includes Arkadiy, Neil Jacobs, and Steven Fox. “American Gypsy’s debut CD was nominated for the American Independent Music Award’s, “Album of the Year”! It will be a real treat to listen to them. 

Sveltlana Portnyansky, a well-known Jewish singer and California Cantor, will sing and narrate the documentary, “Terezin,The Code to Life.” Terezin was the concentration camp in Czechoslovakia that imprisoned talented children and adults from the arts during World War II. The documentary earned second prize in the Toronto Documentary Film Festival. 

Laeli is a Jewish music project made up of husband and wife, Eli and Lael Palnik. Elijah composes original songs, and they perform contemporary and Israeli songs. 

Cantor Max Axelrod, representing the JCC book fair will be discussing his book, “Your Guide to the Jewish Holdays: From Shofar to Seder.”

Columbus area Jewish community choirs including Koleinu, Temple Israel and Temple Beth Shalom will perform. 

Free performances will take place every 45 minutes. 

The final performance, a showcase gala, takes place from 6:00 to 7:00 P.M. at the JCC Roth-Resler theater. All the musicians will collaborate and play together. It will be amazing! 

Tickets for the showcase gala concert will be $20.00 for the general public and $15.00 for JCC members and Senior citizens. 

“It’s a time to celebrate our Jewish identity together. This is a time to have fun, listen to great music, and eat wonderful food. We want this day to express the heart and soul of the entire Jewish community in Columbus,” said Gips.  

To get exact times of performances, and more information about the artists, consult the festival’s website. 

http:/www.columbusjewisharts.com

Listen to Roma music and Arkadiy Gips: This gives me joy

Through my singing activities, I found an inspirational artist, Arkadiy Gips. He calls Columbus, Ohio, home. He originally came from the Ukraine and studied at all the prestigious universities in Russia. He was also well-known in Eastern Europe before he came to America seeking freedom.

He plays all types of music: classics, jazz, and he even toured with Madonna. (Yes, that Madonna.)

This is an example of a group he leads. They play Roma music. Although, you may not be familiar with it, listen. Watch this all the way to the end. You get a taste of something different. All of these artists are fantastic!

 

 

Come and see Arkadiy Gips Perform in Columbus on Nov 11

Arkadiy Gips, a well-known violinist plays all over the world. Go see him November 11 at the JCC in Columbus, Ohio

Join Arkadiy Gips and friends for an evening of popular music spanning genres of different cultures and countries. “ Once a year I do an annual performance in Columbus, Ohio, which I now consider my home town,” said Gips. He makes sure each concert Is new and different.

The November 11th concert is called “ Encores”. “It will feature just what the name suggests, songs we beg to listen to over and over again, even when the show is over,” said Gips.

Gips, originally from Kiev, Ukraine, became a well-known violinist in Eastern Europe where he played with a variety of orchestras. In the United States, Gips has performed with many noted musicians and entertainers, including Madonna. During the Madonna tour, he played to a collective audience of 3.5 million people.

Last summer Gips performed 12 concerts in Israel. “They were all packed houses. We received standing ovations, and wonderful reviews,” said Gips.

“Encores” is going to be jam-packed with international music including: Klezmer, Israeli, Classical, Jazz, Ladino, Spanish, Italian and American. Gips will perform his own arrangement of a Gershwin tune. “Arkadiy not only plays, but conducts, arranges and composes music,” said Mira Axelrod, chairperson of the upcoming event.

Gip’s musical guests will not disappoint. Lucy Smirnoff, a gifted vocalist, will be accompanied by Tim Dvorkin, a  young, talented pianist.  Zoica Tovar and Andres Estevez, two sensational premier members of Balletmet Columbus will grace the stage with special choreographed dance numbers. The delightful Columbus International Children’s Choir will be singing a Yiddish song,” Chiri Bim, Chiri Bom.”

Gips will honor the late Mikhail Popov by playing several songs from their two CD’s: “Dialogue” and “Yidishe Soul.”

If you’re interested in being one of the sponsors of this concert, contact Mira Axelrod at 614-352-8897.

The concert will be at the JCC Roth/Resler Theatre, 1125 College Avenue, Columbus, Ohio, 43209.  Pre-sale tickets are $25.00, and at the door they will be $30.00.  You can purchase tickets online at http://bit.ly/arkadiyencores