All projects | Isabel Frey

Isabel Frey Solo

In her solo program, Isabel Frey performs a captivating selection of Yiddish songs with guitar accompaniment. Specializing in revolutionary and resistance songs, she connects these to present-day politics, creating a powerful musical experience. Many songs are from her acclaimed album "Millennial Bundist" (2020).

As a prolific Yiddish songwriter, Isabel presents her original compositions, blending tradition with modern sensibilities. Her engaging stage presence and insightful contextualization, based on her ethnomusicological research, make her concerts both informative and memorable.

Isabel Frey & Ensemble

Isabel Frey regularly performs with an ensemble of world-class klezmer musicians, presenting both old and new Yiddish songs. Their arrangements blend klezmer, Romanian and Southeastern European folk music, contemporary classical music, and jazz, while staying rooted in Eastern European Jewish music and traditional singing styles. The ensemble usually ranges from 3 to 5 musicians, including accordionist Ivan Trenev, clarinetist Moritz Weiß, fiddler Zoë Aqua, and bassist and singer Benjy Fox-Rosen. Beyond kitsch and nostalgia, they create a musical experience where Yiddish music is part of a living cultural tradition.

Soveles

The duo "Soveles", consisting of Esther Wratschko and Isabel Frey is dedicated to a particularly intimate genre: Yiddish folk songs. With socially critical lullabies, songs lamenting human trafficking, and anti-capitalist nigunim, they bring the political power and significance of Yiddish songs back into the spotlight, infusing them with contemporary two-part a cappella arrangements, cello, and electronic elements. They regularly collaborate with the cellist Lilli Weinhandl. Their debut album "Soveles", was released in 2022 on Klangue Records.

Isabel Frey & Benjy Fox-Rosen

Isabel Frey and singer, bassist, and composer Benjy Fox-Rosen form a dynamic duo, blending their voices to present a rich repertoire of Yiddish music. Their performances feature old and new Yiddish songs, innovative arrangements, and original compositions, combining influences from traditional Yiddish music with contemporary genres and textures. They also co-lead the artistic research pilot project "Challenging the Theater of Memory: Yiddish Song beyond Kitsch and Stereotype" at the Music and Minorities Research Center and have presented the corresponding lecture concert at numerous national and international venues, including the Jewish Museum Hohenems, the Center for Jewish History in New York, and KlezKanada.