Grammy-nominated classical, world music artist David Krakauer and South African pianist/composer/producer Kathleen Tagg have created a body of work that defies stylistic confines and embodies a celebration of identity, communication and cross-cultural connection. Widely considered one of the greatest clarinetists on the planet, Krakauer has been praised internationally as a key innovator in modern klezmer as well as a major voice in classical music. Tagg is an award-winning pianist, composer and producer who has performed on four continents, produced a catalog of classical, and multi-genre albums, had her work performed around the world, and is becoming known for her distinctive sound that mixes together acoustic and electronic sounds, loops, samples and extended techniques.

Yid Vicious has been engaging and delighting audiences throughout the Midwest since 1995. The group has released four CDs and has received numerous Madison Area Music Awards for its unique blend of traditional and contemporary klezmer. In 2009, Yid Vicious became the first performing arts ensemble in Wisconsin to receive a USArtists International grant, to perform at Argentina’s KlezFiesta, an international klezmer festival spanning three cities and including bands from ten countries. Yid Vicious is committed to keeping traditional klezmer music and dance alive, and collaborates frequently with internationally renowned klezmer dance instructor Steve Weintraub. The group has presented concerts, workshops, and clinics at performing arts centers, cultural festivals, universities, and K-12 schools in Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Iowa, Illinois, and Michigan, and has performed to statewide audiences on Wisconsin Public Radio and Wisconsin Public Television.

Father-daughter duet Elm Duo has been performing together for over a decade. We are: the award-winning vocalist and fiddle champion Eleanor Mayerfeld (the EL in Elm Duo) and the guitarist and prize-winning composer Mike Bell (the M in Elm Duo). We like to call our style folk cabaret, an eclectic blend of acoustic music from bluegrass to jazz to klezmer and more.