Summer Retreat Faculty and Fellows

Meet KlezKanada's 2026 Summer Retreat Faculty and Fellows

Each year, the Summer Retreat brings together a world-class faculty of artists and scholars who are leading teachers, thinkers, performers, and creators in the current renaissance of Yiddish culture.

The Ruth and Joe Freed Fellowship Program

Each summer, the Ruth and Joe Freed Fellowship Program brings eight rising leaders in Yiddish and Jewish culture to serve as junior faculty, program curators, and in other important roles during our annual Summer Retreat. This is a prestigious opportunity for some of the most talented and promising members of our community to hone their skills as teachers, artists, scholars, and professionals; to present their work to a worldwide audience; and further their development through lasting mentorship and collaboration with today’s leading practitioners in klezmer music, Yiddish song, dance and theatre, and Jewish history, literature, and culture.

Fellowship recipients are provided with a generous honorarium in recognition of their accomplishments and with a travel stipend in order to attend the Retreat.

KlezKanada’s Freed Fellows come from every corner of the world and from many fields and areas of expertise. They are musicians, vocalists, visual artists, scholars, technical experts, arts management professionals, and so much more. Often alumni of our Azrieli Scholarship Program, Fellows have gone on to perform globally, create acclaimed projects, and to lead and shape the landscape of contemporary Jewish culture. Former Fellows can also be found among KlezKanada’s faculty and staff.

There is no formal application. Fellows are selected through a rigorous by-invitation-only process by our program committee. Prospective fellows are chosen both on the basis of their ongoing accomplishments in Yiddish and Jewish culture, on the promise of their development, and on their benefit as leaders in the program. Attention is paid to balancing background, strengths, and areas of expertise, and to fitting Fellows into the larger artistic program at the Summer Retreat.

Questions?
If you have any questions about the program, please email us at info@klezkanada.org

Freed Fellowship Alumni

Header Photo: Josh Dolgin