An inspiring performance that uses Yiddish song, Klezmer music, written texts and testimonies to share selected moments in the history of the Jewish Left in Northern Europe, illuminating less well-known aspects of Jewish history and culture.

Yoyvl tell their story of the history of the Jewish Left, aiming to provide another perspective to the discourse about the European Jewish experience. It is a story of poverty and resistance that resonates across place, time, culture and country. It leads us from Eastern Europe in the late C19th through to current day Britain drawing on both traditional material and personal accounts. Combing music, song, images and texts, the story is embedded in Jewish culture and celebrates an often forgotten facet of the Jewish experience. While the songs are sung in Yiddish, the slide show provides translations as well as supporting illustrations.

Yoyvl is a Klezmer band that plays for dances, events and performances, with an emphasis on songs sung in Yiddish. The company have all been playing Klezmer for many years, and four members were founders of ‘KlezNorth’, the annual weekend Klezmer event in Derbyshire since 2010.