Elias & The Yiddish Maidels - The new Groove in Yiddish music

In the intimate trio setting, the three exceptional artists manage to ignite a musical-emotional fire with their combined joy and energy - oscillating between happiness and melancholy, slapstick and heartache.

**Cast**
Shira Karmon — Vocals
Clara Montocchio — Vocals
Elias Meiri — Piano, Vocals, Cajon

**Elias & The Yiddish Maidels**
Pianist Elias Meiri brings together soprano Shira Karmon and jazz singer Clara Montocchio, creating a diversity of musical worlds: a little Klezmer, a little jazz. The harmonious blend of these two unique voices meets the virtuosic piano artistry of Elias Meiri, who transforms his European and Mediterranean heritage into a rhythmic celebration. In the intimate trio setting, the three exceptional artists manage to ignite a musical-emotional fire with their combined joy and energy - oscillating between happiness and melancholy, slapstick and heartache. Their debut album "Bei Mir Bistu Sheyn" was released in March 2025 by Gramola Records and was nominated for the German Record Critics' Award.

**Elias Meiri**
Elias Meiri is a native Israeli who has been playing the piano since the age of five. Supported by his perfect pitch, he mastered the art of improvisation at an early age. He attended the Talma Yalin Music High School in Tel Aviv and completed his studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. For several years, he played with jazz greats such as Dizzy Gillespie, Dave Liebman, and Steve Grossman in New York before settling in Europe in 1988. In addition to numerous performances with Timna Brauer and various ensembles, he has also given solo concerts. He teaches piano, vocals, ear training, and jazz improvisation, and is dedicated to composition, CD production, and sound engineering. Meiri is a winner of numerous jazz competitions, and his music is heavily influenced by Mediterranean melodies and oriental rhythms.

**Shira Karmon**
Soprano Shira Karmon, born in Israel, has performed in various opera houses and music festivals across Europe, including the Saarland State Theatre, Teatro Comunale di Bolzano, Opera National du Rhin, and Verbier, as well as at the "Out of Control" festival at Semperdepot in Vienna and "Wien Modern." As a concert singer, she has performed at venues such as the Berlin Concert Hall, Lincoln Center in New York, Styriarte Graz, Brucknerhaus Linz, as well as in Israel, Argentina, and throughout Europe. Shira Karmon has been described by the Israeli radio station "Kol HaMusica" as a theatrical soprano in the best sense, possessing "a fire [...], a primal force that makes one forget everything around them," as noted by the Passauer Neue Presse. Her repertoire includes music from the 20th century, such as Stravinsky's "Les Noces," Sephardic and French songs, as well as special programs and focuses with Paul Gulda and the Karmon Vounelakos Trio at the "Jewish Culture Festival Vienna" and the Vienna Chamber Music Festival. She is a prizewinner of the "Song of the 20th and 21st Centuries" competition of the Cultural Circle of German Business and received an award for the best interpretation of Israeli music in Israel. Her fourth solo CD "SHIRA" will be released in 2025.

**Clara Montocchio**
Clara Montocchio, a Viennese with South African roots, skillfully bridges various genres and art forms as a singer, actress, dancer, and composer. Growing up in a musical family, she transitioned from her classical beginnings through musical theater to her great love, jazz. In recent years, she has also immersed herself in the Klezmer scene and has fallen in love with this beautiful melancholic music. She is an in-demand soloist in the jazz and world music scene and studied pop/jazz vocals at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. Her current projects include (in addition to Elias & The Yiddish Maidels) the all-female swing band "The Thrill Seekers," the Styrian Klezmore Orchestra (album "The Bigger Picture" – 2022), the Moritz Weiß Klezmer Trio (album "Klezmer Explosion" – 2020), and the body percussion group "Groove Crew." Her debut solo album "My Vreemde Kind" was released in December 2024 by Unit Records.