3rd Annual Desert Gathering Jewish Music Fest Offers Diverse,
Rich Lineup for All Musical Tastes FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 3Rd Annual Desert Gathering Jewish Music Fest Offers Diverse, Rich Lineup for All Musical Tastes. October 6, 2015 (Phoenix, AZ) – The rich diversity of Jewish music comes alive for music
lovers of all ages, ethnicities and denominations at this fall’s 3rd Annual Desert Gathering
Jewish Music Fest. Acoustic folk, dancehall electronica, traditional Jewish song, pop and
hip hop are just some of the music styles festival goers can explore during the outdoor
community music festival taking place Sunday, November 1, 2015, from 2-6 pm at Steele
Indian School Park in Phoenix.
Biographies on the artists performing at the DGJMF can be found below:
YEHUDIE AND THE GEFILTE FISH -- 2:00-2:30 pm -- Phoenix Jewish rock band Yehudie
and the Gefilte Fish is the brainchild of three band members who envisioned a community
based band to support the entire Phoenix Jewish community. The band covers songs of
contemporary Jewish rock music and plays for the love of Jewish music and the Jewish
community. “We are very excited and honored to open up the festival for all the great acts
Todd Herzog has lined up for this year. It is an amazing feeling to be opening up for the
kinds of artists that our group is inspired by,” says Yehudie guitarist and singer David
Manley. “Playing for the Phoenix community is what we put this band together to do, but
we didn’t quite expect to be playing for them all at one time!”
KIDS CHOIR -- 2:30-2:45 pm – Third and fourth grade students from Pardes Jewish Day
School of Scottsdale and Hebrew Jewish Academy of Phoenix will join cantors from local
Valley congregations to sing a medley of songs.
ARI LESSER -- 3:00-3:45 pm -- Ari Lesser is a singer, songwriter, rapper, and spoken
word artist from Cleveland, Ohio who moved to the Valley last year and will take to the
DGJMF stage for the first time. He has performed all over the world, and written hundreds
of songs on a wide range of subjects. Ari’s repertoire is expansive, touching on everything
from history, to animals, to Star Wars, but now his focus and passion is making music
based on the Torah. Lesser is best known for his song “Boycott Israel” that calls out the
hypocrisy in the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) movement. "I've been on the
road all summer so I'm really excited to come back home and perform at the Desert
Gathering Jewish Music Fest!" Lesser says.
TODD HERZOG -- 4:00-4:45 pm -- Bridging the gap between religion and spirituality,
Desert Gathering Jewish Music Fest founder and two-time performer Todd Herzog has
been fortunate enough to have many musical achievements along the way. His music and
voice have been featured in multiple film and television shows and his song "You And I"
reached #2 on the Billboard Smooth Jazz Charts. Todd has worked with top songwriters
and performers, including Burt Bacharach and Dave Koz, yet he continues to impact the
Jewish community and beyond with his uplifting music, both in his job as cantorial soloist
at Temple Solel of Paradise Valley, as well as travelling around the country doing concerts,
services and artist-in-residence weekends
DIWON -- 5:00-6:00 pm -- Performing alongside Mikey Pauker is Los Angeles-based DJ,
producer, and songwriter Diwon, who blends Yemenite music with electro hip-hop and
dancehall. Diwon (real name Erez Safar) draws inspiration from the Middle Eastern
musical canon, having been strongly influenced by the musical traditions of his mother’s
family, whose roots lie in the ancient Jewish community of Yemen. Diwon is renowned on
the Internet for his remixes of pop acts like Lana Del Rey, and he is also the founder and
director of the annual Sephardic Music Festival that takes place in New York City.
MIKEY PAUKER -- 5:00-6:00 pm -- How do you channel divine experience and Jewish
mysticism to others? If you’re Oakland-based musician and Desert Gathering Jewish
Music Fest headliner Mikey Pauker, the answer is through music. Named by ‘Time
Magazine‘ as one of the top 10 stars of new Jewish Music, spiritual musician Pauker has
been breathing life into Jewish music for years. His music spans multiple genres including
folk, pop, hip-hop electronica, and reggae, blending them into a beautiful uplifting, and
unique sound. Pauker has shared the stage with Trevor Hall, Matthew Santos, and
Matisyahu and has performed at South by Southwest, Burning Man, and Jacob’s Ladder
Festival in Israel.
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DETAILS:
WHAT: 3rd Annual Desert Gathering Jewish Music Fest
WHEN: Sunday, November 1, 2015 from 2-6:00 pm
WHERE: Steele Indian School Park, located at 300 E. Indian School Rd., Phoenix
PRICE: Free with advance reservation; $75 for VIP ticket package
CONTACT INFO: 480-425-0700 or [email protected] WEBSITE: www.desertgatheringaz.com -­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐-­‐ For media inquiries, please contact: Deborah Muller Deborah Muller Public Relations [email protected] 602-­‐515-­‐2304