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1922 - The Freiheit Gezang Farein (FGF) is founded by conductor/composer
Lazar Weiner on New York's Lower East Side
1923 - Sat., Feb. 23, Carnegie Hall - FGF gives its first concert, including
a song that was to be a staple of its repertoire for some 20 years: "The Internatsionale"
1925 - The Jewish Workers Music
Alliance (Der yidisher muzikalisher arbeter-farband) is founded as funding organization for many Yiddish choruses. During
its 60-year existence, the Alliance publishes 8 collections of Yiddish choral works (Gezang un Kamf), edited by FGF conductors
Jacob Schaefer and Max Helfman
1926 - Feb. 20, Mecca Temple, NYC - The FGF, conducted by Weiner, debuts Jacob Schaefer's
oratorio, Tsvey Brider, the first time a Yiddish chorus performed with an orchestra
1927 - Jacob Schaefer takes over as
conductor of the 300-singer chorus
1920s - Choruses of the International Workers Order / IWO ("ordn-khorn") spring up all
over the city (Washington Heights, Brighton, Brownsville, Coney Island, Kings Highway, Jamaica, two in the Bronx, the "Downtown"
and the "Yugnt" branch), the tri-state area (Newark, Passaic, Paterson, Farmer's Chorus and Connecticut) and the country (Boston,
Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Miami, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Bay Area, Los Angeles, Petaluma). There were 30 in all,
nationwide
1936 - Schaefer passes away suddenly at age forty-eight
1936-48 - Max Helfman takes over as FGF’s conductor
1937
- The Jewish Workers Music Alliance changes its name to the Jewish Music Alliance (Der yidisher muzik-farband)
1938 - Freiheit
newspaper editor Moyshe Olgin passes away. A force in the creation and continuation of the FGF, Olgin is memorialized by
the song "Mir zogn tsu" (words: Yuri Suhl; music: Max Helfman), which becomes a staple of the FGF's repertoire
1948
- The FGF changes its name to the Jewish People's Philharmonic Chorus
1948 - Sun. eve, June 13, Carnegie Hall - Max Helfman's
final concert with the JPPC and premiere of Helfman's "Di Naye Hagode", his haunting setting of Itsik Fefer's epic poem of
the same name
1948-52 - Dr Leon Kopf, German refugee, conducts the JPPC. The earliest Chorus recording dates from this
period
1952-60 - Eugene (Yehuda) Malek takes over as the JPPC’s conductor
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1953 - The first annual concert of the Jewish Cultural Clubs
and Societies features the sister chorus of the JPPC, the Jewish People's Chorus of New York (JPCNY) conducted by Maurice
Rauch, performing the first of many dramatic chorales written by Itche Goldberg in collaboration with Rauch as composer
1958/59
- The JPCNY makes two recordings: A Goldfaden Collection and the folk-operetta, Sholem Aleichem Dir, Amerike!
1960-71 -
The JPCNY merges into the JPPC and Maurice Rauch becomes conductor of the "new" chorus. During Rauch's tenure, the JPPC records
Schaefer's Tsvey Brider (1967), the last recording of the Chorus, until 2006
1971-72 - Oscar Julius conducts the JPPC
1972-77
- Maurice Rauch returns to conduct the JPPC
1977-80 - Franco Rossi conducts the JPPC
1980 - Rauch conducts one concert
for the JPPC
1980-84 - Madeline Simon is the JPPC’s first female conductor
1984-95 - Peter Schlosser is the JPPC conductor
1985
- The Jewish Music Alliance merges into the Zhitlowsky Foundation
1995 - Binyumen Schaechter takes over as conductor
1998
- JPPC begins year-round Outreach Concerts throughout NYC tri-state area, from Town Hall to the Museum of Jewish Heritage.
The JPPC becomes arguably the first Yiddish chorus ever to sing a cappella and mixed (not in vocal sections)
2000, 2001,
2003 - The JPPC is one of only two Yiddish choruses to perform at the North American Jewish Choral Festival at the Nevele
Hotel, Ellenville, NY
2000 - The JPPC becomes the first Yiddish chorus to perform on the World Trade Center Plaza
2001
- The JPPC sings for a Chanuka Memorial Ceremony at Ground Zero, site of the World Trade Center terrorist attacks
2002,
2005, 2006 - The JPPC is the only Jewish chorus to perform at the New York International Choral Festival at Alice Tully Hall
(Lincoln Center)
2003 - The Jewish People’s Philharmonic Chorus celebrates 80 years of preserving, creating, and sharing
Yiddish song, becoming one of the world’s longest continually operating Jewish choruses
2005 - The JPPC is the first Yiddish
chorus to perform at Shea Stadium (Queens, NY), singing our National Anthem at the NY Mets' Jewish Heritage Day, as well as
Mark Zuckerman's choral arrangement of "America the Beautiful" in Yiddish ("Amerike di prekhtike")
2006 - The JPPC releases
its first CD, the Chorus' first recording in 39 years
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