For many centuries, the world of professional music making had been an exclusively male bastion in Western civilization. Female composers and public performers were a rarity in Europe and America and it was nearly impossible for them to have their works published or heard on concert stages. Kol ishah – the voice of a woman – was suppressed. Now we are presenting kolot nashim – the voices of many women, restoring them to their deserved position.

“Kolot Nashim,” a year-long program celebrating the many roles of women in Jewish music, is dedicated to the memory of Linda Plaut, the City of Newton’s longtime Director of Cultural Affairs and founder of the Newton Festival of the Arts. The November program, hosted by Josh Jacobson and Lidiya Yankovskaya, commemorated the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote and paid tribute to late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Part II of “Kolot Nashim” is hosted by Josh Jacobson and Amy Lieberman. Register here.

Kolot Nashim’s May program includes

• Interviews with composers Benjie Ellen Schiller, with a performance of her “Harninu” (Psalm 81); Elena Kats- Chernin (Sydney, Australia), with a U.S. premiere performance of her Psalm 23; Kirsten and Ken Lampl (Canberra, Australia), with a performance of their “Dirshu.”
• A discussion about Naomi Shemer and performance of her “Shirat Hasavim.”
• An interview with Achinoam Nini (aka Noa), with a new performance of her and Mira Awad’s “There Must Be Another Way.”