My musical practice is an exploration of my roots: my ancestors were Ashkenazi Jews from all over Eastern Europe.

While living in Transylvania, an idea that persistently inspired me was the Yiddish concept of doikayt, translated as “here-ness.” I thought a lot about what doikayt meant historically for Jews in Transylvania, as well as what it means for Jews in America and for myself. 

My medium is music, how melodies flow and evolve through time and culture. But at its root my work is about interconnectedness, which to me is the meaning of doikayt. The catchphrase of the Bund (a Jewish labor movement started in Eastern Europe over 120 years ago) stated, “Wherever we live is our home,” because home means not only land but also people. Home is about how we coexist with others. How Jews are a part of the interwoven cultural texture of Transylvania, both past and present; and also of America; and of all the places around the world we’ve put down roots. 

When I step inside an old synagogue in Transylvania, I feel the long history, strong interconnectedness and deep rootedness of Jews in that region. I also feel the agonizing loss of the Jewish civilization which existed for many generations there, of which only fragments remain today. 

Trying to pick up those pieces makes me want to cry out, “never again,” but also to ask: what do we mean when we say “never again?”

Spending time in those synagogue spaces has led me to a core belief that animates my work: To me, “never again” is a call to reject nationalism; to reject ethno-states; to reject barricading ourselves inside safe fortresses which never actually make us safe, only more isolated. “Never again” means that we need to build coalitions, to build connections, and to build the societies that we want to live in. “Never again” means doing the work of moving past our reactionary trauma, and learning from the past so that dictators and strongmen can’t utilize hate to dehumanize us and drive us apart. “Never again” means envisioning a better world – of Jews and non-Jews living side-by-side, in peace. Of a world where hate has no place. 

This is what drives me. If it resonates with you, I humbly ask for your support.

I am a violinist, teacher and composer. I am incredibly lucky to have spent almost two years living in Cluj, Transylvania on a Fulbright research grant about folk music, from 2021-2023. In 2022, I recorded an album of original compositions based on klezmer and Transylvanian influences called “In Vald Arayn” (“Into the forest” in Yiddish, a play on the literal meaning of the word “Transylvania”), and assembled a team of adventurous, dedicated folk musicians in Romania and Hungary who were willing to delve into something new and play this music with me. 

After returning to the US in Fall 2023, with sounds of Transylvanian folk music (as well as klezmer, chazzones, lăutărească, and Hasidic nigunim) echoing in my head, I composed 13 brand-new pieces during an artist residency at the Hambidge Center in rural Georgia, USA. I’m excited to bring this new work to my Eastern European collaborators, to start a process of evolving and enriching what I wrote. 

The idea of a synagogue tour was inspired by a concert my friend Jeremiah Lockwood performed in the fall of 2022. Jeremiah followed his dream to perform a free concert in the town where his grandmother grew up, Valea Lui Mihai, Romania, and brought me on as organizer, driver, translator and guest musician. The excitement from the audience was palpable. No one could remember the last time a concert had been held in the synagogue, since there are only a few members of the Jewish community left in Valea Lui Mihai. We performed to a completely full house, with people bringing in benches from the nearby park to accommodate everyone. 

Since then, I have performed the “In Vald Arayn” program with my band in conjunction with Jewish communities in Romania; but I have invitations from many more community leaders who would like to sponsor a concert in their city or town but don’t have the budget to make it happen. This is where I need your help. 

My goal is to present four concerts in four different locations during the summer of 2024. The final locations will depend on coordinating the availability of the different communities with the schedule limitations of various band members.

The concerts would be free, with no barrier to entry for the audience, and with minimal effort required for the hosting communities. For instance, some communities can provide sound and lighting for the concerts, but some cannot, and I want to be able to provide what we need to make the concerts happen. 

I can’t wait to perform at some of the following historical synagogues:

– in Valea Lui Mihai: to come back and fill the synagogue with the sound of a full band, and to reconnect with the kind and dedicated organizers who helped organize the concert with Jeremiah in 2022.

– in Sigetu Maramației: to play in Elie Wiesel’s hometown, in the last historical synagogue standing of the many that existed pre-WWII. I’m excited to re-establish connections with Jewish community leaders who I worked with on a film project in summer 2023.

– in Oradea: to hear the acoustics of the band inside the huge and ornate synagogue, which sits in pride of place among architectural treasures in the city center, many of which were built and designed by Jewish residents. 

– in Satu Mare: to perform in the colorfully-painted synagogue/museum, where Jews contributed greatly to the life and history of the town.

– in Bistrița: a city of Saxon architecture, where the synagogue now exhibits striking avant-garde art.

– in Timișoara: a city of gracious squares, where the revolution started in 1989.

– in Sibiu: where the historic synagogue has recently been renovated. 

– in Cluj: my home-away-from-home, a university town where I have many good friends and colleagues.

I’ve been lucky to work with great musicians in Cluj and Budapest and have multiple musicians on each instrument who can play for each concert, dependent on their availability: 

brácsa: Szopos Kálmán, Fenyvesi Attila 

bass: Dénes Károly, Zsikai László

cimbalom: Réman Gergő, Zsombor Bálint 

guest artists: if possible, I hope to have other violinists join me as guests. 

sound, lights, and translation: Török Ákos and other colleagues from Tranzit House, a fantastic arts organization based in Cluj

video and livestream: Misota Dániel and/or Mikola Csengele 

Trying to raise $15000 is daunting; but that is the amount needed to do it right. If we reach our goal, we will be able to:

– produce and plan four concerts 

– pay musicians at rates that compensate them fairly 

– pay sound engineers for running/ bringing sound equipment and lighting, when necessary 

– pay for a film crew to film and edit one concert 

– set up a livestream for donors 

– cover accommodation, if required, to stay overnight after the concert 

– feed musicians and support staff

– support logistical time to set up the concerts 

– cover part of the cost of my lodging during the summer 

– cover part of the cost of my travel from the US to Romania 

Click on the “donate” button to donate any amount, or check out the suggested donation amounts on the sidebar. 

I strongly value everyone’s donation, whether you can afford to donate $5 or $500. Regardless of the donation amount, everyone will get a thank-you postcard from me from Transylvania.

All donors’ names will be listed on a large poster to be displayed at each concert, as well as in the credits of the concert video and livestream. 

“Romanian, Hungarian, Jewish– This concert brought the world together!” – audience member, Budapest 

“A year ago, I never would have imagined that I would be playing Jewish music.” – László Zsikai, bassist 

“Zoë Aqua is the youngest living link to an almost forgotten tradition of Transylvanian Jewish music. A half century after the Holocaust, Zoë Aqua creates modern performances informed by personal field research with peasant musicians who remember and keep alive the sounds of their long-gone Jewish neighbors." – Bob Cohen, musician, ethnomusicologist and writer