Voice of the Turtle, one of  the best-known Sephardic music groups in the U.S., will perform in concert at 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 4, at UNC Asheville’s Lipinsky Auditorium.

Founded in 1978, the Boston-based group is made up four musicians who sing and perform on 20 exotic instruments, bringing to life the music of the Sephardim, Spanish Jews who were forced to renounce their faith or leave their country in 1492. The music reflects the culture of the Sephardic diaspora, including melodies from Turkey, Jerusalem and Bulgaria.

Voice of the Turtle has eight recordings to its credit and has received wide critical acclaim. "Voice of the Turtle has designed lively instrumental accompaniment to support the ecstatic melodic arabesques... this powerfully expressive repertory will leave no one unmoved," said the New York Times.

Tickets are $12.50 general admission, $10 senior citizens and $5 students. Tickets are available at UNCA’s Highsmith Center room 27, the Jewish Community Center of Asheville, 236 Charlotte St., and Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe, 55 Haywood St., Asheville.

Voice of the Turtle will also offer a Sephardic music workshop for intermediate and advanced musicians from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 4, in UNCA’s Lipinsky Hall room 018.  The workshop is free and open to the public.

Proceeds from the events will benefit UNCA’s Center for Jewish Studies and the Holocaust Education Program of Western North Carolina, a partnership of the N.C. Center for the Advancement of Teaching and the Center for Diversity Education. This event is being held in conjunction with the Anne Frank exhibit at Biltmore Square Mall on view through November 15.

For more information about the Voice of the Turtle, call UNCA’s Center for Jewish Studies at 828/251-6576.

Media Contacts:

• Dr. Richard Chess, UNCA Center for Jewish Studies Director, 828/251-6576
• Jill Yarnall, UNCA Public Information Assistant, 828/251-6526