Jewlia Eisenberg
Jewlia Eisenberg (1970/1971 – March 11, 2021) was an American singer, composer, bassist, educator, and cantor. Originally from New York City, Eisenberg became an integral member of the San Francisco Bay Area and the New York Downtown music scenes in the 1990s. Her music was both physical, using voices, vocal percussion, handclaps, heartbeats, sex-breath, silence, and also intellectual, exploring such topics as Bosnian genocide in Sarajevo Blues (2004) and the political/erotic nexus of Walter Benjamin and his Marxist muse in Trilectic (2002).
Jewlia Eisenberg
- Name
- Jewlia Eisenberg
- Born
- 1970/1971
- Birthplace
- Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
- Place of death
- Oakland, California, U.S.
- Died
- 2021
- Nationality
- United States
- Occupation
- composer · singer
- Fields
- music · singing
- Education
- Hunter College High School
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In this article
Biography
Biography
Both of these works were released on John Zorn's Radical Jewish Series on Tzadik. She was commissioned from such sources as by the Sloan Foundation and the Goethe Institut SF and has received numerous awards, including: Trust for Mutual Understanding grant for collaboration with poets in ex-Yugoslavia, the Puffin Foundation grant for her Red Rosa project, a Katzenstein Fellow for collaboration with experimental architects and engineers as an Artist-In-Residence at MIT, a Rockefeller Foundation Multi-Arts Production Fund Grant for The Grim Arithmetic of Water, with aerial dance choreographer Jo Kreiter, a Goldman Fund Tikea Fellow for project-based radical film and music work with youth, and a Weisz Fellow for field research and recording among Jewish women in the Gondar region of Ethiopia. Eisenberg enjoyed a retreat as part of the Djerassi Resident Artists Program in October–November 2006.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Jewlia Eisenberg • Landscape — yes • Born — 1970/1971 • Birthplace — Brooklyn, New York, U.S. • Place of death — Oakland, California, U.S. • Origin — New York City, U.S. • Genre — avant-garde, modern classical music • Years Active — 1998–2021 • Label — Tzadik, Recommended Records (RéR) • Associated Acts — Charming Hostess • Website — charminghostess.com
Early life
Early life
Eisenberg was born in Brooklyn, New York, and grew up in Starrett City. Her parents were communists, and she stated that she lived with them in "a commune that was for black and Jewish people". Eisenberg's mother was a musician, who encouraged her musical development. She studied music at UC Berkeley, and later travelled the world. She also studied at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies.
Early work
Early work
Eisenberg's music got a kick-start at University of California in Barrington Hall. It was there that she founded the first incarnation of Charming Hostess. At that time the West Oakland scene was also home to bands such as Fibulator and Eskimo. Half of the members of Charming Hostess were also in Idiot Flesh and Sleepytime Gorilla Museum. Eisenberg has described the genre of early Charming Hostess as "klezmer-punk/balkan-funk". Members included Jewlia Eisenberg (voice, direction), Carla Kihlstedt (voice, fiddle), Nina Rolle (voice, accordion), Wes Anderson (drums), Nils Frykdahl (guitar, flute, saxophone, percussion), and Dan Rathbun (bass). • Illustration — Jewlia Eisenberg performing
Illness and death
Illness and death
Eisenberg died on March 11, 2021, of complications from a rare immune disorder known as GATA2 deficiency. News of the artist's death was announced on her social media page later that day.
Contributions
Contributions
• John Zorn: Masada Anniversary Edition Vol. 2: Voices in the Wilderness. (Tzadik Records, Radical Jewish Culture, 2003) • Various Artists: Great Jewish Music: Sasha Argov. (Tzadik Records, Radical Jewish Culture, 2003)
Listening
Listening
• Jewlia Eisenberg/Jeremiah Lockwood Live performance and interview NYC Radio Live Podcast, July 2018 • Jewlia Eisenberg interview. BBC's The World - by Benjamin Temchine, Sept 2005.
Discography as leader
• Book of J, self-titled. (3rd Generation Records, 2018) • The Bowls Project, as Charming Hostess. (Tzadik Records, Radical Jewish Culture, 2010) • Punch, as Charming Hostess. (Recommended Records, 2005) • Sarajevo Blues, as Charming Hostess. (Tzadik Records, Radical Jewish Culture, 2004) • Thick, with Red Pocket. (Tzadik Records, Oracle Women's Series, 2004) • Trilectic, (Tzadik Records, Radical Jewish Culture, 2002) • Eat, as Charming Hostess. (Vaccination Records, 1998)
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Jewlia Eisenberg, revision 1339207739 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
References
Citations
References
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Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 03 October 2026.
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