In conjunction with the international conference Jews in Maribor and Styria in the Middle Ages, we are also preparing an accompanying event; this will also take place on Sunday, April 23, in the Maribor Synagogue.
As part of this event, at 6:50 p.m., we first invite you to a short presentation by dr. Janez Premk on the development of the Maribor synagogue and its importance for the Maribor Jewish community (the presentation will be in English), followed by a concert by the Maribor klezmer group Kontra-Kvartet at 7:30 p.m.
Dr. Janez Premk is the co-founder and director of the Research and Documentation Center JAS (Jewish Archives of Slovenia). The non-profit institute strives for the continuous development of the Jewish archive project, which was conceived by the author in 2006, and at the same time devotes itself to scientific research. The institute also focuses on the issue of Jewish heritage in Slovenia, participates in educational programs and takes care of contacts with the public. Among the author’s recently published publications are Tracing Jewish Heritage in Slovenia: A Guidebook to Slovenia (JAS, 2014) and Maribor Synagogue (Art History Institute of France Stelet, Ljubljana 2015).
Kontra-Kvartet is an acoustic ethnic group from Maribor, which is one of the few in Slovenia to perform traditional Jewish klezmer music. The group consists of experienced musicians: accordionist Danijel Marinič, guitarist Petar Marić, double bassist Branko Smrtnik and violinist Vesna Čobal. So far, they have performed at many concerts at home and abroad, including in 2011 at the biggest klezmer music festival in Safed, Israel.
The honorary sponsor of the international conference is dr. Andrej Fištravec, Mayor of Maribor Municipality.
Organizers: Center for Jewish Cultural Heritage Maribor Synagogue and Institute for Jewish History of Austria, St. Polten
The international conference is organized as part of the project In the footsteps of Maribor Jews. It was supported by the Municipality of Maribor, the Austrian Cultural Forum and Elektro Maribor.
