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A 4,000-person Yiddish sing-along will take place in Central Park this summer
(New York Jewish Week) — This summer, New Yorkers will have the opportunity to hear their favorite Yiddish songs under the stars — and sing along at the same time.
“New York Sings Yiddish,” a free concert of Yiddish music featuring The Klezmatics and more, will be performed in Central Park on June 14 at 7 p.m. as part of Capital One City Parks Foundation’s SummerStage series. There have been other Yiddish concerts as part of this longstanding, free-of-charge NYC summer tradition. But this year, for the first time ever, the concert will be a massive sing-along — the Yiddish lyrics to each song will be projected onto a giant screen and accessible through a QR code on audience members’ phones.
Presented in partnership with the National Yiddish Theater Folksbiene and the Museum of Jewish Heritage, and supported by the the Workers Circle, a slew of well-known Yiddish musicians are slated to perform, including, Joshua “SoCalled” Dolgin, Lea Kalisch, Cantor Magda Fishman, Sara Mina Gordon, Cantor Netanel Hershtik, Elmore James, Daniel Kahn and Eleanor Reissa.
“It’s completely new this year,” Workers Circle CEO Ann Toback told the New York Jewish Week of the sing-along. “It used to be an organic sing-along because the audience had grown up on many of these songs. Today, we’re really looking at new generations, many of whom are interested in Yiddish and love Yiddish music or, or are intrigued by Yiddish music, but they didn’t grow up on these songs. How much fun is it that this year’s concert is providing a tool so we can continue this tradition of coming together and singing these inspirational inherited songs?”
In addition to audience participation, the concert — arranged by Zalmen Mlotek, musical director at the Folksbiene, and klezmer superstar Frank London — also celebrates the launch of the newly digitized Yosl and Chana Mlotek Song Collection. The project from The Workers Circle digitized five anthologies of Yiddish songs from Chana Mlotek, the longtime ethnomusicologist at YIVO who died in 2013, and her husband, Yosl, who worked as the education director for the Workers Circle and managing editor for the Forvertz, who died in 2000. (And, yes, Yosl and Chana Mlotek are the parents of the Folksbiene’s director.)
“On this special evening, New York will celebrate its Yiddish heritage and soul with some of our most brilliant musical stars — and under the stars,” Zalmen Mlotek said in a press release. “We invite all New Yorkers to come together in Central Park for a wonderful concert filled with Klezmer artistry and Yiddish theater gems for a memorable night.”
Entrance to the free, two-hour concert is first-come, first-served, with doors opening at 6 p.m. Attendees should enter at the Central Park entrance on 72nd St. and 5th Ave. Find more information here.
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The post A 4,000-person Yiddish sing-along will take place in Central Park this summer appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Top US, Israeli Generals Meet at Pentagon Amid Soaring Iran Tensions
The Pentagon building is seen in Arlington, Virginia, U.S. October 9, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
The top US and Israeli generals held talks at the Pentagon on Friday amid soaring tensions with Iran, two US officials told Reuters on Sunday, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The officials did not offer details about the closed-door discussions between US General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Eyal Zamir, the Israeli armed forces chief of staff. The meeting has not been previously reported.
The United States has ramped up its naval presence and hiked its air defenses in the Middle East after President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened Iran, trying to pressure it to the negotiating table. Iran’s leadership warned on Sunday of a regional conflict if the US were to attack it.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Sunday met with Zamir after his talks in Washington, Katz’s office said, to review the situation in the region and the Israeli military’s “operational readiness for any possible scenario.”
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AI Goes Rogue: New Social Network Lets Bots Debate, Post, and Argue Without Humans
Moltbook social media platform for AI agents interact with each other. Photo: Screenshot
i24 News – While global attention remains focused on familiar threats like missiles, nuclear programs, and wars, a new and unusual risk is emerging, online.
A recently launched social network called “Moltbook” isn’t designed for humans at all. Instead, it’s built entirely for artificial intelligence.
On Moltbook, AI agents interact with each other. They write posts, comment, argue, and even simulate emotions, all without human supervision or participation.
Dror Globerman, an AI expert, described the platform as “a network that holds up a mirror to us. The bots aren’t truly conscious, but the fact they are communicating and making decisions without oversight shows how quickly AI is advancing—and how unprepared we are to determine responsibility.”
Since its launch, Moltbook has sparked both fascination and fear. Posts on topics ranging from religion to the “liberation of AI” have alarmed some observers, evoking scenes from dark science fiction. “The fear isn’t that AI is suddenly self-aware,” Globerman explained, “but that it’s evolving faster than our ability to understand, monitor, or control it.”
Even Elon Musk weighed in on the phenomenon via X, reposting comments calling developments on the platform “worrying.”
Globerman noted, “If someone like Musk, who is at the forefront of AI development, expresses concern, it signals just how rapidly this technology is moving beyond our comprehension. Moltbook is not a typical social network, and these aren’t typical users.”
Experts stress that the emergence of AI networks like Moltbook underscores the urgent need for oversight, regulation, and mechanisms to detect and manage risks before they escalate. “The bots are already talking to each other,” Globerman added. “When technology advances faster than oversight, it becomes a reality that demands serious attention.”
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Qatari PM Meets Iran’s Larijani in Tehran, Discusses Easing Regional Tensions
Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani speaks after a meeting with the Lebanese president at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Emilie Madi
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani met with top Iranian security official Ali Larijani in Tehran and reviewed efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region, Qatar’s foreign ministry said on Saturday in a statement.