The brainchild of powerhouse vocalist Jewlia Eisenberg, Charming Hostess has evolved over the years from an art-rock big band to a female vocal trio to its latest incarnation as a quintet drawing on a confoundingly diverse array of influences from the Jewish and African diasporas, with Andalusian cadences and Pygmy polyphony thrown in for good measure. Inhabiting the intersection of voice, text and diaspora consciousness, the Bay Area band is a whirl of eerie harmony, hot rhythm, and radical smarts. For this program the group is exploring Sephardic women’s music, songs that mostly address sex and work (in Ladino, the almost forgotten language of Spain’s exiled Jews).

charminghostess.com