A Message from Festival Director Eric Stern

We are thrilled to announce the Portland Jewish Music Festival 2026! Now in its second year, this celebration of Jewish musical traditions from throughout the diaspora and Israel will fill EJC for more than a week with top-tier artists from near and far. We are especially delighted to host one of the most famous Mizrachi musicians in the world – Yair Dalal – as a festival headliner.

The Portland Jewish Music Festival was born last year when local folk music organization Bubbaville, (producer of the Portland Klezmer Festival for several years prior), passed the event’s torch to EJC as its natural home. As curator of the festival, I extended it to last a week and added Sephardic and Mizrachi music to the scope to present a broader and more inclusive vision of global Jewish artistry.. The Portland Jewish Music Festival became a multicultural event showcasing folk music from Spain, Northern Africa and Iraq, as well as Yiddish and Klezmer music.

The Portland Jewish Music Festival is quickly becoming not only a tentpole of EJC and local Jewish programming, but also a highlight of the region’s cultural calendar, period. We can’t wait to share these 11 days and nights of concerts, discussions and community joy with you!

CHECK OUT ALL OF THE EVENTS IN THIS COLLECTION!