Welcome to Kolot HaLev

Kolot HaLev – Voices of the Heart – is Greater Washington, DC's independent community choir focusing on Jewish choral music.

Hallelujah -– A Leonard Cohen classic

Love of Music and Community

Kolot haLev is actively looking for singers of all voice parts interested in singing with us and sharing a love of Jewish music. No audition — just your love of learning and singing Jewish choral music, plus a strong commitment. Experience the exhilaration of blending your voice with others!

Join us

Meet our musical director, Hazzan Dr. Ramón Tasat

Meet Our Director

Adon Olam (set to the melody of the Ukrainian National Anthem)

Upcoming Events

6th MD JEWISH CHORAL FESTIVAL

Dedicated to Shoah/Holocaust music. This choral event aligns with International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27th, which was designated by the U.N. to mark the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp. PHOTO:...

18th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

See the Full Playlist on our Youtube channel

The Sixth Maryland Jewish Choral Festival

dedicated to Shoah/Holocaust Music

Sunday, January 25, 2026

This choral event aligns with International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27th, which was designated by the U.N. to mark the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp.

PHOTO: In 1942 in Dachau, an evening of song given by the Czechoslovakian camp choir was recorded in this drawing by Vladimir Matejka. The huge crowd enjoying this rare musical treat shows clearly how important it was for prisoners to be able to organize a musical performance like this (published in Kopf hoch, Kamerad! Künstlerische Dokumente aus faschistischen Konzentrationslagern, ed. Deutsche Akademie der Künste zu Berlin, 2d ed. (Berlin, 1966), ill. 21).

These huge difficulties involved in organizing musical groups made it all the more important for professional and amateur musicians to set an example of solidarity and humane behavior in their dehumanized surroundings. This meant, of course, that there was less emphasis on aesthetic criteria: through fostering a sense of community, music served instead as a form of cultural resistance, as practical assistance in the struggle to survive.

New Music was performed by
Bou Habaita (2025) – Lyrics and Music by the Israeli composer
Orit Perlman – Commissioned by Kolot Halev

Anyone interested in singing can participate.

For the yearly Jewish Choral Festivals, there is no requirement to belong to a choral organization, to be Jewish, to be an experienced singer, to have knowledge of Hebrew, or to live within the Greater Washington area. All are welcome.

Past Events

Annual Concert 2025

The 2025 Annual Concert Psalms that Inspire Our Lives Thursday May 15, 2025 Since immemorial times the Psalms have provided people with moments of great inspiration, passion, introspection, and beauty. Our concert was a tour of music from the global village, to taste distinct music styles from around the world. We virtually visited Iraq, Germany, France, Italy and the United States, among...

Jun 15, 2025

MJCF5 – Choral Festival 2025

This popular program draws singers every year from near and far who join with choir members and alumni to rehearse and sing choral music on a Sunday afternoon. As the Festival fell within the week of the presidential inauguration and International Holocaust Remembrance Day, both were represented in selections we learned and sang. Each year, we work with teachers who share their unique skills...

Jan 26, 2025

Azkarah for Oct. 7 Victims

WHAT? Prayer and song can unite. Participate in (or listen to) an inclusive, apolitical choral performance. Our purpose is to remember and to unify through song. Through diverse compositions, the event will offer a space for reflection, and collective mourning. Please tell anyone that you think might be interested. The event will feature the premiere of an original composition, performed by...

Jul 2, 2024

MJCR4 – 4th Maryland Jewish Choral Festival

Jewels in the Crown - The Sounds of Jewish England Sunday, March 10, 2024 • 12–6 pm EDT On Sunday, March 10th, 2024, honored the contribution of Jewish England The major work to be performed is Eshet Hayil (A Woman of Valor), composed by Judith Silver, a London-based contemporary composer. Eshet Hayil was commissioned in 2020, but delayed due to the...

Mar 10, 2024

Olney Theatre Fiddler Prelude

December 10, 2023 | 12:30pm | Olney Theater 2001 Olney - Sandy Spring Rd, Olney, MD 20832 Kolot HaLev sings at the Olney Theatre as a prelude to the performance of “Fiddler on the Roof.”

Dec 10, 2023

Israel Relief Concert

Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023 | 7:00 pm with participation by KOLOT Halev Hazzan Ramón Tasat, Artistic Director Washington Hebrew Congregation, 3935 Macomb Street NW, Washington, DC 20016 Cantors from over 15 congregations will gather for one special evening of song. 100% OF TICKET SALES SUPPORTED FEDERATION’S ISRAEL CRISIS...

Nov 2, 2023

Silence the Violence

Silence the Violence (STV) Concert October 14, 2023 | 7:30pm Kolot HaLev sang at the 8th annual concert as a benefit for The TraRon Center, a non-profit in DC that uses art therapies for healing kids and their families traumatized by gun...

Oct 14, 2023

Tefilah Limdinat Israel

Prayer for the State of Israel October 12 at 8:30 PM to learn and sing together Music by Dr. Norma Brooks at Ohr Kodesh Congregation, Chevy Chase, MD

Oct 12, 2023

Annual Concert 2023 – Buena Semana

Buena Semana/ A New Week Jewish Music Across the Americas The concert traced Jewish immigration to the Americas in song, showing how melodies encountered on new shores found their way into music composed for texts essential to Jewish life. Here are some examples from our concert:. The Kolot HaLev Annual Concert 2023 took place on Sunday, June 11, 2023 at Ohr Kodesh...

Jun 11, 2023