Fran’s Performances

About Fran

mom

Fran’s Performances

haida thgiv
1992




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Whether asked to sing at family weddings or for older adults or for children or mixed audiences, Fran Kleiner has been a hit, enjoying the moment and getting others to join in. At her son’s wedding not only he and his bride request she sing, but the band leader, renowned Philadelphia-area Klezmer musician, Ken Ulansey, insisted, because he had heard and accompanied Fran before. Soon, she had 170 people singing Haida. As a wedding gift, she produced a CD. A few years ago, Ulansey held Klez-Jams once a month at The Mermaid Inn in the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia, and often, Fran became the vocalist. In December 1998, at a concert by Ulansey and others at The Sedgwick Cultural Center in the Mt. Airy section of Philadelphia, Ulansey spontaneously asked Fran to sing -- unrehearsed. The hundreds in attendance roared, stood and clapped their approval after she finished singing.

As in the classroom, when Fran performs, she always provides the cultural and historical significance of the music, and the translation.

Fran’s repertoire includes music in many languages, and folk, Yiddish, Hebrew, resistance, union, friendship and peace songs.

Places and Occasions Where Fran’s Performed:

1. Summer Camps: As Counselor and Division Head introduced Yiddish Music at all levels of activity( i.e. from the
bunks to the divisions to the camp wide programs. (1943-1954, 1970-1990)
2. Jewish Community Centers and Neighborhood Centers of Philadelphia (1953-present)
3. Senior Citizen Centers, Retirement communities and Nursing Homes (1953-present; In Philadelphia, Philadelphia suburbs, New York City,
Cherry Hill, NJ and Vineland, NJ)
4. Jewish Childrens’ Folkshul of Philadelphia School Holiday Programs (1963-present)
5. Sholom Aleichem Club Cultural and Other Programs (1967-present). Sang on commercially distributed cassette of Club’ Passover Seder programs.
6. International House of Philadelphia (1979, 1980)
7. Congress of Secular Jewish Organizations Of North America: Performances and Workshops at Annual International
Conferences) (1973-present)
8. Bar and Bat Mitzvahs (1974-present)
9. Sang Yiddish song for son’s graduate school video on Eastern European Immigration to America (December 1994)
10. Northwest (Philadelphia) Jewish Festivals (1995-1998)
11. Mermaid Inn (1998-present)
12. Sedgwick Cultural Center (1998, 1999)
13. Montgomery County Democratic Party Campaign Picnic (1998)
14. Various weddings (several over the years)
15. Various Havurahs (several over the years)
16. Hadassah (on several occasions over the years)
17. Various Anniversary programs (several over the years)
18. Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Jenkintown, PA (Sept. 8, 1999, June 22, 2000)
19. Haverford College Yiddish Culture Festival Group (January, 2000)
20. Another Appearance of Women for History, Germantown (PA) Community Presbyterian Church (March 2000)
21. Various synagogues
22. Gratz College
23. Celebrate Jewish Heritage Weekend, Jewish Community Center of Houston (March, 2001)
24. Marple Municipal TownshipLibrary, Broomall, PA (Nov. 14, 2004)
25. Martin’s Run, Media, PA (Dec. 26, 2004; February 2005)
26. Women’s ORT, Broomall, PA (Sept. 7, 2004)
27. Summit Children’s Program, Philadelphia, PA (Dec. 10, 2004; Dec. 11, 2003)

About Fran