Keep Sephardic Culture and Ladino alive!

We are the Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE), a non-profit musical ensemble, and our goal is to preserve and celebrate Ladino, the endangered language and culture of the Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain during the Inquisition.

Their history is both tragic and inspiring. Driven from their home, Spanish Jews resettled all over the world, bringing their distinctive culture with them-Ladino-a beautiful mixture of Hebrew, Jewish, and Spanish language and traditions. Today, Ladino is spoken by minority communities in more than 30 countries, yet it is at risk of extinction. Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE) is the only artistic group in Los Angeles dedicated to preserving this unique musical tradition, and the only choir to perform with flamenco dancers, highlighting Ladino’s fascinating intersection of Hispanic and Jewish culture. Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE) is recognized by the Sephardic authority.

Founded in 1992 by the late Raphael Ortasse, a man with a huge heart and a great dream of preserving the language and songs he heard in his childhood. He always followed the mantra:

"That man is a success- who leaves the World better than he found it; Who looked for the best in others and gave the best he had".

His dream became a reality, and today Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE) is a diverse group of singers, representative of the rich cultural tapestry of Los Angeles. Members have ancestry from Israel, Eastern Europe, Uzbekistan, Libya, Turkey, Spain, Canada, Brazil, and Morocco, including choristers from Mexico who discovered their connection to Sephardic Jewry when investigating family histories. The Choir not only preserves Ladino music through performance but through commissioning musical arrangements of Ladino folk tunes that have been passed down orally for centuries in secret, when Sephardic Jews were prohibited from practicing their traditions.

We, as a community, are just beginning to recognize the toll on our collective mental health. Research bears out what any choir/dance troupe member will tell you: Communal singing and dancing are profoundly healing and have tremendous benefits for physical and mental well-being. It’s clinically proven to strengthen community bonds and feelings of togetherness, and to promote prosocial behavior such as neighborliness and kindness to others. Numerous studies point to the mental health benefits of singing, including reducing stress and depression, and learning to dance flamenco, besides the obvious benefits of movement, is just plain fun! For these reasons, Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE) will build interactive singing and dancing into our community performances.

We request your help in supporting the continuation of this artistically important partnership with your communities through performances, finishing the choir's new album, sharing the beauty of Sephardic melodies, and healing people through art. Our performances will feature historically relevant Ladino music and flamenco dancing.

We greatly appreciate your kind donations that help support the Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE) to achieve its mission of keeping Ladino/Sephardic music and culture alive. As a non-profit volunteer choir, we rely on your generous support to fund important costs including salaries for music accompanists, our wonderful music conductor and arranger, sound and lighting technicians, dancers, and venue rentals for our performances, recordings, and many more exciting things we have lined up. We were moving toward the finish line with a recording of our 2nd album when Covid hit and everything was locked down. Shortly after, our great man, founder, and Director- Raphael Ortasse passed. The songs we recorded for this album are breathtaking, outstanding, and unique. We would love to finish our 2nd album, so we can share it with you and your communities. We always bring feelings of happiness and healing with our Sephardic melodies. Don't let us stop spreading the greatness of this culture. Let us bring it to you!

Unfortunately, we are unable to complete it without your financial help.

We are truly grateful for all donations, big or small, that help us make this important goal a reality.

We can't do this without your support! Your help is an important factor in achieving our mission!

Thank you so much for giving!

*All donations are tax-deductible.

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