Frequently Asked Questions

Kol Zimra singers are drawn from our large, selective pool of the best vocal harmony performers. They come from a variety of backgrounds — just like your family and guests, which is why they’re so relatable. They are youthful and energetic. They’re personable and likeable. (And to anticipate Bubbe’s first question: yes, many of them are single, do you have a nice match for them?) Most important, they are respectful and professional. You’ll love Kol Zimra like family!  

The invitations, the décor, the food and the flowers, these things are all important. But what makes the celebration, what gets everyone into the festive mood and what they will really remember, is the music — and the pitch-perfect glee Kol Zimra generates by singing to, and with, everyone. 

Kol Zimra has a roster of more than 150 talented and engaging vocal performers in North America and Israel. With more than three decades of experience, Kol Zimra’s principals devote a great deal of time and effort to hand-tailoring each and every group in consultation with its clientele. This ensures consistency while also providing uniqueness to every group that performs. While the line-up of our performers may vary from one ensemble to the next, quality is never compromised and your satisfaction is of utmost importance.

Kol Zimra singers are drawn from our large, selective pool of the best vocal harmony performers. They come from a variety of backgrounds — just like your family and guests, which is why they’re so relatable. They are youthful and energetic. They’re personable and likeable. (And to anticipate Bubbe’s first question: yes, many of them are single, do you have a nice match for them?) Most important, they are respectful and professional. You’ll love Kol Zimra like family!  

Kol Zimra has a roster of more than 150 talented and engaging vocal performers in North America and Israel. With more than three decades of experience, Kol Zimra’s principals devote a great deal of time and effort to hand-tailoring each and every group in consultation with its clientele. This ensures consistency while also providing uniqueness to every group that performs. While the line-up of our performers may vary from one ensemble to the next, quality is never compromised and your satisfaction is of utmost importance.

Kol Zimra has management and personnel local to Los Angeles and Southern California and the New York tri-state area. We travel regularly on the East Coast, from New England and Boston to the Baltimore-Washington area, Virginia, Georgia, Miami and the rest of Florida; the Midwest, including Cleveland, Detroit and Chicago; Las Vegas, Nevada, Texas, Arizona and the Southwest; Colorado and the mountains; San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, and the Pacific Northwest; and in Israel, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. If we’re not local to you, we’ll gladly travel to you, across North America and Canada, Mexico, Israel, South America, Europe, South Africa, Australia, and even Hong Kong and the Far East. 

We know that there’s no dress rehearsal for your event. It’s got to be great the first and only time. Kol Zimra is dedicated to help you meet your expectations. In the weeks and days leading up to your date, our managers and directors are available to help you to organize your schedule and/or coordinate with your event planner. We have vast experience from working at hundreds and hundreds of events and can recommend best practices, such as how to work out the timing for meal courses, dancing and speeches & toasts. When the date of your event arrives, relax and enjoy: Kol Zimra’s got you covered! 

Absolutely! We entertain requests on the spot. If it should happen that we cannot fulfill your particular request, we’ll surely know other songs by that artist or in that genre that will please you. We also welcome our clients to provide us with a list of top favorite songs, artists and/or genres in advance. That way, we come prepared to deliver. But don’t feel any pressure — Kol Zimra comes knowing many favorites, in English, Hebrew and more. We’re all about pleasing the crowd. 

We’re available to serve as your MC, to move the party along and ensure that things go according to plan. And when, inevitably, something changes, we pivot to the “new plan” so effortlessly and seamlessly that it will seem as if that was what was intended all along. With Kol Zimra, the energy never dips and everyone stays energized and engaged!

One of the main keys to success is having the right number of singers. Please believe us when we say that fewer singers leads to disappointing results. We have decades of experience in customizing the right sized group for every event.

Kol Zimra’s leaders have families themselves. We’re no strangers to the stressful financial realities of living a committed Jewish life. If budget is a concern, talk with us. We will do our best to work with you while still guaranteeing top quality.

Kol Zimra’s core expertise is in combining individual performers from our extensive talent pool into a cohesive group that is best suited for you. All Kol Zimra singers are terrific. What makes Kol Zimra special is how our singers work together.While you may request specific singers that you’ve enjoyed at previous simchas or events, you don’t need to. The group is the thing.

Kol Zimra customizes the perfect blend of talent for you. Customer service is very important to us. That’s why we take the time to talk with you in advance, to get to know you, your tastes and your expectations. Then we craft a group with the sound and playbook that caters to you.

Kol Zimra personnel includes singers with extensive youth group and camp counselor experience. These performers can be made available to lead games and activities for the children amongst your guests. Of course, singing their favorite songs with Kol Zimra, including the latest hits, is so much fun that they may want just the music!

Here is a list of song categories:

• Contemporary
• Kumzitz/Campfire
• Israeli
• Chassidic
• Classic
• Yiddish
• Children’s
• Zemirot
• Pop
• Classic Rock
• Oldies
• Show Tunes
• Children’s
• Latin 

Bear in mind that because Kol Zimra knows so many songs, and everyone’s taste varies widely, it’s challenging to provide a comprehensive track list. Please believe us that when the time comes to choose the right song at the right time for you and your guests, Kol Zimra’s got you covered.

We request that performers be provided (or provided for) meals for the duration of their visit. For full Shabbat engagements or those requiring long distance travel, we may require lodging, i.e. home hospitality or hotel. Depending on the means of travel and the distance to your event, for car travel we may request a modest stipend (i.e. for gas/tolls); and for travel out of town, reimbursement of pre-approved travel expenses (e.g. flights, ground transportation). Kol Zimra respects the investment you are making to hire us and we do our best to keep additional expenses to a minimum.

We realize that as hosts, our clients are juggling the myriad needs of their guests and visitors, such as housing and feeding extended family and personal guests. As such, Kol Zimra does its utmost to provide only essential personnel, i.e. the performers themselves, and not ask for additional provisions or inclusion of non-essential personnel, such as spouses or family members. If there are extenuating circumstances, we will discuss and plan with you well in advance.

Kol Zimra offers co-ed singing groups that combine men and women performers—perfectly suited, for example, for a bat mitzvah, at which the bat mitzvah girl appreciates having women singers as role models, that she can look up to and relate to. Qualitatively, women singers broaden the songbook by enabling the group to perform songs in higher vocal ranges. One consideration is that unamplified women’s voices do not always carry in a crowded room, and you may need more singers. Mostly, deciding between an all-male and a co-ed group is matter of personal preference and religious custom.

Generally Kol Zimra performers dress in dark suits with white shirts and gold ties (and Kol Zimra kippot (yarmulkes)!). In co-ed configurations, the ladies wear dark dresses with gold accents. This uniform suits all settings, from dining rooms and tented backyards to synagogues and banquet halls (and the White House!).

Comparing strolling, interactive a cappella to a klezmer band would be like comparing apples (and honey) to oranges. Whereas a DJ or band is rooted to a stage, Kol Zimra takes the music to the people. We move around and interact interpersonally without any limitations. And we’re not noisy, which will earn the immediate appreciation of the older folks in your crowd.

We liken ourselves your long lost cousins who show up knowing all the great songs and when to sing them. (And looking super-sharp!)

Of course, we frequently work alongside DJs and bands and even offer these services ourselves. See next question.

All of the above! We specialize in providing vocal entertainment either a cappella (without accompaniment), or with acoustic accompaniment (see our videos for samples). We’re equally expandable to meet your broader party needs, including providing or recommending vendors for sound amplification systems, DJs, bands, games, magicians, and much, much more. Please inquire for details.

Certainly! Kol Zimra’s personable, interactive performance style translates marvelously to the stage, thrilling audiences of all ages with a set list customized to the target audience of your organization, institution or business. Please inquire for more details.

Kol Zimra has produced a number of audio and video recordings covering numerous musical genres, styles and configurations. Please visit our MUSIC page to listen to audio selections and watch our videos. Also, check out the testimonials of our many happy clients, with more available upon request.

The sooner the better! With our large pool of talent, we always try our best to accommodate last-minute inquiries, so don’t hesitate to ask. But also don’t wait!