ARTS&LIFE
PROFILE

Y

ale Strom has been called an accom-
plished violinist, documentarian, 
filmmaker, composer, playwright, 
author, lecturer, photographer and Jewish 
scholar and, in fact, he is all of these. The 
multi-talented Strom, 65, a native Detroiter, 
is well-known in contemporary Jewish and 
Yiddish culture, encompassing multiple 
aspects of the creative arts. He’s also a pioneer 
in klezmer music, having done extensive field 
research in Eastern European Jewish and 
Roma communities, trying to bring back the 
music lost for generations. In 2010, he was 
the first klezmer musician to perform at the 
United Nations General Assembly. 
For almost four decades, Strom has been 

performing with his klezmer band, Hot 
Pstromi, wooing audiences worldwide, 
including Paris, Berlin, Prague, Hong Kong 
and Israel. “Our band has played all over the 
world,
” notes Strom, who has also played 
at various venues around Detroit, includ-
ing the DIA, Palmer Park and the Jewish 
Communinty Center. “We have five instru-
mentalists and my wife, Elizabeth, who is the 
vocalist. She also plays the ukulele and often-
times we do a duet.
” 
With the band and solo, Strom has record-
ed dozens of CDs — many can be down-
loaded on YouTube by entering his name. He 
has composed his own new Jewish music, 
which combines klezmer with Romani, jazz, 

classical Balkan and Sephardic motifs. These 
compositions include quartets, duets and a 
symphony, which he premiered with the St. 
Louis Symphony Orchestra. “I also composed 
all the music for the audio drama, The Witches 
of Lublin, starring Tovah Feldshuh.
” 
According to Strom, he owes his musical 
background and dedication to Judaism to 
his family. Born in Detroit, Strom, who went 
to Vernor Elementary School, grew up in a 
Conservative traditional Jewish home with 
parents who had strong socialist views. He 
was exposed to Chasidic melodies as a young 
child and learned to speak Yiddish early on, 
thanks to his parents, Phyllis Newman Strom 
and David Strom, both Detroiters. 

Detroit-born Yale Strom is an all-around Renaissance Man.
A Klezmer Pioneer

ALICE BURDICK SCHWEIGER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

58 | AUGUST 17 • 2023 

YALE STROM/FACEBOOK