Cookie Segelstein

Cookie Segelstein is a founding member of Varetski Pass, a trio based in the Bay Area that specializes in 19th to 20th century Jewish music from the Carpathian Mountains as part of the “klezmer revival” movement. Trained in Classical-Romantic repertoire during her studies at Yale, she was principal violist in Orchestra New England, with whom she recorded the music of Charles Ives and performed solo works from Bach to Holst to premieres. She was also principal violist of the New Haven Symphony for many years. Among her career credits, Segelstein recorded the violin music for the Jewish wedding episode of HBO’s Sex and the City as well as many CDs as an expert on Jewish violin style, and has written various books of historical transcriptions. Varetski Pass will soon begin an exploration of music from Crimea.