The Pious Cat weaves together a lyrical vocal score, a traditional Yiddish folk song, and narration into a beautiful setting for soprano, narrator, clarinet and piano of this thought-provoking work by Yiddish author I.L. Peretz. The story is a parable of how devotion and piety are often used to excuse and rationalize even the most heinous acts. It has been variously interpreted as a thinly-veiled comment on the Czarist government’s behavior toward the Jewish communities living in Russia at the time, as an indictment of religion used as a tool for control, and as a strong condemnation of intolerance and persecution committed in the name of devotion.

View the Digital Booklet about the work here.

The full performance is available for download on our online store here.