Vampire Suit draws on Jay Vilnai's unique musical heritage as a Russian-Romanian-Polish descendant raised in Jerusalem around a mix of contemporary and traditional Jewish and Arab music, with a soul for rock 'n' roll and a BFA in jazz. Couple that with a passion for Bartok and Stravinsky and you end up with all original music that draws on all those influences to create something akin to traditional music for a generation that has so many traditions it calls his. Balkan and Middle-Eastern rhythms are prominent, backed by 20th century composing concepts and jazz improvising. Tel: 917-710-5015. Web: www.vilnaismusic.com. (Jay Vilnai)

Vardos, Melbourne, Australia. Driven by Alana's wild violin, chased by accordion and double bass, Vardos play music learnt from folk and Roma (gypsy) musicians during trips to Hungary and Romania. Formed by Alana Hunt in Perth, Western Australia in 1993, Vardos is now Melbourne based. Since 1995 members of the group have made trips to Eastern Europe to learn : from Hungarian folk music schools to remote Transylvanian villages to Moldavia, far Eastern Romania, where they have learnt Jewish and jewish-influenced music. Tel: 0408336879. Web: www.vardos.com.au. (Alana Hunt)

Vent D'ouest Klezmer Band, Alancon, is a French group who like and revisite Jewish repertory. Four musiciens caming who practice different music (métal, classical, dance ,rock…). Web: www.ventdouestklezmerband.fr/. Myspace: www.myspace.com/ventd39ouest.

The Ventura Klezmer Band, Ventura, CA, formed in 1987 by clarinetist Marty Flam, has released it's first CD, West Coast Klezmer 2002, under the musical direction of keyboardist Ron Fink, and features vocalist Brenda Tzipori and trumpter Roger Bridges. The eight musician ensemble continues to perform at simchas and festivals from Palm Springs to Shell Beach from it's base California in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Web: www.venturaklezmerband.com/. (Marty Flam)

Veretski Pass, a trio of klezmer veterans Cookie Segelstein, 19th Century violin and viola; Josh Horowitz, tsimbl and 19th Century accordion; and Stu Brotman, tsimbl, bass, baraban; plays eastern European Jewish music, Tatar and Karaite as well as rare tunes from the Carpathian Bow. Our revolutionary style of team teaching has drawn rave reviews everywhere. Available for concerts and workshops. The band has released Veretski Pass (2004), Trafik (2008), and The Klezmer Shul, Live (2011), and Poyln (2015, with Joel Rubin). Web: www.veretskipass.com. (Cookie Segelstein)

The youthful, vibrant sound of the Village Klezmer Quintet brings the old world melodies and rhythms of the Eastern European Jews to today's cafes, clubs, and celebrations all around NYC and beyond. The group's weekly shows on Tuesday nights at Café Moto in Williamsburg, Brooklyn draw a steady crowd of old and new fans. Members of the band are welcome and frequent entertainers at weddings, bar mitzvahs, and other events around the tri-state area: Jake Shulman-Ment (violin); Jeff Perlman (clarinet/bass clarinet); Ben Holmes (trumpet); Joey Weisenberg (mandolin/guitar); Travis DiRuzza (bass). Web: www.villageklezmer.com. (Joey Weisenberg)

Vilna Kabarett, Barcelona, Spain, performs Yiddish trad and theatre music in our own Kabarett style! We are a 7-piece international mini-orchestra, including singer. E-mail Vilna Kabarett. (Andy Hawker)

Viva Klezmer! was formed by Gene Kavadlo in 1984. We are a quartet consisting of of clarinet, violin, guitar, and bass, and our home base is Charlotte, NC. We are members of the Charlotte Symphony, and perform Klezmer music as a very pleasant diversion form our symphony gigs. We've concertized extensively in the Southeast, and have performed for numerous festivals, synagogues, and other venues. We have presented education concerts for many years in the Charlotte public schools, and I believe we are the only Klezmer ensemble in the country that presents Klezmer music to public schools on a regular basis. Tel: 704 365-2009. Web: www.vivaklezmer.com. (Gene Kavadlo)

Vocolot: A passionate a cappella celebration of women's voices and percussion performing original music with universal heart, Jewish soul and social conscience. Based in Berkeley, CA, Vocolot brings a joyous fusion of folk, jazz and cantorial traditions and sings in English,Hebrew, Ladino, Yiddish, and Arabic in songs that affirm a vision of one world at peace. Vocolot has released four critically acclaimed recordings: "Heart Beat" (2002), "Behold" (1997), which was nominated for Best World/Folk album by the Contemporary A Cappella Society of America, "Roots And Wing(1992) and "Gather Round" (1989). Web: www.vocolot.com. (Linda Hirschhorn)

The Vodku v glotku (Vodka for the throat—Russian) was founded in 1992 in Budapest, Hungary. Initially, most of our songs were Russian-Jewish pub songs from the city of Odessa. It was an interesting—and somewhat risky—endeavor to sing in Russian in 1992, when the Soviet Army had just left Hungary and the 40-year period of communism had just come to an end in our country. Repertoire of the group broadened, new songs and directions of Jewish music were introduced. In 2000, the group introduced its first CD, Odesszai történetek—Stories from Odessa, which includes the most popular songs played by the band since 1992. In 2001, the band toured for three weeks in Mexico. Vodku v glotku is made up of: Éva Gadanecz (vocal, percussion); István Bata (guitar, vocal, piano, trumpet); Lorinc Szeredás (guitar, cello, banjo, vocal); Gábor Ruthner (bass); Péter Blanár (tenorsax, vocal); Júlia Nedeczky (clarinet); Árpád Szabó (violin); Tibor Szathmáry (drums). Tel: +367 0317 1778. Fax: +36 1388 4041. Web: www.vodku.hu. (István Bata)

The Voyagers were formed by Daphna Sadeh,a composer and Double Bass player, in 2003 and are based in London. The band performs mainly Daphna's compositions. Her music reflects and integrate a diversity and dialogue of musical cultures. The band features a range of established world music and jazz recording artists in her line up. Web: www.daphnasadeh.com. (Daphna Sadeh)

The Vulgar Bulgars are a young, energetic Klez quartet (drums, bass, violin, clarinet), performing klezmer classics and contemporary klez-related tunes in a blend of traditional and modern styles. We perform all around Virginia, DC and the mid-Atlantic, and are available for all the traditional klez occasions (bris's, funerals, and whatnot). Tel: 540 894 5126. Web: www.vulgarbulgars.wordpress.com. (Ezra Freeman)