Ishay Ribo will perform at a Woodstock-like Jewish music festival in the Catskills next month

On Thursday, August 7, a massive open-air Orthodox Jewish music festival will take over the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in the Catskills—the iconic site of the original Woodstock festival in August 1969. Yamim Ba’im (“coming days”) will be a four-act concert kicking off at 8pm and headlined by Israeli singer Ishay Ribo with performances by Avraham Fried, the Hasidic neo-soul duo Zusha and Israeli vocalist Shmuel Perednik, best known for his appearance on the Haredi singing competition Hakol Haba.

Ribo, one of Israel’s most popular musicians, is known for blending religious themes with modern musical styles, drawing both observant and secular fans. As reported by the New York Jewish Week, the event’s name is inspired by his 2017 single “Hine Yamim Baim,” which features lyrics from the Book of Amos describing a prophecy of a coming spiritual famine.

Avraham Fried, a legend in Orthodox music for over four decades, brings his signature blend of Chasidic pop and cantorial music to the lineup. Zusha, composed of Shlomo Gaisin and Zecharia Goldschmiedt, has carved out a niche with their soulful, improvisational take on traditional nigunim. Perednik, a rising star in the Haredi world, gained recognition for his powerful performances on Hakol Haba, a religious singing contest in Israel.

Tickets—available for purchase here—range from just under $70 to nearly $400, depending on the seating section. Lawn and orchestra seats are the two main options.

As noted on the event’s official website, the concert takes place on the Thursday night before Shabbat Nachamu, the Shabbat following the fast of Tisha B’Av, which mourns the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Shabbat Nachamu is named after the Haftorah portion read that week—“Nachamu, nachamu ami” (“Comfort, comfort my people”)—and marks the beginning of a period of consolation and hope in the Jewish calendar.

“The festival brings together Jewish voices on the same iconic hillside where music once shaped a generation,” reads the official site. “Now, that hill will echo with Jewish soul and song in a warm, family-friendly atmosphere.”

While Bethel Woods is best known for hosting Woodstock, it also has a lesser-known Jewish history. According to the New York Jewish Week, the site was once a “dairy farm owned by Jewish immigrant and farmer Max Yasgur, who in 1969 agreed to host ‘3 Days of Peace & Music’ after the festival’s original site near Woodstock fell through.”

The timing of Yamim Ba’im is also notable. It takes place during the height of the Catskills’ summer season, when thousands of Orthodox Jewish families relocate to the region for a seasonal retreat—making this a uniquely resonant moment for the community.