TRADITIONS EXPLORED: Speaking of good things arising from times of turmoil, the 25th Annual Jewish Music Festival, sponsored at the Jewish Community Center East Bay, will showcase the sublimating effects of music in programs from Sunday through March 29.

The first program, "Back to the Roots: Notions of Jewish Musical Revival," will be a discussion at 3 p.m. Sunday featuring music scholars Benjamin Brinner, Judah Cohen, Edwin Seroussi, and Michael Schwartz, who will explore Sephardic and Ashkenazi music traditions as well as the recent revival of klezmer music, one of the most joyful and exuberant of musical genres. Francesco Spagnolo will moderate the discussion.

A program featuring the Yuval Ron Ensemble will feature "Sacred Jewish and Muslim Music of the Middle East" at 8 p.m. March 20. Klezmer Buenos Aires will showcase klezmer with a tango twist at 1:30 p.m. March 29. All programs will be at the Jewish Community Center of the East Bay, 1414 Walnut St., in Berkeley.

Tickets for each program are $10. Call 510-848-0237 or go to www.jewishmusicfestival.org.