SHIRAH, Community Chorus on the Palisades
Led by Matthew Lazar, Founding Director and Conductor, and Beth Robin, Pianist/Accompanist, the chorus performs sacred and secular music in Hebrew, English, Yiddish and Ladino. SHIRAH was formed in January, 1995 as a regional chorus specializing in the performance of the full spectrum of Jewish music. Its roster includes a multigenerational blend of amateur and professiional singers from the northern New Jersey/New York metropolitan area. SHIRAH performs regularly at the JCC on the Palisades and has been featured in many concerts in the United States and Israel, including Avery Fisher Hall, the New Jersey and Bergen Performing Arts Centers in Newark and Englewood and the Colden Center, featuring the World Premiere of “The Scroll” by Dov Selzer with the Queens Symphony. SHIRAH also performs annually at the North American Jewish Choral Festival and was featured in the Opening Ceremonies of the JCC Maccabi Games in East Rutherford at the Continental Airlines Arena.…
CONTINUE READING >
The music world involved in the revival of Jewish national music or recovery of early twentieth century art music of the first order will be dazzled by the new critical edition of Leo Zeitlin’s Chamber Music published by AR Editions, and edited by musicologist and professors Paula Eisenstein Baker and Robert S. Nelson. Texts are presented in original Yiddish, Hebrew, transliterations and English translation. 
Debbie Friedman has released a new CD “As You Go On Your Way: Schacharit –The Morning Prayers”. This just released CD has a combination of Debbie’s compositions and melodies to the liturgical texts of the Shacharit, the morning service. Some of the songs on the album are new, but many were composed as long ago as 1972. In a way this retrospective is a perspective piece. The “traditional” repetitions, for example are where the text is more traditional (for example, in the Amidah, the Imahot are included in the non- traditional setting.) The album helps the listener integrate the familiar tunes of Friedman with some chanting of segments of the service. Friedman states in her album “By praying we can understand how each Bracha, each blessing, helps us build a balanced and grateful life.
Matthew Lazar, Conductor
Ilana Cravitz has released a new book exploring traditional klezmer music. It’s a teaching guide, accompanied by a CD, and helps the student delve into the style of klezmer playing. Seckund and bass parts pull out for handy playing with friends. Cravitz explains bowing techniques, includes a brief history of klezmer, and the modes of each piece. Each of the sixteen tunes has a listening track to help learn performance technique. She also gives suggestions for effective variations and interpretations from the written score. In the appendix is a helpful chart explaining the dance style that goes with the various tunes, a Yiddish glossary and pronunciation guide, a bibliography and a discography. She also gives helpful suggestions about arranging melodies in sets, or groups of tunes that will work well together without a break.… 
A new CD by HaOman Hai Ensemble called Kulmus Hanefesh: A musical journey into the Hassidic niggun explores the integration of Jewish folk niggunim and instrumental music from eastern Europe into contemporary Israeli art music. Members of the group include Baruch Brenner, Andre Hajdu, Yair Harel, Nori Jacoby, Jonathan Niv, Eitan Kirsch, and Matti Kovler. Participants are: Avishai Fisz, Roni Mosenson-Nelken and Itamar Ringel
“Beyond Boundaries: Music and Israel @ 60” looks at the Present-Day Complexities of Israeli Music