The Music of Simcha
Join us to learn how to celebrate joyous Jewish occasions via the unique lens of Jewish music across diverse traditions with teachers from all over the world.
Sessions Include: -
• Welcome
• Music fit for a Bride with Jonathan Greenstein
• Sheva Brachot: the Blessing of Seven with Cantor Bex Blumenfeld
• Music of Simcha in the Amsterdam Esnoga with Rav Nachshon Rodrigues Pereira
• Wedding Entertainment Ashkenazi-Style with Diana Matut
• Farewell
See below for the timetable and more information on each session and its teacher(s).
Join EAJL on Sunday July 30th, 2023 from 12:40 to 19:00 BST. All times UK, adjust to your time zone.
Timetable and Session Information
Welcome - 12:40 to 12:50
Session 1 - 13:00 to 14:15 - Music fit for a Bride with Jonathan Greenstein
Learn about the music of the synagogue that accompanies the chuppah ceremony in the Anglo Jewish tradition.
About the teacher: Jonathan Greenstein is the founder and choirmaster of the Jerusalem based Kol Rina mixed choir specialising in the music of the English Synagogue. Following Aliyah, he was a chorister and later a soloist at the Great Synagogue in Jerusalem for almost thirty years. He was also formally choirmaster at Childwall and Princes Road synagogues in Liverpool. Jonny is an electronic engineer by profession and an amateur musicologist.
Session 2 - 14:30 to 15:45 - Sheva Brachot: the Blessing of Seven with Cantor Bex Blumenfeld
Come and learn with me about the music, the meaning and the significance of the sheva brachot under the chuppah and as part of the Jewish wedding liturgy and celebrations. Joyous, beautiful and expressive, these brachot are an integral part of any wedding. Come prepared to sing!
About the teacher: Chazan Rebecca Blumenfeld (Cantor Bex) is a freelance Chazan, a Spiritual and Liturgical Leader and Jewish educator affiliated with the Masorti movement. She graduated from Hebrew College in Boston in 2015 with Cantorial Ordination (S'micha) and a Masters in Jewish Studies. She moved back to the UK with her family in 2016.
Session 3 - 16:00 - 17:15 - Music of Simcha in the Amsterdam Esnoga with Rav Nachshon Rodrigues Pereira
The Portuguese Jews were often known for their 'gravidade', their gravitas. This means that they expressed their emotions, even the happiest ones, in a modest and solemn way. In this course, we will learn about the most notable festive musical pieces of the Esnoga: the liturgy for the Chupah - the blessings and songs, the music for the Hatanim on Simhat Torah and for every anniversary of the Esnoga. We will listen to special recordings and practice some of the tunes. Afterwards there will be room for questions and answers.
About the teacher: Nachshon Rodrigues Pereira is the community leader and Chazzan (Cantor) of the Bendigamos community in Amsterdam. His family has been part of the Portuguese Jewish community of the Netherlands for four centuries. After studying political science and a short corporate career, he decided he wants to spend most of his time teaching and rebuilding the Jewish community in Amsterdam. This community is still suffering greatly from the WWII atrocities. Today, he works for the Jewish Seminary of Amsterdam, teaches many bar- mitzvah students, writes for a Jewish news website and organizes Jewish concerts.
Session 4 - 17:30 - 18:45 - Wedding Entertainment Ashkenazi-Style: Of Women, Badkhonim and Klezmeray with Diana Matut
Since it is a religious obligation to make bride and groom happy on their wedding-day, entertainment for them and their guests was an integral part of Ashkenazic wedding customs since the very inception of Ashkenaz itself. While unpaid women were performers (and maybe writers) of Yiddish wedding songs, the male, professional wedding entertainer, called badkhn, slowly became the dominating voice of song, rhyme and improvisation. Klezmorim - instrumental musicians - had their place during various moments of the wedding, playing for processions and the dances. Increasingly, they accompanied badkhonim and took over various functions hitherto reserved for singing. Some of the most famous core pieces of their repoertoire still reflect this origin. In this seminar, we follow the traditions of Ashkenazic wedding musics and explore beautiful, rich, and varied traditions worth exploring and reviving.
About the teacher: Dr. Diana Matut teaches Jewish Studies, Yiddish and Jewish Music at the University Halle-Wittenberg and the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies. In 1999, she earned her Diploma in Hebrew and Jewish Studies (Oxford), followed 2001 by the MA in Yiddish Studies (SOAS, London). The same year brought her to the Advanced Seminar for Yiddish Studies at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York – taught exclusively in Yiddish. She has taught at universities in the UK, Israel, the USA, Canada, Italy and the Czech Republic as well as for several Jewish cultural festivals and centers such as Yiddish Summer Weimar, Klezkanada, Klezfest London and Maison de la Culture Yiddish Paris.
