[HANASHIR:5595] Re: wrestling

[Adrian Durlester <durleste...>]

Unfortunately, Shirona, it is not enough to have passion and expect it to
infect others. When it does, the infection is often short lived. Take, for
example, the way kids (and adults) like, and are infected by the passion of
hassidut. The simple fact is, hassidut without the true piety of the
hassidim, without dvekut, is simply empty songs - as Amos puts it "idle
players upon the harp." Now, one might say, in the spirit of na'aseh
v'nishma, that doing the music might ultimately lead to getting
understanding of it and feeling the true spirit. Sadly, I think this is not
happening. I have seen far too many crowds whipped into a hassidic frenzy,
only to break apart leaving their trash strewn everywhere, running to check
their voice or email, etc. No, passion with technique is NOT enough. Not by
a longshot. Amos had passion. Hosea had passion, So did Micah, Joel,
Jeremiah, Isaiah, and all the rest. For the most part, it got them nowhere.
No-people have to BUY IN to the whole thing. Like when the people gave to
help build the mishkan (never mind that all they were giving up were the
spoils of Egypt-but that's a story for another time.)

Many Jewish singers and songleaders out there perform with passion. In fact,
I would hesitate to say that any of them perform without passion. The
Hassids have no monopoly on passion, nor does any one performer.

Now, there is no doubt in my mind that the Breslovers and others were on to
something. That music does indeed get inside my soul. Fact is, however, that
much of the contemporary music being written and performed by the very
people who make up this online community can also affect me in that same
way. We can learn from the hassid. But the hassid can learn from us, too.

Now, I have  theory, too, about why niggunim are so effective today. It's an
MTV/VH1 backlash. Music videos stole from people a very precious thing-the
ability to visualize the music FOR THEMSELVES. Much Jewish music (as well as
simple contemporary rock, pop, hip hop, country, alternative, etc.) does the
same, forcing text into particular rhythms or melodies or rubrics. The
niggunim free us from that tyranny. Not used to that freedom in an MTV/VH1
society, kids, especially, relish this very different feeling of being able
to control what the music says. And adults, who remember what it was like
before the tyranny of music videos and totally patterned and predictable pop
music made by simply stringing together the same old loops in different ways
also relish the freedom of the niggunim.

So you see, it's more than just passion at work here. Passion is needed, and
I hope all of us continue to be ever more passionate about what we do, about
our Judaism, about Gd, etc. But passion alone will not suffice. Nor is
technique the only adjunct it needs.

Adrian

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Adrian A. Durlester  -  durleste (at) home(dot)com
http://members.home.net/durleste/
Student, Vanderbilt University Divinity School
http://divinity.lib.vanderbilt.edu/vds/vds-home.htm
Music Director, Congregation Micah, Nashville, TN http://www.micahnash.org/
Home phone (615) 646-9788 Nextel cel-phone (615) 207-2661
You can page me from http://www.nextel.com
List-Owner for hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org; Co-Owner for L-Torah (at) 
shamash(dot)org
http://uahc.org/hanashir
Editor, Bim Bam (for Torah Aura Productions) http://www.torahaura.com/
Alternate Email: aad (at) iname(dot)com  adriand (at) aol(dot)com

> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org [mailto:owner-hanashir (at) 
> shamash(dot)org]On
> Behalf Of Shirona
> Sent: Tuesday, March 28, 2000 11:03 AM
> To: hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org
> Subject: [HANASHIR:5587] Re: wrestling
>
>
> Thank you Rich for taking the risk and saying something from the heart. I
> agree with everything you said...
>
> Go back a few hundred years and check out the first Hassiddim.
> Same thing.
> They could have used your words.  Hence the intense singing, dancing, the
> (almost) physical relationship with the Rebe...
>
> It's as if you're saying - "we need more Hassiddut"  in how we
> practice and
> teach our religion, here in North America.  Of all the songs I taught the
> kids at Temple Israel Center, White Plains NY,  their all time
> favorites are
> the Hassiddic tunes, the ones I had them wave their hands in the air along
> with   "ya ba ba ba bai bai" -  the way Hassidim do.  What can I tell you.
> Listen to Bresslav music - is there ANY music that reaches deeper
> into your
> (Jewish) soul?  These guys are ON to something!  I can see how many
> Americans would be totally turned off, for obvious reasons.  But
> if we look
> beyond the ancient customs and "cult-like" appearance - I believe we can
> learn allot from them and get inspired.
>
> You are on the right track with the kind of work that you do.  It's all
> about passion.  If you have it - the kids  (and even grownups)
> will get it
> too.   Everything else is just technique.
>
> Shirona


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