[HANASHIR:12610] Re: Adding Pro Singers To Choir

[Freedabet <Freedabet...>]

You also live in a city where, I will assume, the 'competition' for competent 
singers is not fierce.  In Los Angeles, it is difficult and expensive to find 
competent singers for High Holy Days, and that much more difficult if they 
must also be Jewish.

Michael

-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------

> Date: Tuesday, 22-Oct-02 06:06 PM
> 
> From: Edward Katz              \ Internet:    (eekatzmd (at) yahoo(dot)ca)
> To:   Hanashir Mail Server     \ Internet:    (hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org)
> 
> Subject:  [HANASHIR:12600]  Re: Adding Pro Singers To Choir
> 
> Sender: owner-hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org
> Reply-to:       hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org
> To:     hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org
> Well, I've been reading all the messages in this
> thread, and couldn't resist adding my own.
> 
> A few years ago, here in Montreal, one of the Orthodox
> shuls hired a new choirmaster, who decided to
> eliminate the amateur men's chorus, and replace it
> with a professional choir, many of whom were not
> Jewish. This created quite a scandal. In fact, the
> Rabbi was so incensed that, on Kol Nidrei evening, he
> announced to the Congregation that he was resigning
> because of it, and walked out of the synagogue before
> services could even begin! He never returned.
> 
> There are really two issues in this thread:
> professional vs. amateur singers, and Jewish vs.
> non-Jewish singers. At Shaare Zion, a Conservative
> shul in Montreal, we have the best of all possible
> worlds. Our 20-member mixed choir has 8 professionals,
> and 12 fairly advanced amateurs. All of us are Jewish,
> but there are only 4 choir members who are also
> members of the congregation (including two of the
> professionals). Of the 12 amateurs, about half are
> volunteers, and the other half receives a minimal
> stipend, which requires them to be present at all
> Saturday and holiday services. All the amateurs can
> read music; most of us have taken solfege and voice
> training. Congregants are not encouraged to audition
> unless they have had sufficient musical training.
> 
> We are fortunate in being located in a city where the
> Jewish population is large enough to have a sufficient
> number of high-calibre singers. Also, the choir has
> been in existence for some 40 years. Its reputation is
> established, and many people, especially non-members,
> come to services mainly to hear us. 
> 
> I didn't intend to ramble on so long, but I just want
> to emphasize that the ideal synagogue choir is an
> all-Jewish mixed amateur/professional group.
> 
> Edward Katz, M.D.
> Shaare Zion Congregation Choir
> Montreal, Quebec
>  
> 
>  
> 
> 
> 
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> 
> 
> 

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