[HANASHIR:13660] Re: Grammys and the Blues

[Rabbi Richard Schachet <lvrabbi...>]

The hassidic, Israeli children's and Israeli  song festival  were sort of
Jewish Grammy's.  Also isn't there a European Festival won by an Israeli a
few years ago.  Isn't this similiar to the Grammy's which I agree are a
farce.


----- Original Message -----
From: "Cantor Brad Hyman" <cantorb (at) pacbell(dot)net>
To: <hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org>
Sent: Wednesday, February 26, 2003 9:39 AM
Subject: [HANASHIR:13658] Grammys and the Blues


> Wow!
>
> That was a wonderful, eloquent, worthy-of-Dennis-Miller rant about the
> Grammy Awards. Sadly, it was also right on the money. Ditto to the
follow-up
> remarks about the great talent that has never received a "bronze
euphonium."
> The Grammy's are all about the industry, and how the industry sells
> records(if we can even call them that...insert audible sigh). I did watch.
> Why did I watch? Like a deer in the high beams, I couldn't change the
> channel. What the hell was that in between the great B.B. King and Herbie
> Hancock?? "Scroll back one more time... don't I look good?" There were
only
> 11 televised awards in a "three-hour tour" spectacular-spectacular that
> included a nod to nostalgia with our Beatrice-cized Simon and
Garfunkel(will
> they reunite to sell more records, or have they healed their infamous rift
> to repair the world, one folkie at a time?), James Taylor (who, by the
way,
> publicly stated that he doesn't care if he won or lost...he's "past it
> all"), and let us not forget that Nora Jones comes from the fine stock of
> Ravi Shankar, who is clearly beyond anything we can comprehend with our
> Western ears.
> I will also echo the 19-year-old Joy Newman, at my wife's alma mater U of
> Ra-cha-cha, who reminds us that Jewish music is in our hands...for now.
> Let's continue learn from the Grammy's as a warning of what can happen if
we
> are swayed solely by record sales, and popularity games. Thank God for
> Transcontinental, Soundswrite, and other venues to sell our wares. Many of
> us would not know about the "new stuff" if it weren't for them and their
> marketing. But are we relying on this alone to spread music, or do the
> "music masters" who surf this listserv and fight in the trenches every
week
> still primarily drive it? Jewish music is not about what is "hot," or what
> is the "most selling Jewish music [insert category here] album ever," but
> rather it is about what is accessible in its time and place. That's why we
> can bring ourselves to let our rich musical heritage that Jeff, Danny, and
> Debbie were running from in the late '60's slip through our fingers with
the
> bath water. This music, of which I dare-not-speak-its-name, too, lives
> inside us and needs to be respected much like our Simon and Garfunkels and
> James Taylors. In its time and place. Perhaps that's why a good ol'
rousing
> rendition of Sulzer's "Shema" is still heard at services in the most
> contemporary Jewish musical bastions.
> I hope the "new guard" of Jewish composers are listening, and will
continue
> to push the envelope. I happen to love watching NFTY go crazy for Danny
> Nichols, Rick Recht, Beth Schafer, and Noam Katz. Heck... I go crazy for
> their stuff, but not necessarily for the same reason the kids do. We need
to
> continue creating (re-creating?) Jewish musical heroes. These heroes are
the
> likes responsible for me (and others I suspect) wanting to learn more, and
> eventually making a return to chazzanut. Isn't that the irony?? The harder
> Jeff ran, he still became a learned cantor, Danny became a rabbi (though
we
> all know he can sing with the best of 'em), and Debbie still shudders at
her
> earlier usage of Hebrew grammar. Carlebach was a chacham first! We need to
> constantly learn more, and what better way to learn than by studying our
> past. As soon as we can dig up ol' Solomon Sulzer from his European
resting
> place, and teach him to write music again that sounds like...hmmmm...
> Russian folk music, '60's protest songs, Dave Mathews riffs, Rusted
Root-ian
> drum circle jams, with a Harry Chapin lyric (God, I wish he were alive to
> comment on the state of the world...more audible sighs) and a smidgen of
> Torah text to wash it down, I'm sure we'll all be right as rain.
>
> Me? I'm gonna sing the Blues....
>
> Cantor Brad Hyman
> Temple Sinai of Glendale
> 1212 N. Pacific Avenue
> Glendale, CA 91202
> (818) 246-8101 phone
> (818) 246-9372 fax
> (818) 244-2547 The "Bat Phone"
>
>
>
>


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