Re: Jewish Folk Music?...Adon Olam, et al

[erik l. f. contzius <eriklfc...>]

>And Eric Werner's writings point out how the "traditional" melodies to
>Birkat HaMazon incorporate all sorts of German drinking songs, country
>waltzes,  nursery rhymes, and a motif borrowed from Humperdinck's opera
>"Hansel und Gretel".....

actually, south german dance tunes of the 17-1800's. But that's only for
one eidah. besides, the tune for 'hazan et hakol' which has become
'mi-sinai' is by moshe nathanson (and is rarely sung as he wrote it
originally). There are many other 'traditional' melodies (Lakhman (south
german), J. Singer (Berlin), a couple of 'weisers' according to A. Baer,
et. al.), but for some reason (most likely the Ramah-phenomenon) they have
been occluded by what most hear today.

>At first I found this troubling - but now I find it very liberating -- it
>means that the burden I had felt to preserve a musical tradition intact
>and hand it down to my students and congregants was largely an illusory
>burden.  Musical renewal and borrowing took place in every generation.

I find that a sad reaction. I find that the people who do not want to
protect the Jewish musical traditions make such excuses (i.e. it was done
in every generation). The difference between then and now is that we have
mass media & communication to trade these tunes. Therefore, what would have
taken a much longer time to transmit (like the secular musical tradition of
one country to be absorbed by that country's Jewish community) can be
almost instantaneous. Are we so eager to embrace our kavanah that we
dismiss the form, or keva, so quickly? Some things are ephemeral (sp?),
some are eternal. I would like to find more of the eternal (in this case,
musically--whatever that is for your community). We so often criticize the
cultural Jew--and yet, the cultural Jew has all but vanished. People don't
identify any more with being a Rushisher, a Litvak, etc. (possibly
excepting the sephardim, esp. around pesakh!). Cultural identity is
something we have lost in favor of religious and ideological identity. But
cultural identity can be just as binding to people--especially when you
consider that a child's first jewish experience will not be ideological or
religious but rather cultural.

I also think there's a great need among Jews for that cultural identity.
They're going back to cultural sources more than ever--the music of the
sephardim; hassidic music (which has many musically idiomatic traits);
klezmer music is more popular now than ever.

Oh... this one's for Judah: The "Kol Akhai" 'Na'ar Hayiti' is by D'veikus.
Great arrangement by Kol Akhai, though!

One more alternative tune: I grew up with "L'kha Dodi" sung to "Ein Adir."
Works really well.

Hazzan Erik L. F. Contzius
Omaha, Nebraska

mailto:erik(dot)contzius (at) usa(dot)net
mailto:eriklfc (at) radiks(dot)net

http://www.radiks.net/eriklfc/