[HANASHIR:1843] RE: "cantor"

[Serle, Brian <BSerle...>]

I am by no means a cantor.  However, as a member of an Orthodox
congregation for several years, I have OFTEN been asked by the rabbi or
the gabbai to lead services, or daven.  However, they never use the term
"cantor" for one who leads services, as there are many members of the
congregation capable of leading services.

For the past two years, I have gone up to Green Bay, Wisconsin, to lead
High Holy Day services.  For Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, I put on a
wonderful white robe, and the incredibly beautiful kippah and tallit,
designed by Linda Salvay, our fellow HavaNashirite...  For three days a
year, I AM a "cantor".  Although the congregants there all know that I
am NOT an official cantor, for them I am THEIR cantor for the few times
a year most of them attend.  It is an incredible feeling for me.
However, I never pretend for a minute that I have the training, voice,
knowledge, dedication or professionalism of a full-time ordained Cantor.

I hope that clarifies things for you.

Brian

        -----Original Message-----
        From:   sschanerman(dot)dvh (at) tuhsd(dot)k12(dot)az(dot)us
[SMTP:sschanerman(dot)dvh (at) tuhsd(dot)k12(dot)az(dot)us]
        Sent:   Monday, November 23, 1998 1:21 PM
        To:     hanashir
        Subject:        [HANASHIR:1840] "cantor"

        For whom is the title "cantor" appropriate?  There are both
"cantors"
        and "cantorial soloists" in my city with music training - but
not
        specialized cantorial training.  There's a young man with a
music degree
        who is studying with a cantor - and the congregation for whom he
sings
        calls him "cantor".  Does a "cantor" need to have graduated from
a
        cantorial school?  I heard some discussion at Hava Nashira last
summer
        that suggested that those who have graduated from cantorial
school
        resent it when those who haven't are called "cantor".  Sometimes
when I
        share the bimah with the Rabbi someone will refer to me as
"cantor" and
        I don't know if I need to correct them or just not worry about
it...

        Thanks for any clarification or thoughts...
        Susan