[HANASHIR:3914] Ruach

[Meris Ruzow <meris...>]

Rich - People at any age need to feel empowered .   When I work with my
adults with a new piece, many of them seem insecure; insecure about words,
insecure about notes,  their musicality, etc.   However, once you get them
close together (I agree about that), take away words (at first - use "la"),
have them close their eyes, and just feel.... that takes us over the first
hurdle.   I also tell them to do it for themselves.   Don't try to impress
their neighbor or me... just do it to make yourself feel better.   At chorus
rehearsals (about 30 volunteers) many people have to break their necks to
get there, but we all agree that afterwards it has been such an uplifting
and positive experience that it's always worth the hassle of everything that
goes before it.   I always start off with a niggun or something as a warm up
so that there are no words or music needed.   You get right into the swing.
Add 3/4 time and you're really batting 1000!

Once people can truly feel the music and please themselves, it's easy to get
the energy flowing and then all the music pleases everyone.    Of course if
you hand someone a shaker egg the energy goes up even higher!
Meris
-----Original Message-----
From: Rglauber (at) aol(dot)com <Rglauber (at) aol(dot)com>
To: hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org <hanashir (at) shamash(dot)org>
Date: Tuesday, September 14, 1999 8:16 PM
Subject: [HANASHIR:3911] Re: re re re spect (just a little bit)


>Say hey,
>
>I'm working on a new theme for my performances and workshops this year, and
I
>wanted to put it out to the list and possibly get some feedback.   I am
>fairly obsessed with the idea of "ruach", and see it as THE key to
meaningful
>Jewish interaction, celebration, and joy.  (Now obviously there are a great
>many avenues into Jewish connection, and I don't want to debate which is
more
>valid than the other)   for the purposes of this discussion, I'd like to
>consider the notion of Ruach.
>
>I'm sure that nearly everyone on the list is aware of the dual meaning of
the
>word as both "spirit" and "wind" (breath, perhaps), and this double meaning
>is crucial to where I'm coming from.   an exapmle....
>
>Late night at the CAJE in Columbus.   People are sitting around on chairs,
in
>a circle, and it's a rather typical, low energy, sleepy kind of scene.  I
get
>up in the center to do a song or two.  I start in on Hu Ya'ase Shalom  (one
>of mine), and before I make it through the first chorus, I realize that it
is
>useless to continue given the vibe of the room.  I ask people to stand up,
>and very reluctantly, they do, keeping their distance, basically touching
>their chairs as if for security.   I invite them to come a little
>closer...... it's like pulling teeth, they inch their way forward until we
>get so that we can hear and feel eachother close by.   Then when I start
the
>song again, it's like magic, we are singing loudly, Chaim grabs a drum,
>someone grabs some shakers, people break into dance, it is a completely
>different energy, and a joyful one, to boot.    (logistics)
>
>Another.....   This past Saturday morning (Rosh Hashana), I'm leading
>children's services at Temple Beth Israel, Eugene OR, and we're about to
>begin under a tent on the lawn, as the adult service is underway inside.
>There are many adults outside as well, as many prefer the more informal
>service.   So people are hanging in the back shmoozing, wanting to gab,
while
>the kids get their service.
>
>Before I begin, I ask everybody to get together under the tent.  There's a
>little grumbling, many adults still hang back, wanting the "safety" of the
>distance.   I ask again, call some friends by name, try to make it funny
and
>non-threatening, and keep trying to get us ALL together under the tent.
Well
>it starts to happen, here comes Jill, here comes Carole, now we are all
>together in this place, at this time.   Eugene is a community that has
>undergone a lot of upheavel in the Jewish Community over the past 7 or so
>years, factions splitting off, political infighting etc, and it was
>incredibly profound to ALL get together under the tent.  I'm sure that I
>wasn't the only one to feel it.
>
>I did make mention of how wonderful it was, then taught Sing it In, Sing In
>the New Year. (which I learned in Carole Rivel's workshop a year ago at
CAJE)
> It was excellent, and only because we were close enough together to get
that
>SOUND that you need to really lift up the energy.  It was a case of the
>service being "successful" from the instant that we got ourselves in the
>right position, which is standing up, close together, under the tent.    If
>that hadn't happened, the service would have been on more service, no more,
>no less.   As it was, it was a fantastic, meaningful, ruach event for our
>community.
>
>So to close, I want to offer the first example of how to experience ruach
>among our people.....   get up, get close, get singing and moving.
>
>Anyone else care to share another approach?
>
>Rich Glauber
>Eugene, OR
>
>
>

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