Re: Classical

[<znmeb...>]

Dan Kazez (kazez (at) Wittenberg(dot)EDU) wrote:

: I find it amazing how many pieces of classical music have an 
: audible Jewish slant--Bloch, Bernstein, Bruch, etc.  But what's 
: the best?  What would you say are the 3 best works of classical 
: music related to Judaism?

: Dan Kazez
I will nominate Dmitri Shostakovich's Opus 79, "From Jewish Folk
Poetry".  This is a cycle of 11 songs; here are two quotations from the
composer:

"Once after the war I was passing a bookstore and saw a volume with
Jewish songs.  I was always interested in Jewish folklore, and I thought
the book would give the melodies, but it contained only the texts.  It
seemed to me that if I picked out several texts and set them to music, I
would be able to tell about the fate of the Jewish people.  It seemed an
important thing to do, because I could see anti-Semitism growing all
around me.  But I couldn't have the cycle performed then..."

"Jewish folk music has made a most powerful impression on me.  I never
tire of delighting in it, it's multifaceted, it can appear to be happy
while it is tragic ... This quality ... is close to my ideas of what
music should be.  There should always be two layers in music.  Jews were
tormented so long that they learned to hide their despair.  They express
despair in dance music."

If you're looking for a recording, try London 417 581-2, which also
includes Symphony #15; both are conducted by Bernard Haitink.
--
znmeb (at) teleport(dot)com (M. Edward Borasky) http://www.teleport.com/~znmeb

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