The Jewish-American musical experience

[Dan Kazez <kazez...>]

Rita Klinger writes:

 >Thank you for your thoughtful response. Perhaps I wasn't clear, but I am
 >looking for reference books (or recordings) that contain more than
 >single pieces of music. Certainly the music you have chosen *is*
 >representative (your rationale is clear!), but you have identified
 >individual pieces of music (having, of course, individual composers...)
 >This compilation is going in a different direction. For instance, if I
 >needed World Jewish (in general!) material, I might want to
 >include the recording Shashmaqam (Jewish music from Bukhara and central
 >asia) or something of FLory Jagoda (Jewish music from Sarajevo). Israeli
 >material, being more plentiful, might be harder to narrow down, but I
 >might include:

 >The Very Best of Israel. (1990). Israel: NMC Music. This cassette
 >recording contains a variety of popular Israeli songs composed in the folk
 >style and performed, often by the Israeli artists who originally recorded
 >each song. Yerushalayim Shel Zahav, Tzena, Hava Nagila, etc.

 >For book sources, certainly the work of Abraham Binder, Peter Gradenwitz,
 >Ruth Rubin... but is any of this work distinctly "American?" (!)
 >So...should I include something ofthe Yiddish theatre period in NY? (I
 >don't know a source off hand...) Should I include the music of Debbie
 >Friedman???

The Jewish-American musical experience is ill-defined.  It does not lend 
itself to convenient summary.  Nor is there any quintessential embodiment of 
that experience.  You must, I feel, latch onto particular examples, musical 
genres, or musical/social trends and simply pursue this "angle."  Yiddish 
Theatre in New York is as good a place to start as any.

Dan Kazez

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    Daniel Kazez / Associate Professor of Music
    Wittenberg University / Springfield, Ohio 45501
    kazez (at) wittenberg(dot)edu / tel:  513-327-7354 / fax:  513-327-6340