Re[2]: Der yidisher tam

[richard_wolpoe <richard_wolpoe...>]

>Reply: I know better too. But where you write:
>"That is my tradition in hearing classical music." I understand you to 
>mean that's the tradition you belong to, rather than your personal thing, 
>because a tradition is by definition a collective and received, and 
>continued and transmitted practice of doing something.
>Itzik-Leyb

And my point follow this:

1)  We all share common traidition of the words involved  (ok let's not get 
into the new prayerbooks at this point)
2) jews from different communities orten used music that reflect their 
society, their culture, their mileu, although they often did so based upon 
what was trasmitted to them.
Therefore 
3) We Modern, Western Jews have the right ot Westernize our "nusach" since 
we are expresing the same words via our culture, our society our miieu.  
ideally, we should be steepd in what's gone on before, Who would have 
thoughtthe the Ashomnu should be in major unless we realized from our 
traiditions that many dieffernet versions  of Ashamnu are major despite the 
different nigun used.  Knowing that principle today would lead me to:

A) use one of the traidtional major Oshamnu's
Or
B) compose or slect a new one, and stic to a major mode
And
C) Avoid freigish or minor as being non-traidtional for this prayer.

To me, we SHOULD be steeped in our traidtions becaue they are so rich, that 
why should we re-invent the wheel?  However, we all recognize the creative 
urge of the artist and respect that the heart can come up with something 
totally original wihtout being so well versed in our traditions.  
nevertheless, I hate to see integrating "junk" music into our liturgy and I 
also hate to see new melodies introduced that are dissonant to the 
suggested mode of the litrugy itself.  (EG don't add a dirge to Hallel and 
don't incorporate a "Freilich" into kinos (elegies).  But Rosenballt did 
sing Massent's elegy quite beuatifully, and I see no reason not to 
incorporate taht kind of elegy into a Tisho B'ov service even though it's 
origins might night be traditional since it is FITTING.

Rich W.