Having a feel for the music

[richard_wolpoe <richard_wolpoe...>]

I heard a technically perfect but "soulless" rendition of Jewish Choral Music by
the Moscow Synagogue choir.  I strongly perceived the lack of feeling.

I also heard good choirs that would sing Lewandowski as if it were shmaltzy 
Eastern Europen style and it felt "wrong".

Ideally, the performers should have a sense of the milieu, rote learning sounds 
stilted.

Perhaps Perry Como had that problem with Kol Nidre.  I love Perry Como's 
crooning style, but he might have missed the drama or majesty of Kol Nidre.

I guess the same can be said when I sing an Italia aria, that is to say it 
probably sound awkward because I do not speak Italian.

Then there are interpretations.  I've grown up with some pieces being sung very 
slowly, majestically that are then sung in a hyped up mode and it's hard for me 
to relate.  (and vice versa).

This relates back to that Oleinu scene in the X-files.  Singing Oleinu with a 
modern Israeli sepharidc pronuncitation while portryain chassidim is SO 
incongruous.  I find a similar incongruity with some of the Beit Tefutsot stuff 
when they sing Lewandowski with a sephardic pronunciation.  Somehow it doesn't 
feel right.

OTOH, isn't amazing that Celine Dion can sing English with no accent yet speaks 
it with a heavy French Canaidan accent?  similarly ABBA sang English wihtout a 
Swedish Accent.

Regards,
Rich Wolpoe


______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Re: Jews and Christmas music 
Author:  <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org> at Tcpgate
Date:    12/17/98 9:22 AM


Peter,

Bob

P.S.  off the topic of "Jewish" music per se
I think that I can often tell when a singer has thought about the 
meaning of a Gershwin or Sondheim song and it matters to me.  Perhaps 
Yiddishists in the group can also tell when someone is singing 
(interpreting) the Yiddish song (with a sensitivity to the lyrics) or 
mouthing the words (singing phonetically with no idea of its meaning). 
I think that I would be more likely to be moved by a performance of a 
piece that was relevant to the performer than by one that was 
irrelevant to them.
-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Hollo <raven (at) fourplay(dot)com(dot)au>
To: World music from a Jewish slant. <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org> 
Date: Thursday, December 17, 1998 8:42 AM
Subject: Re: Jews and Christmas music


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