Re: Chassi-Pops

[Yoel Epstein <yoel...>]

I think that Jordan and Rochel-Sara, in their posts on this topic, have hinted 
at social change in the ultra-orthodox community, that might have implications 
far beyond a mere matter of taste.  I personally believe that musical style is 
a bellwether of cultural change, which is of tremendous import.  In Israel (I 
can't speak of America) the change in the musical style of choice is 
accompanied by several other small but, in my mind, extremely significant 
changes in the Haredi community:

1.  Language.  25 years ago the spoken language in Bnei Brak and Orthodox 
Jerusalem was Yiddish.  Hebrew was not merely not spoken, it was officially 
banned as a language for secular communication.  Today in much of the Haredi 
community Hebrew is the spoken language, and there are even children who don't 
speak Yiddish at all.

2.  Advertising.  In the last few years, advertising by national companies 
specifically targets the ultra-orthodox community.  "Cellcom - the cellular 
phone of choice by Haredim" says signs on buses in Bnei Brak.  The implication 
of this is the gradual introduction of the Israeli market society into the 
orthodox sector, which until now has maintained its own isolated microeconomy.

Taken together, do these signs constitute the water freezing in the cracks of 
the rock?  Do they point to forces in the Haredi community which will cause it 
to crumble?

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Yoel Epstein, etses gibbers consultants
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