RE: Nussach & Niggunim: Our Liturgical Music

[winston weilheimer <taxrelief...>]

without reposting the long post of robert cohen, I agree completely with the
sentiment of nusach for the holidays.  it provides the tam of the day.  who
could not be moved by the introduction to baruchu on yom kippur.  on yom
tovim i cringe when the sheliach tzibur does not use the nusach for musaf.
It gets me in the mood when I hear (or use myself) the special melodies that
for the repitition that lead up to tifillat geshem an tal.  We do loose out
when these are not used.  The problem is that they are not taught to many
congregations and the fact is that they are lost in many areas.  When I
daven in a shul and use these melodies, i always get people from the
congregation come up to me and tell me that they have not heard them for 20
years or more.  It is part of the hamiginization i am afraid.

having said that, i also enjoy introducing new melodies to the congregation.
We are now up to 6 different melodies for l'cha dodi.  some old, some
modern.  I learned a new one last November and brought it back to the
congregation.  I mix them up so that on each friday night we might sing a
different one.  Sometimes I even use more than one on the same night, and
israeli version, the traditional version, and the Lewendowski version, on
different paragraphs.  It works and the members of the congregation who come
from different traditons all "groove" on it.  There is room for both.

Winston Weilheimer
Lay Rabbi
Temple Israel of Deland (Florida)


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