Re: Nussach & Niggunim: Our Liturgical Music

[Ivor Joffe <ijoffe...>]

Dear Winston,

I share the same sentiments as you re: your opinion on nusach and nigunim.
Just a  thought in case you haven't tried it already: Lecha Dodi to the tune of 
"Yom ze Mechubad" (fast version) -it is very popular here in South Africa. 
We take great pride in keeping to the relative nusach for our shul services 
here in SA and have produced some excellent Chazzanim and Ba'alei T'filah over 
the years. You may be interested to know that some of our SA Rabbis who have 
congregations overseas are better Cantors than the their Shuls' official Cantor 
because of what they've been exposed to here over the years. 

Regards,
Cantor IVOR JOFFE


-----Original Message-----
From: winston weilheimer <taxrelief (at) bitstorm(dot)net>
To: World music from a Jewish slant. <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org>
Date: Wednesday, May 05, 1999 6:28 PM
Subject: RE: Nussach & Niggunim: Our Liturgical Music


>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)
>
>
>---------------------- jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org ---------------------+
>