Margot & kol isha

[Peter Rushefsky <rushefsky_p...>]

>From my experience listening to Margot play I think kol isha should be applied
to her clarinet-- it's one of the most heavenly voices I've heard.  

Complying with Negiya in Buffalo despite all his efforts,
Pete Rushefsky


>>> TROMBAEDU (at) aol(dot)com 02/28 10:41 AM >>>
In a message dated 2/27/01 3:12:24 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
rlcm17 (at) hotmail(dot)com writes: 




The reason I would think Margot's posting is "a digression from kol 
isha"--and bringing up relevant economic issues is *not* a halakhic 
digression, by the way--is that kol isha applies (for better or for worse, 
etc., etc.) to women's *voices* and hence to women *singers,* not--so far 
as 
I know--women instrumentalists like Margot. 





At the risk of starting a new war here, I would point out that the reason for 
not having women in the band is that the idea of Women performers in public 
is considered objectifying, and therefore, not in keeping with traditional 
concepts of modesty. 
This appears to be less prevalent in Chasidic and Orthodox thinking today, as 
Orthodox people are more accustomed to seeing Women in roles that were not 
part of the social structure in Europe before the war. 
But Margot and others also have to realize that in general, Klezmer has not 
really made it in the Orthodox and Chasidic community. It is only now 
beginning to attract attention. So an artist like Margot is suffering under 
the double whammy of performing music not generally used to any great extent, 
yet. If she was interested in performing as a side musician, all she needs to 
do is contact one of the big commercial offices like Neginah or Neshoma, and 
while I am not sure she would get much play there, for other reasons, she 
would be able to get a truer test of the motivation not to use her. Women are 
playing violin, harp, and keyboards on Orthodox bands, although I have not 
yet seen woman horn players. I don't know why those instruments are seen as 
less problematic, but there it is. Personally, I would love to have Margot in 
the band, but she has to bring her sax and flute as well. Nowadays, Clarinet 
is still struggling to make a comeback. 

Jordan 

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