RE: Improvising nusach (was RE: Yismekhu or Yismechu)

[Ben Bazian <bbazian...>]

Just to chime in, I would go one step further.  A true bal tefilla/Chazzan
must improvise otherwise the davening becomes to standard, monotonous.  Of
course the improvising is within the bounds of nussach.  A great complement
for any Chazzan is to be known as a "zoger."  This intonates that the
Chazzan can improvise and beautify the davening.

All too often I have been in congregations where the congregants know the
"standard davening" modes used by the chazzan being that it is repeated the
same way from week to week.  Gets old real fast.  Just my two cents.

-Ben
http://www.chazzan.org


-----Original Message-----
From: owner-jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org
[mailto:owner-jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org]On Behalf Of Sam Weiss
Sent: Wednesday, April 02, 2003 11:32 PM
To: World music from a Jewish slant
Subject: Re: Improvising nusach (was RE: Yismekhu or Yismechu)


At 06:21 PM 4/2/03, Seth Rogovoy wrote:
>This is very interesting to hear. How traditional is it for the shaliach
>tzibur to improvise a melody? Presumably some basic musical standards
>apply (the modes?)?

Improvisation is the rule, rather than the execption, for a Shaliach
Tzibur. That a traditional mode is associated with a particular prayer or
prayer-group does not imply that there can be no improvisation.  Au
contraire -- the modes primarily function as vehicles for improvisation. In
some instances, the traditional manner of chanting a particular prayer also
includes regular melodic patterns (e.g. Kol Nidre, Akdamut) but these too
are subject to individual variation.
Occasionally some prayers acquire fixed melodies (e.g. Ma'oz Tzur, Sh'ma
Yisrael, Vay'hi Binso'a) that seem unshakably attached to
them.  Ironically, these attachments are normally less "traditional,"
though more beloved and expected by the congregation, and therefore harder
to change.
Finally, there is a category of prayers (usually metrical Piyyutim like
Adon Olam, L'cha Dodi, Melech Elyon) which have no traditional chant, mode,
or melody attached to them; the expectation is for the Shaliach Tzibur to
choose a melody of his own liking or -- if he is as talented as Roger Reid
--to improvise one.




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