PRESENTATIONS
I love teaching. Please contact me to see how these presentations can be brought to your congregation or event.
How Leonard Bernstein used the music of the S'lichot service to create West Side Story
Summary:
In creating West Side Story, Leonard Bernstein transformed Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare's story about chance and fate into a story about choice and T'shuvah. In this presentation, Carl will show you how Leonard Bernstein used the musical modes of the S'lichot service (part of the High Holiday liturgy) to not only write the music but also to infuse the score with Jewish concepts of S'lichot and T'shuvah, forgiveness and return (repentance).
Notes:
I originally developed this program in 2013 to precede the S'lichot Service at Congregation Beth Shalom in Seattle WA. The program has 3 sections. First, I present the well documented usage of the shofar blast to construct the score of West Side Story. Bernstein referred to this 3-note triad, emulating a Tekiah, as the "kernel" of the score. Then I present the theory behind the music of the S'lichot service, known as "S'licha Mode", and how that mode is used to interpret the S'lichot service. Finally, these two sections are brought together, and we discover that there is a much deeper meaning hidden within West Side Story, with references to T'shuvah scattered throughout the songs. Unlike Romeo and Juliet, a story about pure chance and fate, the characters in West Side Story make deliberate choices which lead to disaster, despite their efforts to do T'shuvah.
This program requires playing audio examples, a piano/keyboard, and a projector and screen. Depending on room size, a microphone is recommended. The program runs about a hour, not including Q&A. This program works well in person, or on zoom.
V 'shamru:
Two Centuries of Musical Interpretations
Summary:
This program traces the evolution of synagogue music through the past 200 years. It is based on a 1927 essay by A.W. Binder entitled "V'shamru: A Century of Musical Interpretations". We sing many of the examples that Binder references, learn about the external influences that composers and cantors drew upon to create them, and discover how those works influenced secular composers in return. While Binder's essay covers only 100 years ending in the early 20th century, we take this all the way to the present, looking at modern compositions for V'Shamru and how they are linked with their predecessors.
Notes:
This presentation was created in 2014 as a D'var Torah for parshat Ki Tisa. It's a performance-lecture
where I speak about different melodies for Veshamru, and perform these with a choir. Many of the melodies are designed for choir, so presenting this at a synagogue requires coordination with its choir (or alternatively, recruiting 4 experienced singers as a quartet). If singers are not available, I can also present it using recordings. This program works well in person, or on zoom.
Thinking In Nusach:
How to listen to and understand traditional Ashkenaz cantorial modes
Summary:
How do the traditional chants used in davening help us understand prayer and increase our kavanah? Do they have meaning? Why should we care about them? This talk will dive deep into the theory of the cantorial modes to answer these questions. We'll see how cantors and composers have used them to illustrate prayers and add layers of intention that go beyond the literal meaning of the text.
Davening on Broadway
Summary:
Do you want to experience Jewish prayer in an amazingly unconventional way? For the past 5 years, Congregation Beth Shalom (Seattle, WA) has davened the Maariv service on Erev Purim using the music from a Broadway musical. We stage these in a spectacular way, with a huge cast of our congregants. Each paragraph from Maariv is scored using a song from the musical. And the entire service is staged with dancing, costumes, lighting, some humor, and a great soundtrack.
The first year was "Le Maariv" (Les Miserables). Then we did "Schmaltz" (Grease) and "West Side Maariv" (West Side Story). Then we changed it up a bit and used all Beatles songs for "We All Daven in a Yellow Submarine". Then came "Ima Mia" (with music by Abba). And last year we "The Greatest Maariv" (The Greatest Showman).
We have a tremendous amount of fun putting these together. But we take the prayers quite seriously too. We look for ways to connect our song choices with each prayer, and find new insights in the text. Everyone learns the Maariv service really well. (shhh... don't tell the cast!) And these productions have become a focal point for strengthening our community.
In this very fun presentation, I'll show you how we create these. We'll sing some of the songs, and we'll watch some video highlights. I'll also throw in my parody about the life of "Avraham Avinu" (Hamilton). Perhaps your congregation will be inspired to try this on Purim too! (I'm happy to share the materials, if you'd like to do this.)
