High Holy Days in a Conservative Synagogue

By , August 22, 2013 12:59 pm

 

5774     A new year.  In case you haven’t noticed…the world is changing.

I’ve heard it a thousand times, “things just aren’t the way they used to be!”

The future is unpredictable. Like a wind storm moving things helter-skelter, we never know where things will end up.

The past, on the other hand, is well-known and stable. The values, traditions and  perspectives of our parents, grandparents and ancestors do not change. We may cherish the past or we may discard it.  You get to choose.

Ask yourself, “What happens to the past when you are no longer around to remember it?” Does it disappear? Or does it remain as a treasure trove of discovery for  future generations?

High Holy Days in the Conservative Synagogue  sung by Cantor Moshe Schwimmer is just one example  of how the Judaica Sound Archives attempts to bring the unique qualities of early 20th century European liturgical music into the present. And, hopefully, the future.

This wonderful recording was created by the JSA from the private recordings of Cantor Moshe Schwimmer and can only be heard on this website. Moshe Schwimmer was a cantor whose beautiful voice and soulful singing touched audiences for decades. Yet, his voice might have been lost forever were it not for one man’s strong desire to cherish his brother’s memory and protect his legacy.

Zalman Schwimmer (a.k.a. Sydney), personally hand-carried his brother’s private tape recordings (along with some memorabilia and biographical information) to the Wimberly Library on Florida Atlantic University’s Boca Raton campus. He told us about his brother, “He never made any commercial recordings.  That wasn’t for him. He didn’t want to be famous. He didn’t try to please others.  He was just always striving for perfection.”

The Judaica Sound Archives is proud of its role in the preservation of Jewish culture. We believe that by bringing the unique qualities of early 20th century European liturgical music into the present we contribute to its survival into the future.

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L’dor vador: From generation to generation

By , August 14, 2013 3:28 pm

One family’s ancestor remembered…a shared culture preserved.

The music of the traditional synagogue in America has strong roots in the culture and shtetls of 19th and early 20th century Eastern Europe. Like many of the greats of the Golden Era of Hazzanut Cantor Gedalie Bargad was a gifted hazzan who grew out of the chassidic environment.

Born in 1898 on Kol Nidre evening in the small town of Slavuta (Volhynia Province, Russia), his promising career as a cantor was disrupted by war, civil strife and his family’s struggle for survival. Eventually Bargad and his bride were able obtain travel documents and arrived in Boston on May 25, 1921.

He found work in the shul in Lynn, MA almost immediately, and by 1926 he was officiating at the Elm Street Synagogue in Chelsea, MA. where he sang until 1963. His son, Dr. Warren Bargad, former director of the Center for Jewish Studies, University of Florida – Gainesville, reminisced about those days. “As a youth I remember the shul packed with people – about 500 – 600. . . My father was a commanding presence on the bima. When he sang he would often send shockwaves through the eardrums of the choirboys who stood near him. . . There was a bit of the actor in him. . . [but] he was also down-to-earth, a great story-teller, and often quite comic (album liner notes, 1980).”

Cantor Bargad went on to serve at Temple Emanuel in Chelsea, MA until his death in 1968. His grandson, Robert Bargad (Professor of Jazz piano at Karntnerlandeskonservatorium in Austria) remembers his grandfather “leading the congregation in the singing of prayers with very beautiful melodies, many of which he himself had composed and arranged.  I recall how sometimes his voice would suddenly swell and sustain such a great and mournful note, causing the entire congregation to wait for his release before continuing. . .  In those moments I was completely overcome and I remember thinking that the walls of the temple were shaking from the emotional power of his voice and the pure magic in his performance. I believe the impact of Gedalie’s singing has influenced me to this day – as I try to infuse my own compositions and performances with that kind of tradition and soulfulness.” (Personal communication, 2013).”

A recording of the September 23, 1962 service at the Elm Street Synagogue was preserved and then meticulously restored by Chicago record producer, Barry Serota in 1980. The Judaica Sound Archives at FAU Libraries is proud to follow in the footsteps of Barry Serota who devoted his life to the preservation of great Cantorial music. Streaming audio of this album is available only on our website.

 

Robert Bargad

RSA Guest Blogger, Robert Bargad, is a Professor of Jazz Piano at Karntner Landeskonservatorium in Austria, he is the grandson of Cantor Gedalie Bargad. 

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