Did you sing Kol Nidrei to the tune of Yellow Submarine?
February 24, 2010For more years that I can remember, there has been an on-going discussion concerning a proper definition for “Jewish Music”. I would encourage all of our readers to weigh in on that definition quest. I think you will discover that for the definition to be meaningful, it needs to account for many possibilities. And while I am totally on-board with the search for the elusive magical description, in the interim I would like to focus on a sub-topic of this discussion.
By way of introduction, I’d like to put forth a completely subjective, biased, strongly opinionated statement. Here it is: There are way too many text-based songs being composed that offer a completely inappropriate musical setting for the chosen text. To put it simply, in my admittedly biased opinion, the musical setting has nothing to do with the words. It often even contra-indicates the intention of the text. Now be careful – I am not saying that a musical setting has to remain in a traditional or “old school” style to be a proper representative of its text. There are many wonderfully gifted composers who have managed to combine a modern musical idiom while still somehow remaining true to the text. But there are, unfortunately, many who do not. I have many examples in mind and will put forth these ideas over the coming weeks. In the meantime, let us know your thoughts.
I’ll be talkin’ to ya’.
EZ
The idea that one type of composition over another better expresses the meaning of the words is itself highly subjective. In addition, sometimes the seemingly contraindicated melody may lead us to different and unexpected textual interpretations.
I would broadly define Jewish music any music composed by Jews about Jewish themes, in other words, it is defined by content and authorship. It is impossible to impose stylistic criteria, as Jews have been incorporating diverse elements of local ‘goyish’ musical styles throughout the Diaspora for many centuries. What many people refer to as a Jewish sound is really a European sound, developed over many years of Jewish life in that region. The same applies to Sephardic music, which is unmistakably rooted in Arabic and Mediterranean traditions.
We’ve had a significant presence in America for many decades now. Why is it any less Jewish for us to continue the tradition of musical adaptation here in the states than it was for our ancestors to do so in Europe or the Middle East hundres of years ago?
That being said, I was once very put off when I heard a famous chazzan use the melody of “Music of the Night” from Phantom for mussaf kedusha. Any adaptation made should be done so with discretion and good taste.
Which brings me to the topic of music being appropriate to the words, it’s a very valid point. However, I don’t see it as a Jewish vs. goyish distinction, but a general goal for any song writer, religious or otherwise.
I look forward to a lively discussion.
Did you know that the common deror yikra tune that we sing on Shabbat is to the tune of a beach boys song?
I’ll go with Yossi Green’s response: Any tune composed by a (frum) Jew is a Jewish song!
I guess that would exclude most klezmer music.
Mindy, it’s not a Beach Boys song, it is an actual folk song from the Bahamas.
The addition of frum as a qualification for defining Jewish Music is one I cannot live with. Part of the whole discussion centers around the inherent inability to choose any single criteria to define something as Jewish.
Question: Salomani Rossi’s compositions sound like (tepid) Palestrina. But they are written fir the Synagogue. Are they Jewish?
“Part of the whole discussion centers around the inherent inability to choose any single criteria to define something as Jewish.”
Yes, Jordan. It is about as difficult to define Jewish music by a single criteria as it is to define Jewishness in general.