Jack Kessler
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Jack Kessler
Jack A. Kessler (1944 – September 20, 2024) was an American hazzan, musician, and educator. After working as a cantor for synagogues for 20 years, he organized several musical ensembles including ''Atzilut'', a group of Jewish and Arab musicians, which toured venues around the world including the United Nations. He also adopted the practice of chanting trop for haftarah and other biblical texts in both Hebrew and English to make the text more vivid and alive for synagogue worshippers. Early life and education Kessler was born in 1944 and grew up in Boston. His parents had immigrated to the United States in 1941 to escape the Nazis. His father, Rabbi Martin Kessler, taught him nusach, the melodies associated with prayers at different Jewish holidays. As a teenager in the 1950s, Kessler played folk music on his guitar, but became interested in pursuing Jewish spiritual singing. He earned a master's degree in voice from Boston Conservatory and studied composition at Brandeis Univers ...
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Hazzan
A ''hazzan'' (; , lit. Hazan) or ''chazzan'' (, plural ; ; ) is a Jewish musician or precentor trained in the vocal arts who leads the congregation in songful prayer. In English, this prayer leader is often referred to as a cantor, a term also used in Christianity. The person who leads the congregation in a public prayer is called the '' sh'liaḥ'' (Hebrew for ' emissary of the congregation'). Any person is called a ''sh'liach tzibbur'' while they are leading a prayer. However, the term ''hazzan'' more commonly refers to someone who has special training in leading prayers, or who is appointed to lead prayers on a regular basis in a particular synagogue. Qualifications Jewish law restricts the role of ''sh'liah tzibbur'' to adult Jews; in Orthodox Judaism, it is restricted to males. In theory, any layperson can be a ; many synagogue-attending Jews will serve in this role from time to time, especially on weekdays or during a Yahrzeit. Proficiency in Hebrew pronunciation i ...
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Max Wohlberg
Max (Moshe) Wohlberg (born February 9, 1907) was a Hungarian-American hazzan, composer, and scholar. He was one of the initial members of the Cantors Assembly established in 1947 and served as its president from 1949 to 1951. He helped to found the cantorial school at the Jewish Theological Seminary where he was Professor and head of the nusach department. Self-taught, he developed a curriculum for studying nusach and producing scholarly research, educating over 100 graduates as of 1977. Wohlberg was known for his recitative compositions and recognized as a melodist who captured the interpretive nuances of liturgical texts. His music was rooted in Jewish liturgical traditions, incorporating biblical cantillations, synagogue motifs, Yiddish song phrases, and Israeli folk melodies. These influences stemmed from his extensive exposure to Jewish musical life and were further enriched by his teaching and research. Wohlberg died April 19, 1996, in Washington D.C. Washington, ...
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Atziluth
Atziluth or Atzilut (also ''Olam Atsiluth'', עוֹלָם אֲצִילוּת, literally "the World of Emanation") is the highest of four worlds in which exists the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. It is also known as "near to God."MEIJERS, L. D., and J. TENNEKES. “SPIRIT AND MATTER IN THE COSMOLOGY OF CHASSIDIC JUDAISM.” Symbolic Anthropology in the Netherlands, edited by P.E. DE JOSSELIN DE JONG and ERIK SCHWIMMER, vol. 95, Brill, 1982, pp. 200–21. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j.ctvbqs310.15. Accessed 12 Aug. 2022. Beri'ah follows it. It is known as the World of Emanations, or the World of Causes. In the Kabbalah, each of the Sephiroth in this world is associated with a name of God, and it is associated with the suit of wands in the tarot. Significance Atziluth is the realm of pure divinity. The four worlds of Kabbalah relate to the kabbalistic tree of life in two primary ways: * the entire Tree of Life is contained in each of the four worlds; in this manner, ...
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Kabbalah
Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of Mysticism, mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal (). List of Jewish Kabbalists, Jewish Kabbalists originally developed transmissions of the primary texts of Kabbalah within the realm of Jewish tradition and often use classical Jewish scriptures to explain and demonstrate its mystical teachings. Kabbalists hold these teachings to define the inner meaning of both the Hebrew Bible and traditional rabbinic literature and their formerly concealed transmitted dimension, as well as to explain the significance of Jewish religious observances. Historically, Kabbalah emerged from earlier forms of Jewish mysticism, in 12th- to 13th-century Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain, al-Andalus (Spain) and in Hakhmei Provence, and was reinterpreted during the Jewish mystical renaissance in 16th-century ...
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Knoxville News Sentinel
The ''Knoxville News Sentinel'', also known as ''Knox News'', is a daily newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, owned by the Gannett Company. History The newspaper was formed in 1926 from the merger of two competing newspapers: ''The Knoxville News'' and ''The Knoxville Sentinel''. John Trevis Hearn began publishing ''The Sentinel'' in December 1886, while ''The News'' was started in 1921 by Robert P. Scripps and Roy W. Howard. The two merged in 1926 under Scripps-Howard ownership, with the first edition of ''The Knoxville News-Sentinel'' appearing on November 22 of that year. The editor from 1921 to 1931, Edward J. Meeman, later was sent to Memphis to edit the since defunct '' Memphis Press-Scimitar''. In 1986, the ''News-Sentinel'' became a morning paper, with the other paper in Knoxville, the '' Knoxville Journal'', becoming an evening paper. The ''Journal'' ceased publication as a daily in 1991, when the joint operating agreement between the two papers exp ...
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Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium CE. They traditionally speak Yiddish, a language that originated in the 9th century, and largely migrated towards northern and eastern Europe during the late Middle Ages due to persecution. Hebrew was primarily used as a literary and sacred language until its 20th-century revival as a common language in Israel. Ashkenazim adapted their traditions to Europe and underwent a transformation in their interpretation of Judaism. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, Jews who remained in or returned to historical German lands experienced a cultural reorientation. Under the influence of the Haskalah and the struggle for emancipation, as well as the intellectual and cultural ferment in urban centres, some gradually abandoned Yiddish in favor of German and developed new forms of Jewish relig ...
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Sephardic Music
Sephardic music is an umbrella term used to refer to the music of the Sephardic Jewish community. Sephardic Jews have a diverse repertoire the origins of which center primarily around the Mediterranean basin. In the secular tradition, material is usually sung in dialects of Judeo-Spanish, though other languages including Hebrew, Turkish, Greek, and other local languages of the Sephardic diaspora are widely used. Sephardim maintain geographically unique liturgical and para-liturgical traditions. Songs which are sung by women are traditionally sung while performing household tasks, without accompaniment or harmony. Tambourines and other percussion instruments are sometimes used, especially in wedding songs. Oud and qanún are also used in some instrumentations of Sephardic music, and more modern performers incorporate countless other imported instruments. History Sephardic music has its roots in the musical traditions of the Jewish communities in medieval Spain and medieval Por ...
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Middle Eastern Music
The various nations of the region include the Arabic-speaking countries of the Middle East, the Iranian traditions of Persia, the Jewish music of Israel and the diaspora, Kurdish music, Armenian music. Azeri Music, the varied traditions of Cypriot music, the Turkish music of Turkey, traditional Assyrian music, Coptic ritual music in Egypt as well as other genres of Egyptian music in general. It is widely regarded that some Middle-Eastern musical styles have influenced Central Asia, as well as the Balkans and Spain. Throughout the region, religion has been a common factor in uniting peoples of different languages, cultures and nations. The predominance of Islam allowed a great deal of Arabic, and Byzantine influence to spread through the region rapidly from the 7th century onward. The Arabic scale is strongly melodic, often Phrygian Dominant and based on various maqamat (sing. maqam) or modes (also known as makam in Turkish music). The early Arabs translated and develop ...
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Germantown Jewish Centre
The Germantown Jewish Centre is a Conservative synagogue located in the Mount Airy neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Established in 1936, the synagogue is affiliated with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. The Centre is home to multiple, distinct prayer communities including The Charry Service, which meets in the main sanctuary, Minyan Masorti, an egalitarian version of a traditional service, and Dorshei Derekh, a Reconstructionist minyan. Founding of the synagogue The Centre was founded in 1936 after an organizational dinner on September 28, 1936 at the Benjamin Franklin spurred efforts to form a committee and raise funds to start a Jewish Community Centre in Northwest Philadelphia. Space was rented at 6815 Emlen St., formerly the Pehlam Club, which later became the Commodore Barry Club. Edward Polisher was one of the founders and its first President. By 1937, 300 families had joined. A Sunday and Hebrew school were first priority w ...
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Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 1,603,797 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is the urban core of the Philadelphia metropolitan area (sometimes called the Delaware Valley), the nation's Metropolitan statistical area, seventh-largest metropolitan area and ninth-largest combined statistical area with 6.245 million residents and 7.379 million residents, respectively. Philadelphia was founded in 1682 by William Penn, an English Americans, English Quakers, Quaker and advocate of Freedom of religion, religious freedom, and served as the capital of the Colonial history of the United States, colonial era Province of Pennsylvania. It then played a historic and vital role during the American Revolution and American Revolutionary ...
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Newsday
''Newsday'' is a daily newspaper in the United States primarily serving Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI", and formerly it was "Newsday, the Long Island Newspaper". The newspaper's headquarters are located in Melville, New York. Since its founding in 1940, ''Newsday'' has won 19 Pulitzer Prizes. Historically, it penetrated the New York City market. As of 2023, ''Newsday'' is the eighth-largest circulation newspaper in the United States with a print circulation of 86,850. History 20th century Founded by Alicia Patterson and her husband, Harry Guggenheim, the first edition of ''Newsday'' was September 3, 1940, published from Hempstead. Until undergoing a major redesign in the 1970s, ''Newsday'' copied the '' Daily News'' format of short stories and numerous pictures. Patterson was fired as a writer at her father's ''Daily News'' in her ...
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Smithtown, New York
Smithtown is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Suffolk County, New York, on the North Shore (Long Island), North Shore of Long Island. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. The population was 116,296 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. The census-designated place (CDP) of Smithtown (CDP), New York, Smithtown lies within the town's borders. History The land that would become the town was originally owned by the Nissequogue Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans. Local legend An oft-repeated but apocryphal story has it that, after rescuing a Native Americans in the United States, Native American chief's abducted daughter, Richard Smith was told that the chief would grant title to all of the land Smith could encircle in one day while riding a bull. Smith chose to ride the bull on the longest day of the year (summer solstice) 1665, to enable him to ride longer "in one day." The land he acquired in this way is said to approxima ...
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