I used to classify Jewish music as songs that I play when I songlead at camp, lead services, and learn at Hava Nashira (a "Jewish" music retreat for adults), and the occasional artist like Matisyahu or Blue Fringe. But now I know that Jewish music can range to anything from "Ghettoblaster" hip-hop to a collection of funky klezmer-folk fusion. I think that as long as one can connect the music to a part of their Jewish identity or culture, it can be considered "Jewish" in one way or another.
A perfect example of this type of classification of Jewish music that I can give is music in Jewish summer camps. I am a songleader at my camp, and music is the driving force behind almost everything we do. We sing at every meal, whether it is the blessings before and after the meal, an all-camp song session, or a spontaneous outburst of song within a bunk or unit. I would say that 95% of the songs we sing at camp would automatically be identified as "Jewish" to any listener. However, the other 5% we sing are not typically classified as "Jewish." This 5% includes folk songs (like "This Land is Your Land by the one and only Woody Guthrie), popular songs, and even the occasional round of "The Rainbow Connection." To any outsider from our camp, these songs seem anything but Jewish. However, to the community of Camp Harlam, these songs define important Jewish moments and memories. Were they written with the intent of being considered "Jewish," most likely not. But do they hold that meaning to a number of people, absolutely.
As we learned in class today, there is no such thing as "Jewish music." There is no way to create a sound that is purely Jewish. Music is music, it is up to the listener to classify what they believe they are listening to. I think that the album that I listened to was a perfect example of the listener needing to determine what kind of music they are listening to.
I listened to "Woody Guthrie's A Happy Joyous Hanukkah" by The Klezmatics. Woody Guthrie is regarded as the "father of folk music." I would be lying if I said that I wasn't a complete nerd when it came to folk music. I grew up with it, and I consider it to be one of my favorite types of music. When I first put in the cd by The Klezmatics, I was a bit skeptical. What could this klezmer group bring to the lyrics of Woody Guthrie. In my mind, there was no room for klezmer music and folk music to combine. Luckily, I was proven wrong. I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to listen to. It reminded me of a cd my over-the-top religious school teacher would play for my class when we were younger.
According to a review in the New York Times, "...the Klezmatics were not bound by any genre. They could sound like a chamber ensemble, a jazz combo, a ragtime group or a roots-rock band as well as a klezmer group." I think that the Klezmatics did a great job combining the unforgettable folk music of Woody Guthrie with klezmer instrumentals. This album, along with the other albums we listened to in class, have definitely changed my idea of what "Jewish music" is.
4 comments:
I definitely relate to the whole camp/ jewish music thing. In fact I wrote a speech ( i guess you could call it a d'var) for the 7th grade religious school shabbat at my temple about Jewish Music. At the end of the 7th grade shabbat torah service they have 3 involved confirmation students talk about how it is important to continue with confirmation, go to Israel, and be involved after their Bar/ Bat Mitzvah. I compared myself to my Ipod, which my friends at school dubbed the Jpod, since it had more Jewish music then secular. This also included those camp songs that have no references to anything Jewish- time of your life, aint no mountain high enough, Build me up butter cup, lean on me, etc. Putting my "Jpod" on shuffle meant that you would have to hit skip many times as to avoid the awkward "Na Na Na" song when non-jews were around
I know we talked about it in class that one day, but reading your blog has helped me to understand that there really is no "jewish" music, or any specific kind of music for that matter. I was thinking about it a lot, and I feel like in the end, the type of music we listen to can really only be defined by the person listening to it. Let me explain. For example, one of my favorite bands is Tool. Each one of the members of the group is explicitly anti-religion, and anti-christian, yet I still personally get a very strong message from some of their songs that run parallel with many Christian philosophies. But does that make them a Christian band? Not necessarily. Well, not at all actually. So maybe, the kind of music the band creates as far as genres go can be defined through the individual's combined philosophies. But then again, there are bands out there who don't necessarily believe in the music they are playing but use it as a way to make money or popularity.
i too can relate the the "what? no such thing as jewish music?!" as a former NFTY songleader, i thought professor cohen was kidding. but i have to agree with shane in that music is totally defined by not only those who listen to it- as in the message each individual derrives from the music- but the intention of the musician who created it. there is a certain intention behind those who write "jewish" music, like danny nichols and rick recht produce music with a very specific message for Reform Jewish kids, but, hebrew lyrics or not, its all in how you want to interpret it.
From an academic perspective, moreover, it gets even more complicated: what do we mean when we're talking about "music"? Is it the sound itself? The lyrics (and what if there aren't any lyrics)? Certain kinds of melodic turns or note combinations? The intention of the composer or the producer? The identity of the composer? And what about the audience? Once, while giving an academic paper on Jewish music research in America, one of the audience members mentioned that she always thought Peter Tchaikovsky's music sounded Jewish to her--could we make a connection? I told her no, and she felt offended and betrayed. So, just like with other artforms, it's a complicated and complex matter.
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