Musical Tribute in Memory of Reb Shlomo Carlebach
Valley Beth Shalom, Encino, CA
Erev Shabbat, March 21, 2014
Senior Rabbi Ed Feinstein and Cantor Herschel Fox invite community to Valley Beth Shalom, Kabbalat Shabbat, Friday, March 21, 2014, 8pm, for their annual musical tribute "Farbrengan" with the soulful Chassidic Orchestra, in memory of the legendary singing Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, z"l, and in honor of his 20th yahrzeit (death year). Shlomo's last Los Angeles Shabbaton was March 1994.
For more information, visit www.vbs.org or call (818) 788-6000.
Valley Beth Shalom is located at 15739 Ventura Blvd., Encino, CA 91436 (on the northeast corner at Densmore).
No charge. Free Parking, and festive Oneg.
Renowned Chassidic Orchestra musicians include: Cantor Herschel Fox soloist, Chris Hardin, conductor and pianist, Peter Grant, guitarist, Joy Krauthammer, percussionist, and Mike Nelson, clarinetist.
Guest artists include Cantor Judy Fox and Shira Fox.
The beloved Hazzan Herschel Fox offers chazzanut (songs) from Chassidic dynasties including Lubavitch, Moditzer, Gerer and more. He also shares personal and published stories about the legendary Reb Shlomo Carlebach.
Shlomo Carlebach, known as Reb Shlomo to his followers, was a rabbi, religious teacher, composer and singer. Carlebach is considered by many to be the foremost Jewish religious songwriter of the 20th century. In a career that spanned four decades, Reb Shlomo Carlebach channeled a hundred niggunim (wordless melodies) each day, composed thousands of melodies, and recorded more than 25 albums that continue to have widespread popularity. Known both as "the Singing Rabbi" and the "Dancing Rabbi", Shlomo performed world-wide from Haight-Ashbury in the sixties, to New York, Israel, Russia, India and Poland--everywhere, recounts Joy Krauthammer, Reb Shlomo's percussionist and co-producer of Shlomo's Los Angeles concerts during the last years of his life.
Traveling most days, Shlomo played in parks, prisons, hospitals, airplanes, concert halls, camps, retreats, streets, simchas, schools and synagogues. Reb Shlomo would talk to thousands, each on a personal level, inspiring them and assisting in their journey. Carlebach was also considered a pioneer of the Ba'al Teshuva movement (returnees to Judaism), encouraging disenchanted Jewish youth to re-embrace their heritage, using his special style of enlightened teaching, and his melodies, songs and highly inspiring story telling. Shlomo's songs aroused and uplifted millions, many still devoted, Torah-learned, and performing disciples today. Those that were privileged to know Shlomo on a personal level knew that he was a holy rabbi, a true Torah Chassid.
Although his roots lay in traditional Orthodox yeshivot, he branched out to create his own style combining Hasidic Judaism, warmth and personal interaction, public concerts, and song-filled synagogue services. After Europe, he lived in Manhattan, San Francisco, Toronto, and Moshav Mevo Modi'im, Israel.
World wide, there are increasing Shlomo Carlebach minyanim (prayer groups). They are listed in Kol Chevre, annual memorial book, filled with recollections of Reb Shlomo, and published in Jerusalem by Emuna Witt Halevy.
See Krauthammer's story on Shlomo: http://rebshlomocarlebach-ztl.blogspot.com.
Shlomo's Torahs, music and videos spanning decades are at: http://shlomocarlebacharchive.blogspot.com
New stories are in the photo-filled recent published scholarly biography of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, Life, Mission, and Legacy, by Rabbi Natan Ophir.
"The universal language and deep soulful power of music brings the universe closer, which is what Reb Shlomo, z"l, stood for," said Krauthammer.
~ ~ ~
This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.
The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?