Intermountain Jewish news., 1926-09-09

They Sing as
They Rebuild
The Place of Music in The
New Jewish Life In
Palestine.
BY DIR. M. ROBINSON

| "o' o'''oiy u zee. T rom n G
"Chaluz" down to the beturbaned
Jew there is an irresistible impulse to
sing. One hears snatch of song
on the street and one joins in without
ceremony. Not long ago two world
famous cantors, Kwartin and Sirota,
visited Jerusalem and all the public
halls from the great Synagogue to the
Zion theater were too small to hold
the vast throngs that turned out for
the occasion. A sea of red tarboushes
and silken gabardines surged into the
doorways. Tickets cost three times
as much as they would in America! |!
Pound notes futtered into the box
office like mama from heaven. The
famous cantors bought estates on Mt.
Carmel in the same locality where the
Prophets in Biblical days concertized.
During the past few years the Pal
estine opera has constantly risen in
prestige. Two and half years ago,
company of seventy excellent singers
and musicians organized into a CO.
operative opera company. They went
at their task with the enthusiasm of
artists-Chaluzim, and in a short per-
iod of time managed to create a new
Jewish world Of fantastic and beauti-
full harmonies. Thirteen classical
operas have already been sung in He
brew and every year sees new ones in
preparation. Next year six new
operas are scheduled for production.
All Glasses Attend the Opera
On the days that the opera COM
pany descends upon Jerusalem from
Tel-Aviv, holiday spirit fills the
streets of the Holy City. The aesthe-
ties and the music lovers supply them
selves with tickets in advance. When
the cool, blue night descends upon Jer-
rusalem and the square before the
Zion theater is illuminated by electric
lamps, long queue of impatient
music lovers forms before the box
office. Many bring their last shilling
in order to fill their thirsty souls with
melody. Carriages and automobiles
drive up to the entrance as they do be-
fore the Opera in Paris. There come
Jewish aristocrats with pince-nez and
lorgnettes, priests in capes and black
cone-shaped hats, Englishmen with
their long-throated women, Chaluzim
in white blouses and in general work
men spruced up for the occasion
though still fatigued from their
labors. The high commissioner, Lord
Plumer, is regular visitor to the
opera and applauds the artists warm
ly from his box.
Operas Are Sung in Hebrew
The Biblical ring of the Hebrew
text, the Jewish style of singing and
the decorations, also of a specifically
Jewish character, have made some
rather startling changes in the char
acter of the classical operas. The
spirit and the psychology of the audi
ences calls for the Judaizing of all
that appears upon the Palestine stage
The enthusiastic audiences often see
a heroic "shomer" from Galiles in the
role of the toreador in Carmen.
Operas based on Jewish themes
such as: Judas Maccabees, Samson
and Delilah, La Juive and etc, dis
card in Palestine their foreign class
ical garb and take on the character of
the background with which they deal.
1t is interesting to note that in re-
cent years, an intense nationalistic
spirit has impregnated the work of
the Jewish musicians and composers
throughout the world, and they are
beginning to create original Jewish
music. The spirit of creative unrest
moves them to an effort for national
renascence. They can no more sing
of alien gods and alien aspirations;
they long for home. Their spiritual
ears, awakened to new tonal beauty,
are turning away from the over-orna-
mented, old fashioned classicism to
hear the pure harmonies flowing from
the harp of the Daughter of Zion.
There have appeared operas OF gen.
uinely Jewish character in Hebrew,
such as the ala Chaluz," by Vein
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