Jewish Music Outside the Sanctuary

As one of the vice-chairs of our Reform movement’s Joint Commission on Worship, Music and Religious Living, I spend quite a bit of time reflecting on music for the worship setting. But quite regularly someone asks whether we should also be considering Jewish music for venues outside the synagogue. While liturgical music tends to be our primary focus — especially now as we work to support the new siddur, Mishkan T’filah — the inclusion of music in other settings remains an important issue.

Music serves so many functions. In worship, it can illuminate a text or simply convey a mood that facilitates and enhances prayer. It draws us together through congregational singing or allows us to enter our personal realm of prayer as we listen to the music being sung.

Outside of worship, it can do much more. Music can do everything from fill a void to create an atmosphere that enhances an event or a physical space to inspire and enthrall us. Sometimes we use music to engage and sometimes we use it to escape. In our fast-moving, video-game world, many people are uncomfortable with silence. I even know a person who comes to the pool with a special Mp3 player for lap swimming! Concert music stimulates and challenges us. Music can create a party atmosphere or a calm mood for a relaxed dining experience.

Jewish music can unite our Jewish lives with our everyday world. It can remind us of our ethnic and theological grounding and bring special meaning to our routines. It can also frame important moments in our lives, making them something sacred. A number of months ago, I found myself in a hospital room with three medical staff members as we withdrew life support from an infant born with serious congenital anomalies. Without family present, it was up to four concerned healthcare professionals to stand with this child in the holy transition from life to death. One cradled the child while two others attended to both of them. I found myself softly humming niggunim — melodies without words —for about 20 minutes while we all stood together in this sad moment. What could have felt like an empty failure became a holy time as four adults joined together in a hospital room that we turned into a quiet, sacred sanctuary in order to accompany this little one from this world to the next. It was, for me, a profoundly transcendent moment in an otherwise mundane world.

At other times, music can be an impetus for gathering and celebrating. I am looking forward to the second weekend of next month when Mary Thomas and her cantorial classmate, Josh Breitzer, join me for a weekend of music-making. Mary and Josh will join me for our services on Friday evening and Congregational Shabbat on Saturday morning, January 11th and 12th. The three of us will then present a musical program and lead Havdalah on Saturday evening. Music can be key in helping us put our hectic workweeks behind us, and reveling in the peace and camaraderie that comes with celebrating Shabbat together. For me, there is a special joy in making music with colleagues — a joy that the three of us look forward to sharing with all of you.

Discussions about music can often be heated and controversial. While that is sometimes frustrating for me, it also testifies to the enormous power and the enormous potential of music. Whether the music is in the foreground or the background, it touches us personally and shapes our experiences. And it always brings me joy as the vehicle through which I am able to share our Jewish journey together.

L’shalom,
Andrew Bernard
Cantor