avakesh

Talking to children about God

by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz

Gershwin's Jewish Roots

"According to several Gershwin scholars, Gershwin was influenced by the Yiddish Theater and other popular Jewish music. An example of this is the famous tune ‘S Wonderful. It shows many similarities to Goldfaden’s Jewish tune, “Noach’s Teive”. Both songs have almost exact copies of the same tune, and partly even the same notes. Another of Gershwin’s songs that has resemblance to Yiddish music was “My One and Only” from the 1927 show of Funny Face. “Seventeen and Twenty-One” from Strike Up The Band has a similar melody to “Der Pach Tanz” and “Schuster and Schneider Tanz”.

There were other influences from Jewish music on his work. It has been pointed out that Gershwin’s tunes are almost all melody, a characteristic of a lot of religious and secular Jewish music. Moreover, many of his songs are written -- like much Jewish music-- in a minor key. For example, Gershwin’s title song from the show Funny Face is based on a minor third, which is interval of music containing a total of three half steps. Another example of Gershwin’s use of the minor third is the song “In the Mandarin’s Orchid Garden”, used in the early version of the 1929 play Show Girl. Some of George Gershwin’s songs even resemble Biblical prayer chants. An example of this is “It Ain’t Necessarily So” from Porgy and Bess. This song is similar to the prayer that you chant after you read the Torah at your bar/bat mitzvah and at every Sabbath. Since there is enough evidence, I believe that Gershwin’s being Jewish affected his music. "
from http://www.ilperetz.org/graduates/adam_benaroya.htm

Legacy

There are only two lasting bequests we can hope to give our children. One is roots; the other, wings.

Hodding Carter

JIB voting

JIB voting is now taking place. This blog has been nominated under the Best Torah Blog category. You can view the list of all nominated blogs and vote, if you wish, at: http://www.jibawards.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=52&Itemid=98

Thirty thousand

We are now at 30.000.00 hits and accelerating. Baruch Hashem, this site is now in the JIB category of mega-blogs, with over 200 hits a day. Thank you for your confidence in the mesage and your support. I will no longer belabor you with updates but when, please G-d, we reach 100.000.00, I will let you know. 

Never mind the message in Russian, it has nothing to do with this blog.

Smart Jews

"  One of the most controversial and influential public intellectuals in American life is weighing in with a new theory on the roots of Jewish intelligence.Charles Murray, famous for “The Bell Curve,” his book on the racial basis of intelligence, has published an article in this month’s Commentary, titled “Jewish Genius.”In the essay, Murray theorizes that the preponderance of very smart Jews throughout the ages can be traced back to evolutionary processes that began even before the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem."

More at: http://www.forward.com/articles/bell-curve-scribe-mulls-roots-of-jews-br/

I post a few slides on  from a lecture by Dr. Mark Levin that I once heard him deliver on a related topic. Dr. Levin kindly agreed to make this lecture publicly available on the condition that his contribution be acknowledged when copying or referring to these slides. You will need to use Power Point to view the attached file.

Download grand_rounds.ppt

Twenty thousand

We passed twenty thousand today. In all fairness, I must point out that several thousand hits were generated by a single post, to my great surprise. There is still a lot for me to learn about this medium.

Nevertheless, thank you and chazak!

What is the Korban Pesach?

A 1 minute movie outlining the concept of the renewal of the Passover offering (Korban Pesach). This ancient ceremony was practiced for centuries up until the destruction of the great Temple in Jerusalem nearly 2000 years ago. Its revitalization, in its authentic traditional form, is a giant step towards the redemption of the Jewish people in their land.

Shidduch Video

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6294385856859826303&q=shidduch&hl=en

I understand that the prayers of the "bochurim" were both answered within the year.

10.000.00

Thank your dear readers for your interest and support. We now passed the 10.000.00 hit mark. Chazak!