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SUZANNE CHESSLER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

An
intergenerational
choir keeps its
members in
touch with their
roots and
connected to
their new home.

Mira Rozova, Inna Epstein, Bella Rozova and Yelena Goldshteyn lift their voices.

he song was All-
American — the
Gershwin classic "I
Got Rhythm." The
voices were newly
American — the
mostly Russian im-
migrants who com-
prise the Jewish
Community Center
Intergenerational
Choir.
The sounds filled
a small room at the
Jimmy Prentis
Morris (JPM)
Building in Oak Park and spilled over into
the hallway. It was late Monday afternoon,
the time for one of two weekly rehearsals
scheduled by the 40-member group of se-
nior women, teens and young girls.
Larisa Matusova, who had been a school
choir director in Kiev for 28 years, led the
chorale through a repertoire that included
Russian, Yiddish and Hebrew songs. T
Ostapenko, formerly a teacher and ac-
companist in the Ukraine, played the pi-
ano.
Since organizing over two years ago, the
choir has performed at the Detroit Histor-
ical Museum, synagogues and nearby
apartment buildings.
While their shows are fun and impor-

tant to them, the singers have deeper rea-
sons for their dedication to the group. Be-
sides the opportunity to speak in their
native language and reminisce about the
world left behind, they value the discus-
sions of what remains unfamiliar in their
new country.
"The choir makes me feel like I can be
myself and express myself," said Vicky Ioffe,
15, a Berkley High School 10th-grader who
came to the United States from Latvia two
years ago.
"I heard about the choir from my Russ-
ian friends at school. They told me about
the Russian songs that they sing. I knew
the songs, and I got to hear how they were
being sung in a professional way.
"When we speak to each other in Russ-
ian, it reminds me of Latvia. Talking about
our experiences in America helps me ad-
just. If we speak Russian in school, the oth-
ers don't like it. I think that they believe we
are talking about them."
In Latvia, Vicky learned to read and
write Hebrew, but she was uncomfortable
using that language in front of her non-Jew-
ish friends. She likes the greater religious
freedom found in her new home and cele-
brated by the musical program.
Lina Volotskaya, 17, a junior at Berkley
High School, has grown up to American
music since coming to the United States
from the Ukraine with her parents three

years ago. "Can You Feel the Love
Tonight?" by Elton John has become her
favorite song.
Lina loves all kinds of music. At Berkley,
she performs with an a cappella choir and
performed in a production of The Sound of

Music.

"I used to go to music school," Lina said.
"I was in a choir, and I played the piano.
Because of Larisa, I keep learning. I can't
live without music."
'We have discovered how much this choir
has allowed members to connect with Ju-
daism," said Leslee Magidson, JPM assis-
tant managing director.
After getting to know the choir master
and her ambitions during a JCC concert
outing, Ms. Magidson took the helm in
starting the group through the Generations
Together Program. Funding came from a
Max M. Fisher Jewish Community Foun-
dation grant.
"The basic idea was bringing together
young people and seniors, with the older
generation passing along their heritage
to the younger people," Ms. Magidson said.
"Along the way, we have seen how it
helps them with English as a second lan-
guage and how it gets them to experience
the area where they live. For the teens, per-
forming before the public helps build their
self-esteem."
Ms. Magidson assists in scheduling con-

cents, which usually are requested by peo-
ple who have seen an earlier show. She
arranges for the buses that transport the
choir members, and she oversees fee pay-
ments for the concerts.
She is concerned about new funding
since the grant is in its last year.
Yevgeniya Karasik, 68, a retired pedia-
trician who practiced near Minsk before
moving to the United States seven years
ago, always loved to sing, but there never
seemed to be enough time when she was
in her native country.
Now, between family, English lessons
and volunteer work, the time is available.
"I attended the choir from the first day
and have made friends," the doctor said.
"I remember the songs from my own
childhood, and I remember hearing some
of the Jewish songs from my mother and
father.
"I like children, and children like me.
When I hear the children singing, I for-
get my problems. Being with young peo-
ple makes me feel younger."
Dr. Karasik, who came to the United
States to join her two children and grand-
children, praises the leadership of Ms. Ma-
tusova, who hopes the choir will bring her
work opportunities in the country she has
known for four years.

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