Jewry's Role in
Human Affairs

MASTERS OF THE MUSICAL MEDIUM

Unity Through
Learning

Community-wide yearlong study project will honor

legacy of Rabbi Avrohom Freedman.

Freedman's first yahrtzeit (anniversary
of death).
Words in memory of Rabbi
Freedman
were also delivered by sons
n overflow crowd of upward
Rabbi
E.B.
"Bunny" Freedman and
of 1,000 people packed the
Rabbi Bezalel "Tzali" Freedman, as
auditorium of the Beth
well as by son-in-law Rabbi Dovid
Jacob School for Girls in
Pam of Toronto and Yeshiva Beth
Oak Park March 10 to pay tribute to
Yehudah President Gary Torgow.
the memory of Rabbi Avrohom Abba
Rabbi Freedman's sons spoke of
Freedman, the Yeshiva Beth Yehudah
their
father's importance to the
educator and community activist who
Southfield-based
died Feb. 2. The
Yeshiva
Beth Yehudah,
occasion was the
whose
day
school he
shloshim, memorial-
helped
establish,
and of
izing the deceased
his
special
way
of
30 days after bur-
reaching students,
ial.
often using outside-
The featured
the-classroom experi-
speaker was Torah
ences. They told of his
sage HaRav
work
with Soviet
Mattisyahu
Jewish
immigrants, and
Salomon, spiritual
his
profound
love for
overseer of
Jews
of
all
back-
America's largest
grounds.
yeshivah, Bais
Rabbi Dovid Pam
Medrash Govoha
noted
how his father-
in Lakewood, N.J.
in-law
was "always on
Rabbi Freedman's
the
go,
full of energy"
vision was for the
and
how
he "worked
unity of the Jewish
[holiness]
kedushah
in
Rabbi
Avrohom
Abba
Freedman
people, Rav
until
the
end."
Salomon pro-
Community activist
claimed, as he
Torgow
urged
the
audience to take an
exhorted the audience to overcome
example
from
Rabbi
Freedman's life to
fragmentation and to strengthen faith
"keep
running
and
doing"
for the
in these troubled times. As God is
good
of
the
community.
one, he added, so too must Jewry be
"Did any of us ever meet a more
united as one to merit Divine protec-
honest,
more humble, more gentle
tion.
man?"
he
asked.
"We must continue Rabbi
"He encouraged me to give more,
Freedman's legacy and strengthen the
do more, learn more. We can all work
bonds between us," he said.
To continue Rabbi Freedman's lega- to improve the lives of klal Yisrael [the
Jewish People]." ❑
cy of learning and unity, a special
community-wide Siyum HaTorah
(Completion of the Torah) project was
For information on the Siyum
launched. The program will coordi-
HaTorah study project in memo-
nate local Jews who pledge to learn a
ry of Rabbi Avrohom Abba
segment of Tanach (the Hebrew
Freedman, call Yosi Heber (248)
Bible), Mishna, or Talmud in Rabbi
968-1740 or Yitzchok Grossbard
Freedman's memory. This entire body
(248) 557-7515.
of core Jewish learning will be com-
pleted by Jan. 22, 2003, Rabbi

SUSAN TAWIL
Special to the Jewish News

A

The 19th century was a time of rebirth for recently emancipated Jews of
Europe who sought assimilation into a more accepting and benign
society. As ghetto doors swung open, long dormant talent flooded forth
into popular culture, as in the realm of music. Two of the most gifted
classical musicians of the times were among the many who embraced
Christianity for professional advantage but without doctrinal commitment:
Felix Mendelssohn, a leading figure of early romanticism, and Gustav
Mahler whose towering compositions announced a new symphonic age.

FELIX MENDELSSOHN
(1809-1847) b. Hamburg, Germany Composer/
The grandson of Moses
Conductor/Pianist
Mendelssohn, a distinguished philosopher and
spiritual leader of German Jewry, wrote his
inspired overture A Midsummer Night's Dream
when only seventeen--eight years after his first
public piano recital. In the vibrant, cultivated
atmosphere of an affluent household, the young
prodigy blossomed intellectually and musically.
Despite an exhausting schedule as a much sought-after conductor,
pianist and teacher, the prolific composer completed five orchestral
symphonies; the Reformation (1830 32), Italian (1833) and Scottish (1842)
are the best known and most frequently performed. Within his body of
music is the "Wedding March" familiar to all.
. Mendelssohn earned considerable fame in his day. His tours
throughout the Continent brought him often to England and into the
personal favor of Queen Victoria who deeply admired his genius. He also
helped revive interest in the century-old works of Bach, raised the quality
of orchestral performance, and founded the Leipzig Conservatory of Music
which was then regarded as the finest in the world.
Musicologists consider Mendelssohn's choral and organ music as
among the best the century produced. By the early 1840s he was the most
acclaimed and popular composer in Central Europe. And taking up the
baton he conducted the first performances of symphonies by his friend and
colleague, Robert Schumann, and by Franz Schubert.
Tragedy struck at age 38 when Mendelssohn's much adored sister,
Fanny (an accomplished pianist in her own right), died suddenly.
Physically depleted and in failing health, one of the most gifted musicians
of his day expired soon after his overwhelming bereavement.

-

GUSTAV MAHLER
(1860-1911) b. Kalist, Bohemia Composer/
Conductor While his music was less appreciated
in his day, he is now hailed as one of the last great
romantic composers in the tradition of Beethoven,
Brahms and Wagner. His musical legacy inspired
early 20th century disciples such as Arnold
Schoenberg and Alban Berg. Mahler's nakedly
emotional work consists of nine symphonies
which are huge in orchestral scale, and seven song cycles often based on
folk elements. Equally as prominent was Mahler the conductor who greatly
enriched orchestral resources and elevated the standards of musical play.
He too was a prodigy whose father supported his talent. Barely ten
when he staged his first piano recital, he soon graduated to composition by
way of conducting operettas and ever-more demanding repertoires. His
reputation behind the podium peaked as the musical director of the Vienna
Opera (1897-1907), the .outstanding institution of its kind and time. An
unrelenting perfectionist, Mahler insisted on technically precise
performances faithful to the original scores--demanding much of his singers
and musicians whom he often antagonized.
Malicious intrigues and anti-semitism drove him from Vienna to
America where he led the New York Metropolitan Opera; then the New
York Philharmonic which he built into the world-class organization it
remains today. Among his classics are colossal choral pieces like his
eighth symphony, the haunting Das Lied von der Erde, and the deeply
moving song cycle, Kindertotenlieder.
- Saul Stadtmauer

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