Playing The White House

Southfield's Avy Schreiber and other Kol Zimra members sing for the president.

SHELLI LIEBMAN DORFMAN
StaffM-iter

A

v-y Schreiber of Southfield had planned to cel-
ebrate the entire Chanukah holiday with his
wife, Lynne, and children Asher, 2 1 /2 , and
Eliana, 14 months. That was until he received a call
that would lead to a highlight of his music career: an
invitation to be part of a Chanukah party
performance at the White House.
A freelance musician who is a singer,
songwriter and pianist, Schreiber is also a
part of the a cappella vocal ensemble Kol
Zimra, which was invited to perform for
President George W. and first lady Laura
Bush on Dec. 9.
Three weeks before the performance,
Schreiber received a phone call from Kol
Zimra co-founder and executive director Alex
Katz of Englewood, N.J., telling him about
the planned White House performance.
"Avy has extraordinary musical talent and
all the members of Kol Zimra love singing
with him," Katz said.
"I was floored," Schreiber remembered.
"I had a hard time sleeping the night before.
I woke up at 4 a.m., took a 6:15 a.m. flight
to Dulles [airport]."
There, he met a dozen other members of
the group, who would be performing.
"We were excited and very focused,"
he said.
The men spent a couple of hours rehears-
ing and then, dressed in their black suits,
black kippot and Kol Zimra ties and pins,
they left for the White House.
Following a brief talk by the president
about the history and meaning of
Chanukah — and the lighting of the
Chanukah candles by three of the children
of Army Chaplain Shmuel Felzenberg, who
is on duty in Iraq — Kol Zimra took its
turn in the spotlight.
"We sang `Maoz Tzur,' then a medley of
`Chanukah, 0 Chanukah,' `Sivivon Sov, Sov, Soy'
and 'I Have a Little Dreidel,'" Schreiber said.
Then later, at a larger Chanukah party in another
room of the White House, the group performed
more songs for guests, including Rabbi E.B. "Bunny"
and Shaindy Freedman of Oak Park and Temple Beth
El Rabbi Daniel Syme and his wife, Dr. Jill Syme.
"At one point, about 10 women just started spon-
taneously dancing in a circle, a hora dance to our
singing," Schreiber said. "Afterwards, we were
remarking how that was the first time there's probably
been a hora dance in the White House."

12/24
2004

52

Career Started Early

A graduate of Yeshivat Akiva in Southfield and
Yeshiva University and Columbia University, both in
New York, Schreiber has been involved in music
since childhood, performing with various ensembles
and choirs.
In high school, he was the only Detroiter among
six founders of the now-defunct Jewish a cappella

at the White House."
And clearly those at the Chanukah party were
also impressed.
During the short concert, Schreiber said Mrs.
Bush turned to another woman and said, "They're
really good."
"And we could see she and the president tapping
their feet a little bit, bopping a little bit," he said.
Schreiber was also conscious of the
reception of the religiously diverse audi-
ence, saying he was please to realize, "that
we were singing in a style that is accessible
not only to Jews but to non-Jews alike."

Impossible Dream?

"I never could have imagined I would be
honored to bring a large contingent to
entertain the president and first lady at the
White House," Katz said.
Within days following the appearance, a
snippet from the performance was
replayed on Comedy Central's, The Daily
Show.
Watching Kol Zimra grow from four
singers to nearly 40 in just 4 1 /2 years, he
Avy Schreibei; front 1'010 far right,
said now he is looking to raise awareness
relaxes with other members of the
of Jewish music worldwide, with a goal of
Kol ZimAra choir:
having the group perform on television, in
both English and Hebrew. "If the presi-
dent enjoyed hearing and joining along
with Dreidel, Dreidel,' then I have no
doubt many others would be impressed
with the level of energy and professional-
Left: Avy Schreiber,
ism we bring to the table," said Katz, who
third from right,
was part of the group that performed at the
and other Kol
White House.
Zimra singers listen
For Schreiber, the entire experience was
to President George
unforgettable.
W Bush during a
"When I shook the president's hand, it
White House
was a thrill," he said.
Chanukah party.
"From our perspective, the goal of the
performance was to blow away the audi-
group Beat `achon, whose members came to include
ence, in particular, perhaps, the president and first
Alex Katz. The group produced three studio albums
lady," he said. "To sell ourselves the best we could
and performed in concert around the world, as far
with the most energy and excitement and mach
from home as Hong Kong.
[spirit] we could.
Schreiber remembers his start with Kol Zimra at
"At some level, it was also a kind of statement of
a huge outdoor pro-Israel rally in the parking lot of
a true sense of arrival, that we were able to get to
Temple Emanu-El — in the pouring rain.
this point. It was really just a tremendous sense of
Now performing about 10-15 times a year with
recognition."
the group, the highlight for both him — and his
wife, Lynne — is the White House performance.
"I had tears in my eyes the first five times I
For information on Kol Zimra, or to watch a
watched him perform via the White House home
clip of their performance at the White House,
page," Lynne Schreiber said. "I was so proud —
access the Web site at: vvww.kolzimra.com
and couldn't quite believe it was really my husband

