Mukamal smooths the body of the shofar.

horns are alike.
"Factory-produced shofarot may have
punctured areas, which make them non-
kosher and are often highly polished and
completely ground down. On the animal,
the horn has ridges and a lot- of texture
to it. I like to keep some of that and leave
a glimpse of what it really looks like.
Because I believe that each horn tells its
own story, I carefully choose where I will
grind the horn, if at all. No two horns are
ground the same way"
Mukamal makes the shofarot in his
basement workshop. That is, everything
except for the grinding. "That part is very
smelly:' he said. "My wife [a music teach-
er] makes me do it in the garage."
After the grinding is complete, he pains-
takingly hand-sands each horn to remove
all of the marks left by the grinding wheel,
sanding until the surface is smooth.
"I wash them in a bath of surgical soap
and hot water and sand them in the bath
using special waterproof sand paper;' he
said. "It is quite labor intensive and takes
about an hour."
Next, he polishes each horn with a com-
bination of linseed oil and very fine pum-
ice powder to create a smooth appearance,
followed by a coating of polyurethane.

Who's Blowing The Shofar?
Mukamal's shofarot often are given as
unique gift items. He sometimes gives
them himself, including one he presented
to a bat mitzvah celebrant who blows
shofar at Shir Shalom. One was recently
bought by a rabbi for her husband's
rabbinic ordination gift. A neighbor of
Mukamal's has purchased two.
"One was for a bar mitzvah boy and the
other was for a wedding gift:' the neigh-
bor said. "In both cases, the people were
so excited to have such a beautiful and

Mukamal enlarges the mouth of the horn.

memorable gift. They are gorgeous and
the tone quality is superb. Both times, I
just wanted something special, something
that the recipient would always remember
when they received it, and from who it
came. Richard is a musician by hobby, and
he works with the horn until he gets the
tone he wants out of it. They are beautiful
both in looks and in sound!'
Added Mukamal, "I will only sell a horn
that I would feel comfortable blowing!'
Mukamal also is pleased when his
shofarot are purchased by shofar-blowers,
including at least one area pulpit rabbi.
"They are created to be played;' he said.
Dr. Marvin Trimas, who has blown sho-
far for the congregation at Adat Shalom
Synagogue in Farmington Hills for 30
years, recently purchased one.
"It looks really nice sitting on a shelf,
Once the mouthpiece is formed, Mukamal smooths the surface.
but I bought it for the practical use said
Trirnas of Farmington Hills. "It is easier
and more comfortable to blow because
a shofar kosher is accurate. A shofar is
Richard loves what he creates and shares.
of the larger mouthpiece and because it
kosher if it is made from the horn of a
Thanks to him, our temple is blessed not
can be blown with the front of the mouth.
kosher animal and may not have puncture only with beautiful shofars of all variet-
It is also a larger shofar with a big, rich,
holes. The only exception is that a cow's
ies, but also a corps of shofar blowers. It is
full deep beautiful sound that the shofar
horn may not be used because of the bib-
regarded as a very special honor to stand
should have. The shofar should make an
lical story of the "golden calf!'
with him on Rosh Hashanah and blow the
awesome sound that says, ake up and
Mukamal says the making and selling of shofar.
listen.'
his shofarot is "a win-win-win-win."
"I'm sure that some see Richard walking
Mukamal understands the importance
"I win because I get to make a shofar;
into temple come this time of year with
of the shofar's sound: "A lot of people
the person who receives it either gets a
an incredibly heavy baseball bat bag and
come to services just to hear the shofar!' .
unique gift or buys themselves a practical
are a little confused. Those in the know
Although the shofar has traditionally
shofar they will enjoy using; the temple
recognize that it must be time for the High
been made from a ram's horn, other horns wins because the profits from the sales go
Holidays." Ei
are acceptable. "The use of the ram comes
there; and the purchaser wins because I
from the story of Avrohom's attempted
donate the profits in their honor."
sacrifice of Yitzchok, which is read on the
He also is happy thinking about "my 16-
For information on purchasing a
second day of Rosh Hashanah:' said Rabbi and 141/2-year old kids who will have the
handcrafted shofar from Richard
Elimelech Silberberg of the Sara and
memory of me making the shofarot and
Mukamal, send an e-mail inquiry to
Morris Tugman Bais Chabad Torah Center blowing them:' he said.
rmukamal@farmingtongroup.corn.
in West Bloomfield.
Said Shir Shalom's Rabbi Michael
Cost is $200, with profits donated to
According to Rabbi Silberberg,
Moskowitz, "It's wonderful to have a shofar
Tem f 1 Shit* Sh o
Mukamal's understanding of what makes
craftsman in our temple community. And

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