Upcoming Jewish Music Forum Events
A Tradition of Talent: Jewish Opera Singers
and the Patterns that Shaped their Careers
by Samantha M. Cooper
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
4:00 PM , Eastern
Register HERE to receive the Zoom link
and the Patterns that Shaped their Careers
by Samantha M. Cooper
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
4:00 PM , Eastern
Register HERE to receive the Zoom link
This talk presents the first extended investigation into the patterns that shaped the trajectories of numerous men and women of Jewish descent who pursued careers as opera singers in New York between 1880 and 1940.
Due to their unique mediation between the score, the stage, and their audiences, singers are one of the most indispensable elements of opera’s performance and reception. Although opera singers have often inspired scholarship about their geographical, social, and ethnic backgrounds, few studies have designed methods for comparing the experiences of large numbers of singers at the same time. What is more, beyond biographies of individual performers, Jews are rarely understood as significant contributors to the American opera scene. Yet examination of their presence in the Center for Jewish History’s archives confirms that there is merit in undertaking devoted study of their vocal careers.
Samantha M. Cooper is a PhD Candidate in Historical Musicology at New York University, and the 2020/2021 Dr. Sophie Bookhalter Memorial Fellow in Jewish Culture at the Center for Jewish History. Her dissertation examines the diverse engagement efforts of Jewish New Yorkers with European opera between 1880 and 1940. Samantha's first article about the voices of Fanny Brice and Barbra Streisand is forthcoming with the Journal of the Society for American Music, and she has published book reviews with the Journal of Musicological Research, the Society for American Music Bulletin, and Musica Judaica. In addition to the Center for Jewish History’s ongoing support, her research has been advanced by fellowships from the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the International Chapter of the Philanthropic Educational Organization, and the American Academy for Jewish Research. Samantha currently serves as the Associate Executive Director of the Jewish Music Forum, a Project of the American Society for JewishMusic.
Due to their unique mediation between the score, the stage, and their audiences, singers are one of the most indispensable elements of opera’s performance and reception. Although opera singers have often inspired scholarship about their geographical, social, and ethnic backgrounds, few studies have designed methods for comparing the experiences of large numbers of singers at the same time. What is more, beyond biographies of individual performers, Jews are rarely understood as significant contributors to the American opera scene. Yet examination of their presence in the Center for Jewish History’s archives confirms that there is merit in undertaking devoted study of their vocal careers.
Samantha M. Cooper is a PhD Candidate in Historical Musicology at New York University, and the 2020/2021 Dr. Sophie Bookhalter Memorial Fellow in Jewish Culture at the Center for Jewish History. Her dissertation examines the diverse engagement efforts of Jewish New Yorkers with European opera between 1880 and 1940. Samantha's first article about the voices of Fanny Brice and Barbra Streisand is forthcoming with the Journal of the Society for American Music, and she has published book reviews with the Journal of Musicological Research, the Society for American Music Bulletin, and Musica Judaica. In addition to the Center for Jewish History’s ongoing support, her research has been advanced by fellowships from the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the International Chapter of the Philanthropic Educational Organization, and the American Academy for Jewish Research. Samantha currently serves as the Associate Executive Director of the Jewish Music Forum, a Project of the American Society for JewishMusic.
April 6 & 7, 2022
EXILE: MUSIC OF THE EARLY-MODERN JEWISH DIASPORA
Two performances: Rutgers University (April 6th) and The Center for Jewish History (April 7th)
EXILE highlights Jewish music as it shifted and melded with traditions in early modern Europe. The program takes as its starting point the rich musical cultures fostered by Jews in early modern Italy and their points of contact with non-Jewish traditions. From there, it touches on the influences of Italian, German, and English music and Jewish culture, highlighting Jewish musicians, the non-Jewish composers they influenced, and composers who inspired innovations in Jewish composition. The purpose of the EXILE project is to highlight the mutual influences of the early modern European Jewish experience – to break down preconceptions of Jewish music and culture and explore the implications of diaspora on Jewish artistic legacy.
The concert will feature Incantare’s core instrumental ensemble plus four singer specialists, as well as special guests Dongmyung Ahn, violin, and Rebecca Cypess, organ and harpsichord. The program It is closely tied with the forthcoming book Music and Jewish Culture in Early Modern Italy. This book “demonstrates that musical culture was fluid and shared between Jews and non-Jews, and that this shared cultural space involved complexities of identity and meaning.” The concert will contain narration and commentary on the music by author contributors.
EXILE is proudly presented in partnership with the American Society for Jewish Music, the Jewish Music Forum, and Rutgers University's Mason Gross School of the Arts, Allen and Joan Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life, Department of Music, and Department of Italian. EXILE is also supported by a Polyphonic Grant from the Paul R. Judy Center for Innovation and Development.
EXILE: MUSIC OF THE EARLY-MODERN JEWISH DIASPORA
Two performances: Rutgers University (April 6th) and The Center for Jewish History (April 7th)
EXILE highlights Jewish music as it shifted and melded with traditions in early modern Europe. The program takes as its starting point the rich musical cultures fostered by Jews in early modern Italy and their points of contact with non-Jewish traditions. From there, it touches on the influences of Italian, German, and English music and Jewish culture, highlighting Jewish musicians, the non-Jewish composers they influenced, and composers who inspired innovations in Jewish composition. The purpose of the EXILE project is to highlight the mutual influences of the early modern European Jewish experience – to break down preconceptions of Jewish music and culture and explore the implications of diaspora on Jewish artistic legacy.
The concert will feature Incantare’s core instrumental ensemble plus four singer specialists, as well as special guests Dongmyung Ahn, violin, and Rebecca Cypess, organ and harpsichord. The program It is closely tied with the forthcoming book Music and Jewish Culture in Early Modern Italy. This book “demonstrates that musical culture was fluid and shared between Jews and non-Jews, and that this shared cultural space involved complexities of identity and meaning.” The concert will contain narration and commentary on the music by author contributors.
EXILE is proudly presented in partnership with the American Society for Jewish Music, the Jewish Music Forum, and Rutgers University's Mason Gross School of the Arts, Allen and Joan Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life, Department of Music, and Department of Italian. EXILE is also supported by a Polyphonic Grant from the Paul R. Judy Center for Innovation and Development.
The Jewish Music Forum is a project of the American Society for Jewish Music,
with the support of the American Jewish Historical Society
and the Center for Jewish History.
Founded in 2004, the Jewish Music Forum is now in its fifteenth season in 2018-19.
All programs of the Jewish Music Forum are free and open to the public.
For more information please visit
http://www.jewishmusic-asjm.org
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Site last updated March 15, 2021
Site last updated March 15, 2021