WOW --- I didn’t realize that it has been 3 weeks since my last post! I guess that means that not too much has been going on.

Well, that is basically true. The cantorial classes are moving along. I am now working on the Musaf service for Rosh Hashanah. This is much more complicated and difficult that I initially expected. There are several of reasons for this: (1) there is a tremendous amount of material, (2) the material is much more complex than anything I have had before and (3) I am getting multiple versions of some of the pieces that are used more than one time during the Holy Days. For example, I have 4 different versions of the Hin’ni. While much of the material is familiar to me, having the exact notes in many cases means that what I had learned in the past is “close, but no cigar” and I need to re-learn the melodies.

When it comes to the High Holy Days, presentation is a HUGE factor. I spend considerable time with my instructor working on “the tricks of the trade” to enhance the feelings being expressed in the words. This is done through the use of various techniques to add the emotion to the music.

I have not been doing too much else and have just going to services for the most part.

There are a couple of exceptions to this. One is that the holiday of Purim was celebrated here last week. Unlike in the US, Purim is a BIG deal here in Israel. People of all ages dress up in costume for parties and even just to walk around in the streets. There are parties everywhere and people invite others over for a seudot (a festive meal) on the afternoon of Purim. I was invited to a friend’s and had the opportunity to meet his entire family. It was a wonderful experience that lasted over 4 hours.

I took a few pictures while walking to his apartment, and wanted to share them with you. These were all taken on Ben Yehuda Street in central Jerusalem.

Yesterday I was invited to the home of someone that I met at services. I had only spoken with him a couple of times, but we seemed to get along well so I went. This was also a marvelous experience. There were 2 other couples there, neither of which I had met before. We sat around the table for about 3.5 hours exchanging stories and general conversation, enjoying each others company.