Ani Kinor: The Rodeph Shalom Orchestra

Cantor Erin Frankel

Back in October, the Philadelphia Inquirer ran a profile of Yannick Nezet-Seguin, the new music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra. I was amazed to learn in the article that Nezet-Seguin spends a lot of his free time listening to music that is not classical. He talked about having a period when he devoured Ella Fitzgerald recordings and then moved on to Sarah Vaughan and Joe Pass. He unwinds by listening to R&B, he loves Jill Scott, and he is able to compare Usher’s early and later music. He described a concert he led in the Netherlands with the Rotterdam Philharmonic where he juxtaposed classical music and techno music for a crowd of 2,500 young people between the ages of 25-35. And the audience couldn’t get enough of the orchestra.
This experience taught Nezet-Seguin that his goal is to “get out of our comfort zone, as long as we play in the best quality possible and the real music that we know.Continue reading

Reform Movement’s New President

Rabbi Rick Jacobs’ remarks at URJ’s Biennial Convention (12/18/11): Click for Rabbi Jacobs video.

by Rabbi Bill Kuhn

The Union for Reform Judaism’s (URJ) Biennial Convention took place in Washington, DC  December 14-18,  2011 with a record attendance of over 5,000 Reform Jews from around North America. Founded in 1873 by Rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise, (originally named the Union of American Hebrew Congregations), the URJ is the umbrella organization of all of the congregations in the Reform Movement.  Rodeph Shalom has been a member of the URJ since the very early days, and has been a proud leader of the Reform Movement ever since.Continue reading