Music and Visual Arts

Our Shtetl San Diego County: Prayer Melodies from Tifereth Israel

Kol Tefilah, led by Debbie Mishek, M.D., is a performance group that periodically leads Friday night services at Tifereth Israel Synagogue “with joy, music, intimacy, and an awareness of God’s presence,” according to an announcement for the 6:15 p.m. Kabbalat Shabbat service at 6:15 p.m., Friday, March 1. [SDJW staff]

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California, Jewish Religion, Music and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Today’s Jewish Birthday: Meir Dizengoff

After moving back in 1905 to Palestine, where he settled in Jaffa, he formed a partnership with the Ahuzat Bayit company to develop land on the outskirts of Jaffa. Sixty six families drew lots for housing locations along the beach from which the city of Tel Aviv would grow. The Dizengoffs were among those first families, and he served as head of town planning from 1911 to 1922. When Tel Aviv was recognized as a city, Dizengoff was elected as its first mayor. [SDJW staff]

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International, Israel, Jewish History, Music and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Today's Jewish Birthday

‘Maestro’ Looks into the Soul of Leonard Bernstein

The story begins with Lenny’s big break. He was the Assistant Conductor of the New York Philharmonic when, just before a concert at Carnegie Hall that was broadcast live on the radio, the conductor took ill. They had zero rehearsals together, but the depth of his knowledge and passion for the music shone through. After that, folks in the industry knew his name and he was a hot-ticket item. [Eric George Tauber]

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Eric George Tauber, Music and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Don’t silence Israel’s story at Eurovision

Published by Euronews (English) Each year, I eagerly await the Eurovision Song Contest, a magnificent event where singers from countries across Europe and beyond share their stories. This exceptional gathering provides a cultural stage for participating nations to offer glimpses into their cultures, histories, and ways of life. It is a platform for learning about,

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International, Israel, Music and Visual Arts, Nordot, Sports & Competitions

Today’s Jewish Birthday: Debbie Friedman

Over nearly four decades she recorded 22 albums, enriching the Jewish liturgy with such compositions as “The Aleph Bet Song,” “Miriam’s Song,” “Not By Might,” “I Am a Latke,” and “Mi Shebeirech,” co-written with her partner Drorah Setel. “Mi Shebereich,” a song for healing, is used by hundreds of congregations throughout North America. Her songs were gender sensitive and inclusive. [SDJW staff]

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Jewish Religion, Music and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Today's Jewish Birthday, USA

Today’s Jewish Birthday: Maurycy Gottlieb

His painting “Shylock and Jessica” won the Gold Medal at the Munich Academy. Later, he returned to Vienna to study under Heinrich von Angeli, and produced paintings on biblical themes. Meeting in Rome, Matejko urged him to return to Krakow to work on a series of monumental paintings including scenes depicting the history of the Jews in Poland. [SDJW staff]

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International, Jewish History, Music and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Today's Jewish Birthday

California Legislators Visit Sites of Oct. 7 Massacre

Throughout the trip – a collaboration of JPAC, JCRC Bay Area, and Jewish Federation LA – lawmakers witnessed firsthand the consequences of the horrific atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7th and their lasting effect on Israeli civil society. We visited impacted communities on the Gaza border and the surrounding areas, cried with families of hostages, and met with Israeli government officials, including President Isaac Herzog.  [David Bocarsly]

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California, Israel, Music and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Winehouse Statue in London Defaced with Palestinian Sticker

LONDON (JNS) — A sculpture of Amy Winehouse in the town of Camden, in northern London, was defaced over the weekend with a Palestinian flag sticker covering the late Jewish singer’s Star of David necklace. “This is disgusting. Amy Winehouse was a famous Jewish singer who was proud of her Jewish heritage,” wrote the National

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International, Israel, Jewish Celebrities, JNS, Music and Visual Arts, Obituaries & memorials

Israeli Composer Forwards ‘Jewish Tunes from Haifa’

I completed a fantasy piece about the songs of the Jewish people a few days before their tragedy broke on the day of their great and joyous holiday, the Joy of Torah. I titled the piece I Hear a Scream. On the “Black Sabbath” of October 7, I heard the screams of Jews, victims of a pogrom that happened where there could have been no pogrom – in the territory of the Jewish state. [Boris Levenberg]

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Alex Gordon, Israel, Jewish History, Music and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Videos

Theodore Bikel’s Songs to Be First in JCC’s ‘Beloved Voices’ Series Feb. 22

I will be hosting the program, and my special guest will be Aimee Ginsburg Bikel, who was Theodore Bikel’s wife during the last years of his life and founder and director of the Theodore Bikel Legacy Project. The songs were selected to illustrate Bikel’s vast range and the large number of his recordings in our Astor Judaica Library.  [Eileen Wingard]

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Eileen Wingard, International, Israel, Music and Visual Arts, Obituaries & memorials, San Diego Calendar, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Temple Etz Rimon Shares in Interfaith Projects with Pilgrim Church; Both Congregations are Committed to Social Justice, Inclusiveness

Every synagogue has its own personality. Farber said that Temple Etz Rimon’s is that “it is very, very friendly. Warm. You come into the building and you are greeted. You are welcomed at the oneg. They grab you; they love you. People will say, ‘Oh my God, you are so friendly!’ We are. There is no snobbishness in the group. It’s really a nice congregation. Unfortunately, it is getting smaller and smaller.” [Donald H. Harrison]

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Ben Dishman, California, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Music and Visual Arts, Philanthropy, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Jackie Gmach Utilizes the Arts to Teach Lessons of the Holocaust and the Tree of Life Synagogue

That drawing inspired Gmach to develop “We Are The Tree of Life,” a project focusing on Holocaust education utilizing the arts to promote a message of hope and survival. Literature, music, dance, poetry and drawings created by prisoners in the concentration camps and ghettos during World War II show that beauty can survive, even when experiencing unspeakable horrors. [Eileen Wingard]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Eileen Wingard, Holocaust, International, Jewish History, Music and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Helen Mirren, Gene Simmons and Boy George sign letter supporting Israel’s inclusion in Eurovision

Published by Euronews (English) More than 400 creatives from the entertainment industry have signed a letter in support of Israel’s inclusion in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Helen Mirren, Gene Simmons and Boy George are among the people who have signed the letter released by Creative Community For Peace (CCFP), a non-profit organisation working to

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International, Israel, Music and Visual Arts, Nordot, Sports & Competitions

‘Chicago’ Features Minimal Set and Costumes, Maximal Choreography

We follow the story of two murderesses; Roxie Hart (Katie Frieden) and Velma Kelly (Kaitlin Brown) and their sensational murder trials.  Being that it’s set in the roaring 20s which didn’t have modern day social media, the flashy and charismatic and lawyer Billy Flynn (Connor Sullivan) is able to manipulate the press and jury with wild and conflicting stories about his clients, or as he calls it razzle-dazzle, in his attempts to acquit his client. [Sandi Masori]

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Music and Visual Arts, Sandi Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast