Friday, August 17, 2012

Another Marvin Hamlisch Gem: Jewish Liturgy Meets the Broadway Stage


A few days ago we posted a video in tribute to the late Marvin Hamlisch, in which the composer kidded around with Cantor Simon Spiro of the Bet Tzedec synagogue in Toronto and they sang a duet to the tune of Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better.

The response to that post was so positive that we searched for and found another Hamlisch clip that we hope you'll enjoy. This was filmed a few years ago at a concert in Sydney, Australia, with cantors from Canada and Australia.

What's unique is that this is a series of liturgical melodies from the daily, Shabbat, and High Holiday services set to music from popular Broadway shows. Starting with the introduction to the story of the Binding of Isaac (the Akeidah) where Abraham takes his son Isaac to the top of Mount Moriah (Maria from West Side Story), the medley moves on to include songs from Oliver, Phantom of the Opera, Fiddler on the Roof, A Little Night Music, Evita, Oklahoma, Chicago, and The Sound of Music. 

After a short interlude from Hamlisch's A Chorus Line, the concert concludes with a  straightforward cantorial rendering of O Sole Mio. Enjoy and Shabbat Shalom!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)


5 comments:

  1. Wow! What a treat!! These Cantors!! The music!! Marvin Hamlisch!! What else can anyone say except....."BRAVO"!!! Thank you Al!!!

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  2. Marvin Hamlish...what a treasure and what a loss for us at what today is not so old an age. This is a wonderful thing to be able to see. These cantors have a remarkable talent to enrich peoples' lives. And this site brings us a world of such interesting entertainment and learning from scenes of everyday life. Thank you so much.

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  3. This was so enjoyable. I will echo everyone else's words. Marvin Hamlisch was the greatest. We lost a wonderful person.

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  4. Loved it---MORE MORE MORE--PLEASE

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