Music adds spirituality

CYNTHIA RAMSAY

Cantor Teron Shalom Cohen, who joined the Klei Kodesh of Congregation Har El last August, will be officially installed in a celebration featuring three major events over the Feb. 18-20 weekend.

Cohen joined Har El via the Jüdische Gemeinde zu Berlin, where he was serving the Jewish community, as well as serving as visiting professor at the Abraham Geiger College Rabbinical School. He was hired after Har El conducted an extensive search for a cantor through the auspices of the United Synagogue Cantors Assembly.

“As a result of a recently completed strategic planning process, it was determined that one of the main objectives of the Har El membership was to increase the level of musicality throughout all aspects of synagogue life,” explained Alan Kwinter, vice-president, ritual and education, for Har El, who chaired the cantor search committee. “One of the first steps was to hire a professional cantor who would lead services, teach in our Hebrew school and adult education program, instruct b’nai mitzvah students, form adult and youth choirs, officiate at lifecycle events and organize musical programs for our community.”

Har El had never had a professionally trained cantor before, said Rabbi Shmuel Birnham. “The immense depth and breadth of Jewish musical knowledge and experience Cantor Cohen brings to the position add immensely to the service. His understanding of nusach and Jewish musical history informs his davening at shul.

“Already, in just a few months, Cantor Cohen has begun an adult choir, which has added much vibrancy to our already meaningful services. He is planning to begin a children’s choir as well. He’s been teaching new melodies, some traditional and some new. Because he has colleagues who are chazzanim, he has access to music they’ve written, which is a great source of new and inspirational music.”

Birnham was the sole clergyperson at Har El. Now, he and the congregation have the support of Cohen, who also has experience counseling those in need and training b’nai mitzvah and lay leaders, among other duties.

“His installation, in addition to being a symbolic acknowledgement of the covenant between the congregation and Cantor Cohen, will also include a very special concert with distinguished colleagues and Cantor Cohen,” said Birnham.

One of those colleagues is Cantor Elizabeth Shammash, who will be the cantor-in-residence for the Shabbat preceding the installation. Shammash currently serves Tiferet Bet Israel in Blue Bell, Penn. Her work in opera has included major roles with companies around the world and she has recorded extensively for the Milken Archive of American Jewish Music.

The weekend also will include a Sunday concert featuring performances by children from the North Shore Hebrew School, Har El Choir, Beth Israel’s Cantor Michael Zoosman, Cantor Richard Nadel from Springfield, N.J., local vocalists Tamara Hummel and Sasha Kaye, pianist Sarah Bowker and violinist Dr. Ken Lertzman, as well as Cohen and Shammash.

“This will be the first Jewish music celebration on the North Shore and it will be a wonderful musical celebration,” Cohen told the Independent. The concert will follow the installation, about which the cantor said, “The concept is most eloquently conveyed by my esteemed colleague, Chazzan Chomsky of Columbus, Ohio: ‘An installation is a celebration of engaging a member of the clergy – taking the opportunity to focus on the special qualities of the position and the person who has filled it.

“‘It usually provides the opportunity to bring an expert in the field and/or mentor to the community. It benefits the congregation by providing a quality inspirational and religious special event program. It benefits the cantor by bringing him/her into contact with a larger number of people in the congregation than might otherwise be the case. It benefits both by providing a public event to the community to show how forward-thinking the congregation is to hire such an excellent professional to serve them and their community.’”

As to Cohen’s contributions to Har El since his arrival, one is the choir, which, said Cohen, “debuted on Shabbat Shira, Jan. 15, with 13 members including myself. Our second service was Shabbat M’varchim on Jan. 29.... We will [participate] every Shabbat M’varchim, blessing of the New Month.”

The cantor’s presence has been felt in other ways as well.

“My addition to the Hebrew school Friday night services, individual adult and youth lessons has been very rewarding in creating further relationships with our congregants,” said Cohen. “I’m very fortunate to have congregants like Dr. Ken Lertzman, Amy Lewis and Sasha Kaye. I’m blessed to have very musical people in the community. I participated in developing some adult education courses to develop congregants’ familiarity with the musical aspects of the Shabbat service in the fall and will be continuing in the spring. Further, we will be looking at putting together a healing service and will be considering some musical experimentation in our worship service.”

His enthusiasm apparent both on and off the bimah, Cohen said about being a cantor, “I particularly value the multigenerational relationships fostered and the joy of sharing the richness of the music and the sweetness that it brings to life and Jewish worship.”

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