Composer Aaron Blumenfeld

Shabbat Shalom everyone,

For my weekly 'get in the Shabbat groove' music, I thought I'd showcase composer Aaron Blumenfeld. I was just introduced to Mr. Blumenfeld's music, so I haven't really had a chance to take it all in. But that's no reason to hold off. Here are couple of great pieces that are definitely worth sharing, plus a little info on Mr. Blumenfeld.


Blumenfeld's "Psalm 130"


Blumenfeld's "Kel Echod"


From his website...

"I am the son of a noted Talmudic scholar and Rabbi and was raised in a devout, Orthodox Jewish environment. The songs my family sang at the Sabbath table as well as the cantorial music I heard in the synagogue during my early years (including performances by many famous cantors) were my first and most impressionable musical experiences. These are my musical roots.

As I matured, my intense interest and activities in the field of Jewish music progressed. I gradually gained experience in the field of Jewish music as a synagogue choir director, cantor and teacher of Jewish music and as a student of cantorial music at Yeshiva University as well as the Theological Seminary of America.

Later, as part of my requirements for my M.A. degree in music composition at Rutgers University, New Brunswick I composed an extensive symphonic work called EZK’ROH ( “I Remember”) based upon a legendary nigun ( a religious Hebrew song) composed by the sainted Modzitzer Rebbe, Rabbi Israel Taub. In 1980 EZK’ROH was performed with great success in Oakland under the auspices of the Jewish Federation of the East Bay.

After EZK’ROH I produced an abundance of Jewish music, including two holocaust memorial symphonies, 301 Chassidic songs and recently my two Yiddish operas, PAGIEL & BATHSHEVA and RACHEL, portions of which have been performed at various venues in Berkeley California."