A Wedding at Our Concert?
At one of our concerts, an important segment consisted of a Jewish wedding. A member of our congregation had a daughter who was recently engaged. He and his wife were planning the wedding and called me. I suggested that their daughter and future husband could be married beautifully, publicly, and legally, during the concert itself. I would officiate at the wedding, accompanied by a choir of 42 voices and would give it a traditional Jewish flavor. There would be about 800 people in attendance. The father of the bride was planning to spend many thousands of dollars for the wedding and reception. I told him that I would not charge for the wedding. The only charge would be the cost of concert tickets for his 150 guests. This would be a fraction of the cost he would normally pay.
“Surely, the beauty and grandiosity of this wedding as well as the reduced cost should appeal to you,” I told him and his wife. He was an avid Wall Street Journal reader and the merits of my suggestion appealed to him strongly. However, his wife strongly opposed such a public wedding for her daughter, and the matter quickly came to a close. The wedding presentation at the temple continued as planned. The bride and groom, however, were represented on the bimah by two professional dancers.
An account of the evening by the Miami Herald follows:
Original Lyrics by Rabbi and Cantor
Rabbi Ralph Kingsley is a gifted lyricist whose creativity is greatly admired by his wife, Brenda, and by everyone with whom he has shared his poetry. For one particular program, Rabbi Kingsley and I wrote original lyrics for a selection inspired by “Fiddler on the Roof.” It was called “If I were a Rabbi / Cantor.” Original lyrics were also written by us to the popular and nostalgic song from over 100 years ago, “Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Shean.” With each rendition, the audience roared with laughter and approval. In retrospect, the Rabbi and I were creative, knew our audience and rose to the challenge before us.
In 2019, Rabbi Ralph Kingsley wrote the following poem in celebration of my 90th birthday:
Dear Cantor Shulkes, what is there to say, Like the weekly Sabbath, it’s a most special day. After 4 score years and 10 years more, Comes a time of note one should not ignore.
So, we’ve gathered together, without much rehearsin’, To rejoice with and honor a most special person. A love for Israel, and all Jews does he bring, And not only that, he can also sing.
For years on the pulpit, he led us in prayer, Going back to the days when I still had some hair. The rabbis, by 90, thought one’s back should be bent, And probably also one’s energy spent.
But this nonagenarian proves them to be wrong, His back is still straight and his voice quite strong. Only his hair which he hoped black would stay, After many long years, he’s allowed to turn gray.
He taught B’nai Mitzvah, great heights to aspire, Organized an adult and a children’s choir. Our musical program began to soar, A return to Tradition, people wanted still more.
Between me and my sermons and him with his voice, Temple Sinai discovered it had made a fine choice. We had a great run, were held in esteem, I would say very humbly, we were a great team.
Joanne had not yet come into his life, It took seven years more, till becoming his wife. “He’ll never get married,” said those prone to bet, When along came a Hanukkah some will never forget.
Friends and congregants gathered and boy did they cheer, They saw a great miracle had happened right here. After months and months of delaying and guessing, Joanne led Irving to a life filled with blessing.
She brought along Ron and then they made Heather. A beautiful family they created together. A confirmed bachelor, whom with marriage, none thought he would bother, Today has become a most doting grandfather.
Yet no age has prevented his frequent trips, To Las Vegas where the goal is to accumulate chips. They say that he knows the right system to use, For he seems to win more than he’s prone to lose.
It’s a gift he’s developed, what more can one say? Perhaps it’s just part of his DNA. Though I don’t think his parents, while far from self-serving, Had quite that in mind when they raised little Irving.
And while we are talking of frequent trips, One should mention his journeys on luxury ships. He’s discovered a way to economically cruise, By leading prayers for shipboard Jews.
Pesach and Hanukkah, for him it’s a breeze, We’re in shul on Yom Kippur, he’s sailing the seas. And lest you think he might have some regrets, There’s always a casino, where he can place his bets.
For me it began, 49 years have passed, Temple Sinai was ready, for a great cantor at last. Irving Shulkes appeared, the timing was right, The congregation agreed, it was love at first sight.
And had times not become, so different by far, He’d still be smoking, a great, big, cigar. He probably also misses his gin, But a Jew has to suffer in order to stay thin.
If he has any faults, there is one I would choose, I wish he’d watch MSNBC instead of FOX NEWS. But today’s not for politics, that surely can wait, While we drink a l’chaim and celebrate.
And rejoice with our Yitzchak, on a life rich with love, Reflected on earth and in heaven above. We wish you long life, Bracha, Mazal a plenty, And like Moshe Rabbainu, till one hundred and twenty.
Special Vocal Ensembles
One memorable evening featured three rabbis and three cantors singing a Yiddish medley “Liederkrantz” in perfect harmony. This was one of many medleys arranged by my talented friend, Ida Meisels, who was living in the area. The rabbis were: Julian Cook, Ralph Kingsley and Lewis Littman. The Cantors were: Zvi Adler, Jacob Danziger and me. This was another wonderful evening to remember.
Another special concert featured a quartet of Reform cantors. It was held at Temple Bet Breira in Miami with my cantorial colleagues. The four of us were Cantors Stuart Pittle, Rachelle Nelson, Barbara Margulis and me. We were all ordained at the Hebrew Union College and it was such a great pleasure working with them.
Jerry Sperling, Guest Composer
Visiting our temple often was Jerry Sperling who vacationed in Florida a few months of every year. He lives in New Jersey, is a retired electrician, and has a great love for Jewish music. At home with the mandolin, piano and guitar, he has lent his finest efforts in musical composition to the synagogue. He composed a beautiful “Instrumental Interlude” for violin, clarinet and piano and many selections for religious worship, some of which became Temple Sinai favorites.
I could feel the emotion of what he was trying to express so easily in his “Shalom Rav,” one such selection. Jerry Sperling’s music has been performed in concert by the international artist, Giora Feldman who, together with his clarinet, is known as the king of klezmer.
One day, I asked him to give a talk about the challenges a composer faces with musical composition. During the Friday evening service, he shared his thoughts and opinions to a congregation eagerly trying to understand and appreciate his work. Jerry remains ever productive in his musical compositions down to the present day.
Max Janowski Visits Temple Sinai
One of the great synagogue composers of the 20th century was Max Janowski (1912-1991). His “Avinu Malkeynu” has become a favorite temple composition sung throughout the world and made even more famous by Barbra Streisand as well. I invited him to be the scholar-in-residence at our national American Conference of Cantors Convention in the Catskills in 1969 and also at Temple Sinai on two different occasions, in 1980 and in 1986. He came to temple on a Wednesday where he conducted an open choir rehearsal of his music. Of course, our Temple Sinai 45-voice choir was fully prepared in advance. In his music, he made use of the ancient modes and biblical cantillations and chose freely in achieving a unique balance between tradition and innovation. Very often, his music was written for high-voice tenors. Since I was a basso profundo, he made sure on several occasions to include alternative notes that favored my particular voice. I was most grateful for his kindness and consideration.
The following evening, I had the pleasure of throwing a reception for about 60 people at my home. A special vocal quartet consisting of Cantor David Conviser, Linda Mudano, Karen Blum and me offered a presentation of Janowski’s choice selections with the master himself at the piano. Our home was filled with excitement as the four voices, under the maestro’s direction, artistically interpreted his music. It was exhilarating to sing his music! My piano has never received such a workout in all its years.
On Friday evening, an all Janowski service was held with a talk from Professor Janowski in lieu of the sermon. At my suggestion, the Miami Herald religious editor, Adon Taft, called Max Janowski in Chicago to get more pertinent information on his musical and personal background for the Sabbath eve service.
The evening was a great success. To many, it was a rich and stimulating experience. We had to put up 100 more chairs in the sanctuary to seat everybody. I feel that our congregation was particularly privileged in having one of America’s foremost composers of liturgical music in our midst.
Ray Smolover Comes to Temple Sinai
It was that special time again - when our souls could soar to beautiful and inspiring music that we welcomed the gifted composer, Ray Smolover (1921-2015), to our temple. His rare talents are truly diversified - from cantor to composer to author to voice teacher to Executive Director of the American Conference of Cantors - the man had endless talent.
Adding a new dimension to our Sabbath service was the inclusion of his “Where the Rainbow Ends,” an ecumenical music celebration featuring the combined choirs of: St. Joseph Catholic Church of Surfside, Church by the Sea of Bal Harbour, and our own Temple Sinai Choir, accompanied by our organist, Dr. Dan Sandlin, and an instrumental ensemble. The narrators of the work from the churches were Rev. Daniel Madden and Rev. Priscilla Whitehead.
It has been said that good lyrics beget good music. The program for the evening included the rendition of Smolover’s 23rd Psalm. The lyrics of the musical presentation were drawn from impressive and uplifting sources and set to Ray Smolover’s creative and exciting music.
Some of the wisdom of the ages, in thought-provoking writings, was an important part of that Shabbat. Following the temple service, twelve of my cantorial colleagues came to my home where we discussed the beautiful ecumenical music that we heard that evening.
Bonia Shur at Sinai
As director of Liturgical Arts at Cincinnati’s Hebrew Union College since 1974, Professor Shur (1923-2012) has exerted a strong influence on contemporary synagogue music. Born in Latvia, Bonia Shur and his family barely escaped the Nazis during the second World War. Subsequently, he emigrated to Israel where he joined a kibbutz near Rehovot. He arrived in the United States and completed his studies at U.C.L.A. and began composing liturgical music in 1964. He has recorded several albums during his impressive and diversified career.
Today, his beautiful Kedushah is regularly performed in Reform synagogues. His musical setting of the Mi Chamocha for cantor and choir, in my opinion, is one of the best ever written, commands your attention, and is truly inspirational. In addition to being a renowned composer and scholar, Professor Shur was a talented entertainer with the sure ability to captivate the mind and soul of his appreciative audience. It was a real pleasure to welcome Bonia Shur and his wife, Fanchon, to our temple in 1984. He directed our choir, addressed our congregation and exposed us to his vibrant music.
