The voice in traditional ashkenazi liturgy - Hector Sabo

As part of the day of study Vox Aurea-Via Sacra 2014, dedicated to Jewish sacred music, Hector Sabo does a study on the voice in traditional ashkenazi liturgy. Hector Sabo grew up with traditional hazanout, transmitted by his grand-father David Sabo. At age nine, he joins the professional choir of the Grande Synagogue of Buenos Aires (rue Paso) and sings along with his father...

The musical tradition in the Ashkenazi liturgy, Hebrew name of the Jewish Germanic culture, imply the synagogal chanting that developed during the second millenium of the Christian era in Central and Eastern Europe.

This culture of the Rhine valley moved progressively towards the East and got more and more infused with Slavic culture. And in spite of all these changes, it kept its peculiarities of its origin.

More generally, the sung voice, since the destruction of the second temple of Jerusalem, is the privileged instrument to express faith in Jewish liturgy.
In Ashkenazi Europe, the musical development of the synagogal rite adopted many characteristics that we find in the opera, and including also those of folk singing of the environing people.

Hector Sabo writes articles in several magazines (diasporique, revue du KKL, Musique et Culture, etc.) and is the author of the university works : Israël Lovy, portrait d’une personnalité musicale méconnue and Les termes Hébraïque dans le dictionnaire de Walther. Since several years, he searches new repertoire in Hebrew music and its biblical links.

Learn more on the program of the 3rd edition of the Vox Aurea-Via Sacra symposium, dedicated to sacred Jewish music.