Cantors expand repertoire at Temple Bat Yahm

Claudia Figueroa

In Judaism, the cantor leads the congregation in singing or chanting

prayers from the Torah. It is a prestigious position that has been part

of the religion for hundreds of years--a highly respected role that

almost always follows tradition.

But things will be very different at 7 p.m. Sunday at Temple Bat Yahm in

Newport Beach, when Cantor Jonathan Grant will add show tunes and jazz

standards to the mix.

“Cantors Take 4: A Musical Montage,” also will include cantors Mark

Childs, Stephen Dubov and Evan Kent contributing an even blend of

liturgical classics and Broadway showstoppers.

The program will substitute for “First Sunday in June,” an annual music

event that Grant started six years ago--soon after being appointed

cantor--with the temple’s pianist Thomas Macfarlane, who will perform

with a trio Sunday.

“I wanted to do something broad-based and different than previous years,”

said Grant, whose regular duties include leading songs at temple services

and preparing boys and girls to sing and chant from the Torah at their

bar and bat mitzvahs.

Grant comes from a musical background that includes appearances with

Opera Pacific, Los Angeles Music Center Opera and Lake George Opera

Festival.

The 41-year-old baritone has received vocal prizes from the Music

Teachers Assn. of California and Performing Arts Foundation of Santa

Barbara.

“I always wanted to be a cantor,” said Grant, who only recently decided

to pursue the career at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of

Religion.

Grant said his training at Hebrew Union College--where he met Dubov, Kent

and Childs--involved the Reform movement, the most liberal of the three

major branches of Judaism, which include Conservative and Orthodox

practices.

The Reform branch allows Grant to explore other avenues of music--and

keep a clean conscience.

“Many [Orthodox members] would contend that the role of cantor is to lead

worship services and anything beyond that would counter the vocation of

the cantor,” said Rabbi Mark Miller, who practices Conservative/Reform

Judaism at the Newport synagogue.

“For a long time, many of the great cantors performed in front of general

audiences in nonreligious venues,” he said. “This is an extension of that

tradition of the prayerful and liturgical in a variety of mediums.

“I don’t believe a cantor has to restrict himself to sacred music,”

Miller added. “If he or she is blessed by God with a beautiful

instrument, then it can legitimately be applied to other musical

expressions.”

In previous years, Grant has presented a number of liturgical classics in

his concerts. This year, he put together a program that will spotlight

Broadway melodies ranging from “I Can See It” from “The Fantasticks” to a

cantor’s spoof set to “Anything You Can Do” from “Annie Get Your Gun.”

“I always try to find a balance between traditional cantorial music and

trying to perform music with a modern edge,” he explained.

Grant believes some of the greatest performers in history have been

American Jews: Irving Berlin, Eddie Cantor, Benny Goodman and Jerry Lewis

are just a few who, Grant said, laid the groundwork for hundreds of kids

with stars in their eyes.

“The approach from a musical standpoint is almost identical,” he said.

“The main difference in cantorial music is it comes from a place of faith

and it comes from a desire to inspire the congregation to pray. In that

sense it’s on a deeper level” than secular entertainment.

“Our performance will definitely be a departure from traditional style,”

Childs said. “Every cantor has a bit of the show biz bug. We’re all

performers, basically.”

During the program’s first half, the quartet will sing 20th century

Hebrew prayers set to music, followed by Aaron Copeland’s “Zion’s Walls.”

The cantors will also perform two Yiddish songs.

In the second half, they will show their multifaceted backgrounds by

performing selections from Broadway and film soundtracks.

Childs said the cantors will cut loose and “do stuff we don’t normally do

on the pulpit.”

Taking his act one step further, the program will include an unusual

selection of jazz standards, such as “Night and Day” and “I’ve Got You

Under My Skin.”

Grant, who lived in New Orleans for a few years and devoted most of that

time to listening to Artie Shaw and Stan Getz, said this will be the

first time jazz music has been played at the temple.

“It will be interesting to see what will happen,” he mused.

FYI

* What: “Cantor’s Take 4: A Musical Montage”

* When: 7 p.m. Sunday

* Where: Temple Bat Yahm, 1011 Camelback St., Newport Beach

* Tickets: $36 for reserved seating, $18 for general seating and $12 for

full-time students and seniors

* Call: (949) 644-1999