Ernest Bloch wrote musical works with titles that were ostentatiously Jewish sounding, like Schelomo, Baal Shem, Suite Hébraïque, Avodath Hakodesh, and others. Critics came at him from various angles. Some Jewish critics assessed that he didn’t get the Jewish music right--didn’t capture the spirit.

But some gentile critics had a very different angle. At least one argued that Bloch’s music could not be Jewish, because Jewish music did not--and could not--exist. Why not? Because the jews, not having a homeland, lived only in counties that already had a distinct culture of their own, so Jewish culture could only consist of bits and pieces of these other cultures.

The subtext is obviously a belief that had been taught to Christians until recently--that the Jews were condemned by God to wander the earth until the end of time without ever finding a homeland--or a culture--of their own.

So here is a clip of Bloch’s Baal Shem suite. How’s it sound?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88le-ghXC8k

I've just read that Smoooove Criminal hates Jews. So tread carefully.

John Zorn does the same with his different Masada - groups (Masada, Masada Trio, Electric Masada).
I love how he manages to create a very vital form of experimental funky jazz from the idea of making 'radical jewish music'.

Defintely worth checking out!

Zorn reminds me of this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGt8mfAH_bk

This one has video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnojz1HsmAg&feature=related

"Bien sûr nos mirroirs sont intègres
Ni le courage d'être juif, ni l'élégance d'être nègre,
On se croît mêche, on n'est que suif."

- Jacques Brel

"l'élégance" means "coolness" -- yes?

In the music criticism from Bloch's time, I often find Jewish music confounded with "orientalism." One critic said that, since there is no such thing as "Jewish music," all Ernst Bloch is displaying is "a touch of orientalism."

Another critic, after condemning a performance of Bloch's music as cacophanous and painful to listen to, mentioned that the performance received loud applause from the audience "who were mostly of the oriental persuasion."

Did that reviewer mean to imply that the audience were Jewish?

Anyway, here's Rostropovich with the last movement of "Schelomo:"

Some of the finest jewish music has been released by the collective known as The Beastie Boys.

Some Jewish music is written by non-jewish composers, like "Kol Nidre" bay Max Bruch.



During the Nazi era, Bruch's music was never played because "Kol Nidre" created suspicion that he might be Jewish. So the Germans have completely forgotten Bruch, even though his violin concerto and "Scottish Fantasy" are popular in the US.