Sundays, May 21 & 28, June 4 – The Victoria Jewish Community Choir presents ‘Let’s Sing!”, three outdoor Singalongs of Jewish songs 2:00 – 3:00 pm on consecutive Sundays: May 21 and 28, and June 4, at the Government House Gazebo.
Free and open to all, each event will be led by a different artist or group. Song sheets will be provided. Seating is limited so portable lawn chairs are welcome.
The Victoria Jewish Community Choir thanks Congregation Emanu-El and The Jewish Federation of Victoria and Vancouver Island for their support. Donations to Adult Education are always welcome through the shul office.
Summary of event details
Date: May 21, 28, June 4, 2023
Time: 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Where: Government House Gazebo, 1401 Rockland Ave, Victoria
The Victoria Jewish Community Choir’s Journeys in Jewish Music series will celebrate Passover with a musical seder on Zoom on Monday, April 18, 2022 (the fourth night), at 7 pm PDT. We won’t be eating—but singing! Outstanding presenters from the Journeys in Jewish Music series will share traditional and original seder–related Passover songs from various traditions. You are welcome to celebrate through wine, singing, listening, dancing (while muted for technical reasons).
We feel privileged to welcome the following friends of our series: Rabbi Hanna Tiferet, Rabbi Louis Sutker, Hazzan Rob Menes, Dr. Judith Cohen, the World Music duo, Kouskous (Gary Cohen & Amber Woods), Moshe Denburg of Tzimmes and songwriter Carol Sokoloff. They will share remarkable music including traditional songs, sung yearly, as well as some humorous, Sephardic and contemporary melodies.
Mark the calendar, tell your friends, and even have a little gathering. Warm up your voice and get ready to sing along as we celebrate the spirit of Pesach through its wonderful music. A Musical Passover Seder is free of charge (though donations to the choir are appreciated). Everyone is welcome.
Anyone who has previously registered for a Journeys in Jewish Music talk will be notified with the zoom link for this program. To register please send a note to this email: JewishMusicTalks@gmail.com.
The Victoria Jewish Community Choir is grateful for the assistance of the Jewish Federation of Victoria and Vancouver Island whose support helps make these programs possible.
We also thank our generous presenters and the many individuals whose contributions have sustained the Journeys in Jewish Music series.
Monday, November 15, 2021, at 7 pm on Zoom—This fifth conversation in the Victoria Jewish Community Choir (VJCC) fall Journeys in Jewish Music series*, The Cantor’s Gift, takes us into the synagogue to consider how the cantor (hazzan) combines vocal prowess and Torah wisdom to enhance prayer experience through sacred song. On Monday, November 15, 2021, at 7 pm, Hazzan Rob Menes, a former VJCC Director, will explore what it means to be a leader in prayer and a guide for spiritual growth. Hazzan Rob will explore the ways in which a cantor seeks out and exposes those parts of music and prayer which touch the soul, and the ways in which a cantor transcends the role of entertainer to facilitate a deeper connection.
Hazzan Rob Menes has led congregations and performed with symphony orchestras throughout North America. Prior to realizing his vocation as a chaplain (currently at the Louis Brier Home in Vancouver), he has been a cantor, an executive director, an engineer, and a government bureaucrat. His broad perspective on music, religion and science has enabled him to identify and respond to what touches the soul from wherever it comes. To receive communications about this series…
* This series was made possible through the support of the Jewish Federation of Victoria and Vancouver Island. There is no charge for the series, but donations towards the Victoria Jewish Community Choir are welcome through jewishmusictalks@gmail.com.
Monday, November 1, 2021, at 7 pm—The Victoria Jewish Community Choir (VJCC) will continue its Journeys in Jewish Music fall series on Monday, November 1, 2021, at 7 pm on Zoom with Rabbi Louis Sutker discussing Innovations in Liturgy. Rabbi Louis Sutker delights in creating liturgy that reflects both tradition and innovation. In this presentation, he will share ways to use traditional and contemporary music to make Jewish prayer personally meaningful. This program may be most suited to those familiar with Jewish prayer traditions—Rabbi Sutker advises that participants might wish to have access to the weekday service in a traditional siddur. However, those unfamiliar with Jewish prayer are also welcome to learn about both traditions and innovations in musical approaches to prayer.
Rabbi Louis Sutker has been an inspiring presence in the Victoria Jewish Community for many years. A student of Rabbi Zalman Schacter, Louis was ordained as a rabbi in 2005, after a long career in psychology. He has also been a lifelong musician and music lover. Currently retired, Rabbi Louis is able to luxuriate in obsessing on language and how to help himself and others use liturgy in creative ways to increase love and caring between us.
The Victoria Jewish Community Choir (VJCC) will continue its Journeys in Jewish Music fall series on Monday, October 18, 2021, at 7 pm with Dr. Judith Cohen discussing To Sefarad and Beyond, A Personal Journey. The talk will take place on Zoom. In an informal interview with moderator Carol Sokoloff, Dr. Cohen shares her personal tales of a journey which took her from her youth in Montreal to the land of Spain and beyond.
Dr. Cohen writes, “Fifty years ago I crossed the border into Spain on the lumbering old train from France, with one small bag and a dictionary. The word Sefarad was not yet in my vocabulary. I was part of the 60s folk revival, sang French Canadian and Yiddish songs, and played classical clarinet. I had been to the-then-Yugoslavia and loved the music—but had no knowledge of Spain or Spanish anything. This is an informal account of how I got from there to here, with songs and stories—and Carol’s and all of your questions!”
Dr. Judith Cohen of York University is an acclaimed ethnomusicologist and performer specializing in Sephardic music, also known as Judeo-Spanish or Ladino song. In Sephardic music we hear the tales of so many times and places from the well-remembered culture of Spain to the various lands Jews settled in after their expulsion in 1492.
You won’t want to miss this fascinating conversation which examines the questions of what makes Sephardic music so universally appealing, and how it has survived through centuries and numerous.
Send a note to register for this and all the Journeys in Jewish Music series. All are welcome and the talks are free of charge thanks to the generous support of the Jewish Federation of Victoria and Vancouver Island.
Next rehearsal Tuesday, December 10, 2019 —The Jewish Community Choir welcomes new voices to join our friendly, non-auditioned choir. We meet regularly to enjoy singing from a vast repertoire of Jewish music, accompanied by a gifted pianist. We sing both sacred and secular songs from Jewish composers, from centuries past to the modern day, including synagogue music as well as Yiddish and Israeli folk and songs from Broadway and popular songwriters. We sing in English, Hebrew, Aramaic, Yiddish and Ladino (or Judeo-Spanish) – all transliterated into English language syllables. We are non-denominational and welcome all, including non-Jews. The ability to read music or prior choir experience, while helpful, is not required.
Our weekly rehearsals are held on Tuesday evenings from 7:00-9:00 at Congregation Emanu-El Synagogue. We next gather on Tuesday, December 10, 2019. If interested please contact our choir Director, Carol Sokoloff at 250-385-3378 or casjazz@islandnet.com.
On Sunday June 7, an appreciative crowd attended the Jewish Community Choir Evening of Jewish Music concert. The audience enjoyed the music and expressed genuine enthusiasm as they mingled with the choir after the performance and enjoyed refreshments. Here are a few photos from this lovely evening. Thank you, Penney and Frances Aknai for making these available.
The Victoria Jewish Community Choir presents Song of Songs & Other Jewish Melodies—a choral concert of music from many lands and times, on Sunday, June 25th at 7:30 pm at Congregation Emanu-El, 1461 Blanshard Street, Victoria, BC.
Directed by Carol Sokoloff and accompanied by pianist Laura Cave, the choir will perform ancient and modern songs in English, Yiddish and Hebrew. Compositions celebrating love and spring, based on the Song of Solomon (or Song of Songs) will be featured along with guest artist Israeli/Canadian singer/songwriter Susan Cogan. Admission is by donation ($15 suggested).
Part of Susan & Fran—a popular Israeli duo who recorded some of Israel’s best loved songs—songwriter Susan Cogan now lives on Salt Spring Island. Soon to release her tenth CD, she will perform both well-known and original songs in Hebrew and English. Samples of her music can be heard at www.susancogan.com.
The concert takes place in the inspiring heritage sanctuary of Congregation Emanu-El, the oldest synagogue in continual use in Canada. A portion of proceeds will be donated towards the upkeep of the heritage synagogue where the Jewish Community Choir is privileged to rehearse. Admission is by donation ($15 suggested) and refreshments will be served following the concert. The Victoria Jewish Choir acknowledges the support of the Jewish Federation of Victoria and Vancouver Island.
The Jewish Choir rehearses weekly from October to June. New voices of all faiths are welcome.
For further information on the concert ‘Song of Songs’, guest artist Susan Cogan or the Victoria Jewish Choir, please email Carol Sokoloff, or tel. her at (250) 385-3378.
The Victoria Jewish Community Choir performs Another Celebration of Jewish Music on Sunday, September 25, 2016 at 2:30 pm at Congregation Emanu-el Synagogue,
1461 Blanshard St. Victoria.
The concert features Jewish music from ancient to modern, East to West, from the synagogue to the stage. The choir, under the direction of Carol Sokoloff and accompanied by Laura Cave, piano and Amber Woods, percussion, will perform Renaissance, Yiddish, Sephardic, Yemenite & Israeli songs as well as music by the Jewish composers Gershwin, Arlen & Berlin. The concert will also feature the Kouskous world music ensemble (Amber Woods and Gary Cohen), as well as solos by choir members.
Admission is by donation ($12 suggested); a
portion of proceeds will be given to the synagogue. For information, email Carol or tel. 250-385-3378.
The Jewish Community Choir of Victoria welcomes
singers in all voice ranges. While there is no strict audition process,
prospective members are invited to an Open House for a chance to sing with the
existing group and find the best section fit. The Jewish Community Choir of
Victoria’s Open House takes place on Monday, September 12, 7:00 pm at Congregation Emanu-el Synagogue, 1461 Blanshard Street (main door) Victoria.
Regular choir rehearsals begin on Tuesday
evenings starting in late October. For further information on the Jewish
Community Choir, please email Carol or phone her at 250-385-3378.
This
intimate vocal ensemble includes inter-faithmembers but sings music from a
stunning array of Jewish sources from different times and places including
traditional and new synagogue music, Yiddish folk and theatre selections,
Israeli folk and pop music, Judeo-Spanish or Sephardic tunes, Broadway and
Standards and songs by Jewish composers such as Gershwin, Leonard Cohen etc..
Although the choir performs songs in English, Hebrew, Aramaic, Yiddish and
Ladino, all songs are learned as transliterated English syllables.
Congregation Emanu-El News 