Voices in the sanctuary: Musical Practices of the American Synagogue

The system that defines the musical and liturgical practices of the Ashkenazi synagogue also delineates various degrees of freedom as to how the prayers are sung. In North America these practices took on characteristic changes, including those beyond the built-in freedom. The paper examines a few cases studies in which these changes are reflected, primarily in regards to the norm of performance, and examines their possible roots. It thus discusses the practice of replacing chant with congregational singing of metrical tunes, doing away with some responsorials, replacing some of the cantor’s part with congregational singing, simplification and uniformity, the influence of the cantorial schools and the youth programs, Hassidic influences, the role of the change in lifestyle and linguistic habits that the move from Europe to America played, and the affect of pop music and Israeli songs.