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Photo by Ben Harmon Hailed as "the Jewish Pavarotti," Hazzan Alberto Mizrahi is recognized as one of the leading voices in the modern cantorate. In late January, the Greek-born tenor—and hazzan of the historic Anshe Emet Synagogue of Chicago—made an appearance at Hebrew College's Berenson Hall, but not to perform. He came to listen to recitals by Cantor-Educator program students Michael McCloskey, Shana Onigman and Lynn Torgove and give feedback before a public audience. During the hour-long event, the students emerged with new insights for interpreting a range of traditional Hebrew prayers.
Mizrahi sought a very specific sound from each of his students and pointed it out to the audience when he heard it. He would walk around the room calling instructions to the student he was coaching, and shout ecstatically when he or she had achieved the sound he was looking for. "There's a place where the student's heart and soul have to pour into what they're doing to make it right," observes Onigman, who worked with Mizrahi on a setting of "Hashkivenu." "Mizrahi's strength is finding that spot and pushing us toward it." Mizrahi helped Torgove find that spot in the "Kol Nidre." "His direction had the effect of making the chant seem spontaneously composed by the singer and at the same time deeply rooted in tradition," she says, noting that Mizrahi's teachings on the historical context of the music helped her to interpret it from a more informed perspective. "I am proud to have coached at Hebrew College and would gladly do so again," Mizrahi says. "The Jewish world is in dire need of competent and passionate hazzanim." |
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Mizrahi coached a setting of the "V'shameru" by Noach Shall for McCloskey, who stresses that the musical notation on the page would have sounded melodramatic if interpreted literally. "Certain patterns of notes indicate rapid delivery, a sob or a particular manner of phrasing," he maintains. "Alberto's familiarity and facility with the demands of the piece and the text allowed me to bring a composer's intention to life."