A cultural platform for exploring critical ideas of our time through art and dialogue.

SOUNDSTREAMS TD ENCOUNTERS:
The Nigun: Marc Chagall, Aaron Copland, and James Rolfe
From Medieval Hasidic Judaism to the Present
Co-presented with Koffler Arts

Date: Tuesday, November 26th | 7:30pm
Location: Holy Blossom Temple, Mishkan Room (1950 Bathurst St, York, ON)
Featuring the Gryphon Trio (piano trio), Aviva Chernick (vocals), James Rolfe (composer)

REGISTER HERE

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Join Soundstreams in an exploration of the connections between art, music, and Jewish heritage
through the vibrant cultural landscape of Vitebsk, Belarus—home to a celebrated art school founded
there in 1918 by Marc Chagall and others including Wassily Kandinsky. While the school didn’t last, the
legacy of Vitebsk lives on through music. Both Aaron Copland’s Vitebsk: A Study on a Jewish Theme,
written 1928, and James Rolfe’s Metzarim, written 2024, were inspired by the form of the Hasidic
nigun—originally a wordless melody and improvised prayer. Copland was inspired by one such melody
he encountered listening to the incidental music which accompanied S. An-Sky’s play The Dybbuk,
performed by the Yiddish Theatre in New York City in 1925. This Soundstreams TD Encounters will delve into the rich heritage of the nigun form and how it continues to inspire artists today.

Featuring the renowned Gryphon Trio, Annalee Patipatanakoon (violin), Roman Borys (cello), Jamie
Parker (piano), performing Aaron Copland’s Vitebsk, alongside an excerpt from Canadian Jewish
composer James Rolfe’s newest work Metzarim (Narrows), also featuring Aviva Chernick (vocals), the
inaugural artist-in-residence at Beth Tzedec Synagogue. Following musical performances, composer
James Rolfe will join our performers for a panel discussion and audience Q&A.

Soundstreams’ TD Encounters event series are free and hosted in venues across the city. Always offering something different, they are equal parts performance, artist discussion, and Q&A, and give audiences the opportunity to engage with artists and their work in an intimate and accessible setting. Seats are free but space is limited. We ask you to reserve your seat here.

This Soundstreams TD Encounters event is a companion event to Soundstreams’ mainstage concert
Invocations. Find out more and reserve your ticket here.

The Nigun: Marc Chagall, Aaron Copland, and James Rolfe From Medieval Hasidic Judaism to the Present

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