The ongoing saga of Debbie Almontaser's ritual immolation on the altar of Jewish wingnuttery continues as she filed a lawsuit in federal court today seeking reinstatement as principal of the Khalil Gibran Academy, the nation's first public school dedicated to teaching Arab culture. You'll recall that the New York Post, New York Sun, Stop the Madrassa and … [Read more...]
Klezmer Joy: Great Day on Eldridge Street
Great day on Eldridge Street--klezmer musicians (Eldridge Street Project) I wrote a post few weeks ago about a project organized by one of my favorite Jewish musicians, Yale Strom called Great Day on Eldridge Street. Yale gathered together every serious klezmer musician he could find and took their picture in front of the historic Eldridge Street shul, … [Read more...]
Klezmer Legends Gather for ‘Great Day on Eldridge Street’
Eldridge Street front facadeFirst, a confession. When my wife and I married in 1998 in New York we had a musical problem. We've both been musicians and music, including Jewish music, were important to us. I especially love Jewish music. So we couldn't have just any music at our wedding. We actually watched videos of big bands given to us by the caterer. … [Read more...]
Memories of Stan
Stan the Ham on West Point ride (Ed White/NYCC) In all the writing I've done about Stan over these past few days, until I saw the picture above I'd forgotten about the hammy side of Stan. He was a diffident serious guy but he could be quite boisterous, enthusiastic and even boyish especially regarding his enthusiasms. This is definitely his hammy … [Read more...]
