Volume 30, Number 4 • December 2010 • Kislev/Tevet 5771Volume 30, Number 6 • February 2011 • Shevat/Adar 5771

Focus on

TBA Musicians

General InFOrMaTIOn

All phone numbers use (510) prefix unless otherwise noted.

Mailing address 336 Euclid Ave. Oakland, CA 94610

Hours M-Th: 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Fr: 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.

Office Phone 832-0936Office Fax 832-4930

e-Mail admin@tbaoakland.orgGan avraham 763-7528

Bet Sefer 663-1683

STaFF

rabbi (ext. 213) Mark BloomCantor (ext. 218) Richard Kaplan

Gabai David Gallant & Jay Goldmanexecutive Director (ext. 214) Rayna ArnoldOffice Coordinator (ext. 210) Virginia TigerBet Sefer Director (ext. 217) Susan Simon

Gan avraham Director (ext. 219) Wendy SiverBookkeeper (ext. 215) Christine Tripod

Custodian (ext. 211) Joe LewisKindergym/Toddler Program Dawn Margolin 547-7726

Volunteers (ext. 229) Herman & Agnes Pencovic

OFFICerS

President Stephen Shub 339-3614Vice President Mark Fickes 652-8545Vice President Steve Glaser 531-6384Vice President Stacy Margolin 482-3153 Vice President Bryan Schwartz 350-7681

Secretary Laura Wildmann 601-9571Treasurer Dan Finkelstein 428-2849

COMMITTeeS & OrGanIzaTIOnS

If you would like to contact the committee chairs, please contact the synagogue office for phone numbers and e-mail addresses.

adult education Women of TBA

Bet Sefer Subcommittee Lisa Fernandez

Chesed Warren Gould

Development Laura Wildmann

Dues evaluation Marshall Langfeld

endowment Fund Herman Pencovic

Finance Dan Finkelstein

Gan avraham Parents Lauren Kaplan & Mala Johnson

Gan avraham School Committee Jenny MichaelsonHouse Murray Davis

Israel affairs David Marinoff

Membership Stacy Margolin & Jill Rosenthal

Men’s Club Phil Hankin

ritual Eric Friedman

Schools Stacy Margolin

School Building Steering Sandy Margolin

Social action Bryan Schwartz

Torah Fund Anne Levine

Tree of life Open

Web Site Jason Swartz

Women of TBa Judith Klinger

Youth Steve Fankuchen

directory

Services ScheduleServices/ Time LocationMonday & Thursday Morning Minyan Chapel 8:00 a.m.Friday Evening (Kabbalat Shabbat) Chapel 6:15 p.m.Shabbat Morning Sanctuary 9:30 a.m.

Candle Lighting (Friday)February 4 5:17 p.m.February 11 5:25 p.m.February 18 5:33 p.m.February 25 5:40 p.m.

Torah Portions (Saturday)February 5 TerumahFebruary 12 TetzavehFebruary 19 Ki TissaFebruary 26 Vayakhel

TeMPle BeTH aBraHaMis proud to support the Conservative Movement by affiliating with The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.

Advertising Policy: Anyone may sponsor an issue of The Omer and receive a dedication for their business or loved one. Contact us for details. We do not accept outside or paid advertising.The Omer is published on paper that is 30% post-consumer fibers.The Omer (USPS 020299) is published monthly except July and August by Congregation Beth Abraham, 336 Euclid Avenue, Oakland, CA 94610. Periodicals Postage Paid at Oakland, CA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Omer, c/o Temple Beth Abraham, 336 Euclid Avenue, Oakland, CA 94610-3232.© 2010. Temple Beth Abraham.

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The Omer is published by Temple Beth Abraham, a non-profit, located at 336 Euclid Avenue, Oakland, CA 94610; telephone 510-832-0936. It is published monthly except for the months of July and August for a total of ten issues per annum. It is sent as a requester publication and there is no paid distribution.

To view The Omer in color, visit www.tbaoakland.org.

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what’s happening

WTBA Presents:

Wine & Schmoozeaka Girls’ Night Out

Thursday, February 37:30 - 9:00 p.m.

at Temple Beth Abraham’s Newest Meeting Spot

“341 MacArthur”Wine & Schmooze is a casual, monthly event WTBA is kicking off this year.

Drop in on the first Thursday each month, for an enjoyable social time where TBA women can chat, laugh, debate, have a glass of wine and some light goodies, and get to know each other better. This

event is open to new friends and old.

Drop in, join us and meet someone new!

Contact Jeanne Korn with questions: jeannekorn@aol.com.

Wine & Schmooze Women on the Move Sunday, February 13, 9:45 a.m.

WTBA hikes happen the second Sunday of every month. We meet at 9:45 and depart promptly at 10:00. Hikes end by 11:30.For the remainder of this year, we will meet at the Skyline Gate on Skyline just south of Snake and hike in Redwood Regional Park.For details, contact Deena Aerenson at daerenson@gmail.com or (510) 225-5107.

TBa’s Youth ServicesShabbat Mishpacha: February 5 & 19

T’fillat Y’ladim: February 12Junior Congregation: February 5

(All youth services start at 10:15 a.m.)

TBA Women - Save the Date

Vashti's BanquetAn Afternoon of

Middle Eastern Food and DelightsMarch 13, 3-5:30 p.m.

Purim Katan CelebrationWith the Rock & Roll Purim Band

February 17, 6:15 p.m. In the Sanctuary

Want to Play Music Together at TBa?

Are you interested in joining Len Nathan and other TBA members to make music together? If so, please let Len know. We are planning an explor-atory meeting on a Sunday morning in March, at TBA, exact date and time still to be determined. Here’s how the idea came about. Len’s sister-in-law belongs to the local Unitarian church, which has something they call A Band without Borders. What in G major is that?Every three months or so the call goes out, and an ever expanding and contracting group of people, some of whom play instruments, (guitar and the like) some who sing, different abilities—get together to make music. The group, under the direction of their talented music leader, then chooses three or four songs which the group practices—and then they perform periodically at services. In our case, we would likely play at other venues than Shabbat services.Let’s make something like that happen at TBA. Please contact Len Nathan at lennathan@yahoo.com or by phone at (925) 945-4821 (day) or (510) 658-6671 (evening).

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from the rabbiPurim Katan MusicfestThis year, on Thursday, February 17, at 6:15 p.m. in the sanctuary TBA will be celebrating the little known holiday of Purim Katan with our Rock & Roll Purim band. It will feature the usual spoofs on classic and pop hits backed by the electric instruments. We will dress up in costumes of all sorts. Hopefully, we will all have a lot of fun.But what is Purim Katan? Purim Katan literally means “little” Purim. Its existence has to do with a quirk in the Jewish calendar. In the Jewish calendar, which is based on the lunar cycle, a leap year occurs seven out of every nineteen years. Rather than adding a day, the Jewish calendar adds an entire month. During those years there are 13 months instead of 12. The extra month that is added is called simply Adar II. Purim takes place on the 14th of Adar. When there are two months of Adar, Adar I and Adar II, Purim is celebrated on the 14th of Adar II. However, there is still a 14th of Adar I, and it is called Purim Katan. While there are no specific observances associated with it, it is considered a day of joy in the Jewish tradition.Because I will be on sabbatical during the regular Purim holiday, we have decided to make Purim Katan into a joyous songfest this year. Purim itself will feature the megillah reading and some sort of spoof, but the band will play only on Purim Katan. I am sure I will come out dressed as Sergeant Pepper, and look for songs from Bruno Mars and probably Katy Perry to work their way into this year’s repertoire. I look forward to seeing many of you there, and now, we have all learned about yet another celebra-tion in the Jewish tradition.L’shalom,Rabbi Mark Bloom

Welcome Virginia Tiger By Lisa Fernandez

As the TBA office says goodbye to Aliza Schechter who left after four years to spend more time with family, our synagogue com-munity welcomes a new office coordinator who takes over this month.Virginia Tiger was hired out of a pool of 80 applicants. “She was the most capable,’’ said executive director Rayna Arnold. “I loved the fact that she was active in her church.’’Virginia applied for the position after hearing about it from TBA congregants David and Judy Stein. Virginia was a vet tech at East Bay SPCA, where David retired as a veterinarian. In addition to her animal skills (she’s a proud cat owner), the 50-something Hayward resident also has experience running the office of an advertising agency and doing some proofreading and editing. She edits the newsletter for her church, Castro Valley United Methodist.“I like the fact that this job is in a spiritual environment,’’ Virginia said. And she even knows a little Hebrew, as she studied the language a bit in college during a comparative religion course. Virginia is also a singer. She sings in her church choir and also occasionally joins up with Judy Stein’s Harmony Fusion chapter of the Sweet Adelines a capella group.

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president’s messageMusic/Getting in TuneOne good thing about music – when it hits, you feel no pain.*One of my very first impressions at some point shortly after joining TBA was listening to Allison Kent Weiss leading a musical service in the sanctuary. I don’t remember the date or event, but I remember thinking how spiritual I felt at that moment. More than 15 years later, I’m glad to say that TBA is more musical than ever. This, of course, is greatly helped by having a rabbi who pre-fers carrying a guitar rather than a briefcase, and a cantor who has several recordings to his credit. Throughout this issue of The Omer, there will be lots of articles highlighting the many talented members of our congregation, so rather that focus on any individuals, I want to take a moment to talk about another of those spiritual moments, Shabbat, and how the many voices of our members and guests manage to find their way to sing in unison and to complement each other. It always amazed me how some voices take the high notes and others take the low, how a simple tune can end up with 100 part harmony, and how, even with the lack of instruments or a choir, we sound pretty good. I’ve been to other Conservative shuls and heard almost as much croaking as at the pond on a warm summer night. Maybe it’s because I want us to sound good, but somehow, I think it’s true, that we really do sound good. Interestingly enough, I can pick out some peoples’ voices from the Bimah, so when the times for harmonies come, I’ll look their way, and see smiling faces. That tells me they (the TBA singers) enjoy what they’re doing. That said, my shameless plug is for all of you to come to Shul on Shabbat (Friday evening or Saturday), or to any service where we have a sizeable crowd, and let it out! Even if you don’t think you sound good, you’ll probably smile as well.Another thing I want to address is being in tune. Not the type of “in tune” in terms of singing or playing an instrument, but being in tune with your surroundings. Those of us who volunteer to lead the TBA community have shown that they are in tune with our synagogue’s environment. I have seen and been part of several significant efforts to improve our physical and spiritual sur-roundings. Many of our amazing leaders and members have contributed their time and, in many cases, significant amounts of money, to improve the ruach at TBA. While the Centennial Project was certainly substantial, the crowning touch, to me, was the refurbishing of the sanctuary interior. I remember sitting in that big empty room on a folding chair, alone, just after the floors had been refinished and the green carpeting was put in, and thinking what a wonderful room for daven-ing this would be. I think you’ll all agree that it has exceeded our expectations. Another major “tune-up” was the remodeling’s of the new youth center and playground. Just a few years ago, who would have imagined? As well, the Chapel, with the stuffy old pews gone and the lights now shin-ing, even on rainy days, through the beautiful stained glass windows in the doors. Congregants and guests have told me time and time again that they think we, the TBA community, has done an incredible job getting our campus “in tune”.I’m writing this article after having listened to President Obama address Tucson and the entire country at the University of Arizona regarding the tragic shootings of Representative Gabrielle Giffords and the others injured and killed on Saturday, January 8. In his speech, he spoke of the deep commitment that people who go into public service make, and how he believes that, we as a country “…can be better”, and “…how we treat one another is entirely up to us.” I urge all of you to reflect on what we are, and what we can do, to make life peaceful. Finally, I want to remember Debbie Friedman, whose tunes and songs will be her everlasting memory.See you in Shul.Steve*Credit to Robert Nesta Marley

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editor’s message

the

OMERWe cheerfully accept member submissions. Deadline for articles and letters is the first of the month preceding publication.

editor in Chief Lori RosenthalManaging editor Lisa Fernandezlayout & Design Jessica Sterling

Calendars Jon GoldingB’nai Mitzvah editor Susan Simon

Cover Ruth TeitelbaumHelp From People like you!

Copy editors Jessica Dell’Era, Charles Feltman, Nadine Joseph, Richard Kauffman, Jan Silverman, Debbie Spangler, James Wakeman

Proofreaders June Brott, Jessica Dell’Era, Jeanne Korn, Stephen Shub, Susan Simon, Debbie Spangler

Distribution Herman Pencovic, Pola Silver, Gertrude Veiss Mailing address 336 Euclid Ave. Oakland, CA 94610

e-Mail omer@tbaoakland.org

Upcoming Omer Theme: March: Social Action

Thank You Debbie FriedmanBy Lori Rosenthal

This month’s Omer, with a focus on TBA member/musicians, and the music they make both in and out of the synagogue, would be incomplete without mentioning the recenet passing of Debbie Friedman, Jewish singer/songwriter extraordinaire. I dedicate this column to her memory.In the 1960s, I was a regular at my synagogue’s Junior Congregation. Much like with Junior Congregation today, those of us who knew the prayers well loved to belt out the words when we got a chance. Two of the only fun songs we got to sing included Ma Tovu (sung in a raucous round) and only after services, David Melech Yisrael (complete with arm and hand movements). Every now and then, we sang Adon Olam to some alternate melody, but basically, the services I attended were just a shorter version of the ones my parents sat through in the adjoining room. Debbie Friedman changed all that. She is credited with creating a whole new genre of contem-porary, accessible Jewish music, taking prayers, teachings, and melodies of the ancient Jewish texts and setting them to modern music. Even folks who don’t follow trends in Jewish music are famil-iar with some of her works. Among others, Debbie Friedman wrote the Mi Shebeirach prayer that we sing on Shabbat at TBA, as well as the heartwarmingly beautiful Lechi Lach that is often sung at Bar or Bat Mitzvah ceremonies and other lifecycle events. Her tear inducing And the Youth Shall See Visions is often sung at community events and especially graduations (and was like a soundtrack to my daughters’ middle school years at Tehiyah). In our home, Debbie Friedman’s music returned home with our kids from summer camp each August when Not By Might, Not By Power, and its smile inducing “Nutter Butter Peanut Butter” line was heard often from the TV room or shower at loud volume. Her songs were a staple at holiday times as well. Our home Chanukah celebrations would not have been the same without her simple and silly Latke Song. Likewise Thanksgiving would have lost some of its playfulness without her Happy Thanksgiving ditty. If you’re not familiar with these songs, you can find the words and oftentimes a YouTube clip to watch online. I guarantee they will make you smile.Debbie Friedman’s music touched me, my family, our congregation, and Jewish communities around the world. May her memory be for a blessing.

East Bay JEwish ForumEvery thursday through march 17, 2011

Join us for a lectures, coffee and conversation.

For more information, or to sign up, contact riva Gambert at rgambert@gmail.com, or call (510) 318-6453 for a 21 Lecture Pass.

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wtba, our sisterhood men’s club

Pirkei ImahotMonday, February 7

9:30 a.m. righteous radicals -

Jewish Heroines: abigail

Join our community of women as we uncover the emotional and intellectual themes which live in Torah and connect to our lives. Our Rosh Chodesh Torah study meets monthly, on the Monday closest to Rosh Chodesh. Meetings are hosted and facilitated by group members.

Sponsored jointly by Oakland Ruach Hadassah and the Women of TBA, the group is open to all women.

Contact Debbie Spangler at debspang@yahoo.com or (510) 531-1105 for location of our February meeting.

Men’s Club UpdateBy Jon Shuster

New Leadership, Same Fun The Men’s Club heads into 2011 with new leadership while continuing to fulfill our mission to “enrich the experience and quality of Jewish Life at TBA” (and have fun doing it). Led by new President Phil Hankin, our Fall highlights included:Annual “Eggs Mit Onion” Thanksgiving brunch. With Men’s Club superchef David Lenik at the helm, over 50 TBA members and friends enjoyed a cornucopia of good food and seasonal cheer.Year End Poker Night Fundraiser. It was a fun night at the tables as over 20 card sharks duked it out for prizes and bragging rights while raising funds for TBA. Kudos to organizers Dave Mendelsohn and Ben Persin.Purchase of Flat Screen TV. Men’s Club Board member, Jeff Ilfeld, led the selection and purchase of a new 42" flat screen TV to help our students, teachers, and other mem-bers better view movies and TV offerings. Way to go Jeff!Already in 2011, we have an exciting line-up of events and programs you won’t want to miss:Night Out at Cal Bears Game (Saturday, Feb. 5). The Cal Bear Men’s basketball team takes on Arizona and the Men’s Club will be there! Bring your family and friends and enjoy the special Cal jamfest before the game, including music, games, the Cal Band, contests, prizes, bounce house, and promo Items. Contact Jeff Ilfeld at ilfeld@email.com or Ben Persin at (510) 338-3864.Members-only Super Bowl Party (Sunday, Feb. 6). For Men’s Club members and their families, we will be holding a special Super Bowl party, including watching the game on TBA’s new flat screen. Food, drinks, and fun. Contact Ben Persin at (510) 338-3864. Not yet a member? There’s still time to join and come to the party – call Ben.Schlmiels on Skis (Sunday-Monday, Feb. 20-21). The annual Men’s Club outing this year welcomes all TBA members, family and friends (along with folks from Netivot Shalom). We’ll be skiing at Sugarbowl and with the snow they’ve already received, the conditions will be great. Participants last year noted the short lift lines and wide-open runs. Contact Ben Stigler at ben@synertel.com.Men’s Club Shabbat (Saturday, April 2). The Men’s Club leads services and hosts brunch. It’s a great way to support the religious life of our congregation. Parts are still available (as of the time this article was written). Come participate with us – the more, the merrier. Contact Jon Shuster at jonshuster@comcast.net.But wait – there’s more. Other upcoming events include our annual Beach Party and Day at the A’s Game. Not seeing something that interests you? What’s YOUR idea? We’d love to hear it and together, we can make it hap-pen! Come join us. The TBA Men’s Club is here for you! Contact Phil Hankin at philhankin@aol.com.

People of the Book ClubMonday, January 31 at 7:30 p.m.

We will be reading

G-d Was Not in the Fire

by Daniel GordisPlease RSVP to Deena Aerenson by email at

daerenson@gmail.com or phone at (510) 225-5107.

NOTE: If we do not have an adequate response, we will postpone the book group meeting.

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notes from the ritual commiteeSome Musical Sidelights on Yigdal and Adon OlamBy Esther Criscuola de Laix

Of all the prayers chanted on Shabbat and holy days, among the best loved are probably the hymns Yigdal and Adon Olam, which conclude the evening and morning services respectively. And not only because they herald the end of sometimes marathon liturgies – these singable, joyous hymns form a fitting musical culmination to the service and their legendary musical versatility continues to fire the imagina-tion of creative chazzanim and baalei tefillah the world over.The anonymous text of Adon Olam is remarkable for its wide-ranging praise of God, both as supreme Master of the universe (the literal translation of Adon Olam), and as the protector of individuals in waking or sleeping, in good times and in bad. Thanks to its short, concise lines of text and strong metrical profile, the hymn can be sung to seem-ingly any tune (well, almost). Tunes for the hymn range from staid and dignified, like the East European minor-mode tune heard in most American synagogues today, to cheery and upbeat – if I write “Adon... olam... asher asher malach” and “Adon olam (Adon olam)... asher malach (asher malach),” you may recognize the tunes to which tunes I am referring. The melody of Adon olam can match the season of the year: Maoz Tzur at Hanukkah, Adir Hu at Passover. A shaliach tzibbur with a sense of humor could certainly take this further still, using Yankee Doodle for the Fourth of July, The Minstrel Boy around St. Patrick’s Day, or Turkey in the Straw around Thanksgiving. Other tunes that work for Adon Olam include Shenandoah, Arkansas Traveler, Scarborough Fair, the Habanera from the opera Carmen, Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, Gilbert and Sullivan’s I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General, and even Take me Out to the Ballgame, among myriad others.Yigdal was penned in the early fifteenth century by Daniel ben Judah Dayyan of Rome, and is a verse paraphrase of Moses Maimonides’ Thirteen Articles of Faith. It has not typically been subjected to quite so many musical transfor-mations, probably because of its longer lines of text. The traditional minor-mode tune sung today in most American synagogues was known in England in the eighteenth cen-tury, and may originally date from the seventeenth. A more solemn, haunting tune in the “Eastern” chromatic scale is traditionally used on the High Holy Days, though

Kol Nidre Night at TBA is just as likely to conclude with the pretty Sephardic tune once sung by Sarah Sheidlower (of blessed memory). I have observed that Yigdal works quite nicely to the traditional Irish melody of William Butler Yeats’ The Salley Gardens – another option around St. Patrick’s Day.Of course, some would argue that sacred hymns should not be sung to secular tunes, and standards of musical appro-priateness vary from one community to another. Seeing as Adon Olam has been sung to Shenandoah and Take Me Out to the Ballgame here at TBA (and since no one has objected too much when I’ve sung the Irish tunes mentioned above), it seems that our shul has a fairly relaxed policy on this issue, and that our congregants enjoy the musical experimenta-tion these hymns invite. Yet whatever one thinks about set-ting Jewish hymns to non-Jewish tunes, some Jewish tunes have most certainly been coopted in non-Jewish hymnody, especially in recent years. Hymn #425 in The Hymnal 1982 pairs the Adon Olam tune with a text based on the Song of Moses in Chapter 15 of Exodus: “Sing now with joy unto the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously! The horse, the rider, and the sword he cast into the raging sea.” The Lutheran hymnal supplement With One Voice (1995) includes Yisrael v’oraita as hymn #715, with the text “Open up your ears, o faithful people, open up your ears and hear God’s Word.” And Yigdal has been a well-loved Anglican warhorse ever since the hymn writer Thomas Olivers heard it sung by cantor Meyer Lyon in London’s Great Synagogue in 1770. It appears in the Hymnals of 1940 and 1982 with a text that very loosely paraphrases the Yigdal hymn: “Praise to the living God! All praised be his Name, Who was, and is, and is to be, for ay the same.”If the secular melodies used for Adon Olam exemplify Jewish musical borrowing at work – we have always borrowed from our surrounding cultures – then hymns like “Praise to the Living God” show that others borrow from us as well. They also remind us just how much share with our Christian neighbors: a belief in one God, the scriptural authority of the Hebrew Bible, the basic structure of the daily liturgies. And even though Christian and Jewish musical traditions sometimes seem worlds apart, they ultimately have a com-mon goal: to “magnify and bless the Living God.”

remember to check the tBa website, mid-month mailings and email updates for information about

late-breaking tBa events and activities.

www.tbaoakland.org

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israelIsrael TidbitsBy Susan Simon

When we last left our fledgling land, we were in the midst of the Zionist revival in the early 1900s. The people who identified themselves as Zionists knew that they needed a great power to back them. The British were already in the Middle East, making alliances, primarily to protect the Suez Canal which had been built in 1869. The British wanted a land bridge between Egypt and the Gulf in order to create and maintain a positive relationship with the Arab leaders all around the Gulf. So there was a natural and convenient alliance with the British because Britain had its own inter-ests to protect. Enter the Balfour Declaration and the Paris Peace Conference. In November 1917, a formal statement was issued by the British government stating it viewed with favor the establishment of a national homeland for Jews in Palestine. The exact language was the following:“His Majesty’s government view with favour the establish-ment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achieve-ment of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.”This declaration was made in a letter from Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Baron Rothschild, a leader of the Jewish community. In 1919, the victorious Allies at the end of World War I met in Paris to set the terms of the newly formed peace. Diplomats from 29 countries attended, but not repre-sentatives from Germany or Russia. The world declared

Germany guilty and weakened it militarily and economically. As part of the Paris Conference, representatives from Arab nations as well as 35 persons representing the Zionist posi-tion lobbied for disposition of the lands of the former Ottoman Empire, including the land of Palestine. Chaim Weizmann attended the conference and argued that the Jews had a historical right to the land and proposed borders for a Jewish state. This was fought by the Arabs who cited to an earlier demand for an entirely independent Arab Asia. In April 1920, an international meeting took place in San Remo, Italy, attended by Britain, France, Italy and Japan. Borders and boundaries of defeated lands were still an issue. The British were given the right to control Palestine – an agreement which was referred to as the British mandate. This was very much to Britain’s liking as towards the end of the war, the British had moved their troops from Egypt to Palestine and then to Damascus. So the British had control of these lands at the end of the Ottoman Empire.As the Ottoman Empire was divided, no consideration was given to the ethnic, linguistic, religious or tribal affiliations of the people living in these lands. Arabs in these areas were promised independence, but no one defined what that really meant or what rights people would have. What was the effect on the Palestinian Arabs at the time? Some would argue that the Palestinian Arabs were elite and didn’t really want self-determination for the people living under them. So these promises were made to the Arabs who didn’t really want them. However, this isn’t a point of view reflected currently in Arab histories.Over the next several decades, as the Jewish populations grew in Palestine there were occasional uprisings and revolts by the Arabs. There were four major uprisings with injuries and deaths. The rebellion of 1936-39 destroyed the local economy and the economic wealth of the people living there. This did more harm to the Arab population than to the Jewish immigrants.The impact of this turmoil was devastating on the Arab economy. From this time forward, there was very little evolution of the Arab economy. It stayed stagnant and the Arab community remained fragmented and dysfunctional. There was no effective leadership and the population was impoverished, all at the same time that Zionism continued to grow. During the 1930’s the Arabs were selling land to Jews – many believed that these sales would later be overturned and the land returned to the Arabs. Publicly, the Arabs condemned the Jews for being in Palestine, but behind the scenes, they continued to sell land to the Jews, especially along the coastal plain.Next month – stay tuned for information on the White Paper, Ben Gurion, the Holocaust, and more.The Balfour Declaration of 1917.

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focus on tba musiciansFrom rock and roll Shabbat to Open Mic nightBy Becca Rosenthal

I joined my first band at around age eleven: the TBA Rock and Roll Shabbat Band. As dorky as it sounded to all of my friends when I told them that I was in my syna-gogue’s rock band, I have to say that I would not be a musician today if I hadn’t gotten the chance to develop a love for performing (and a true love for the other mem-bers in the tri-generational band) over the many years

that I was a part of it. While I credit TBA for giving me my start musically, being a part of the TBA band does not rep-resent all of who I am as a musician: I am a guitarist; I am a singer; I am a songwriter; and I am a performer. While being a musician has allowed me some pretty cool opportunities (including playing with the Head Royce Jazz Band at Yoshi’s Jazz Club in Oakland and leading countless campfire song sessions), the coolest opportunities I have had with music revolve around my songwriting. I started writ-ing music during the spring of my junior year, and since then, I’ve written roughly twenty songs (so far). This past summer, I even put recordings of six of them on iTunes. If you’re interested, I’ll just tell you that it’s called Out of the Box, and it is available on iTunes.In September 2010, I began a program called Nativ, which is the Conservative Movement’s gap year program in Israel. With this program, I spent September-January in Jerusalem studying, and then I moved to Kibbutz Ein Tzurim, where I live now. I’ve had a lot of time to sit on the balcony in our beautiful Jerusalem stone building playing guitar and writ-ing music, but the most fun musical experience I have had here included playing a few of my own original songs at an open mic night at a local restaurant/bar called Mike’s Place.At about 1 a.m. on a Monday night, a friend of mine ran up to me and told me that Mike’s Place was having an open mic night, that they had a guitar, and that he (a drum-mer) wanted to know if I’d play a few songs with him. We decided to throw logic to the wind and go. We had never rehearsed, he had never heard either of the two original songs that I was going to play before, and neither of us could care less—we were going to improvise it anyways. The only problem was that the stage didn’t have a drum set, so he would have to beat-box. At 1:30 a.m., the emcee called us to the stage, and as though Rabbi Bloom was telling us to turn to page 282 for

a Rosenthal Sister rendition of Ahavat Olam, all ears were on me. I said hello to the crowd, looked at my friend Aaron and counted off the first song, and next thing I knew, I heard my voice coming through the microphone. The feel-ing of performing is incredible, but the feeling of perform-ing original music in the amazing city of Jerusalem is truly impossible to describe. I thank TBA for giving me the chance to be a performer in such a safe and encouraging setting, because without that chance, I would not be able to have had such incredible musical experiences now. To read more about Becca’s adventures in Israel this year, you can read her blog at http://beccarosenthal.blogspot.com.

a Gift of Music By Aaron Paul

When I was offered free les-sons and a musical instru-ment in the seventh grade, little did I realize what a wonderful gift I received that I would enjoy the rest of my life. That gift was a French Horn which I continued playing in the school orches-tra, band, and marching

band throughout high school and college. After graduation from college, I was drafted into the U.S. Army at the end of the Korean War. I was stationed at the Presidio in SF as a musician in the 6th Army Band, where I met my wife Eva, and shortly before my discharge, we were married.After discharge, I enrolled as a student at Hastings College of the Law in SF. Given the total time commitment required by my law studies, there was precious little time to practice or play music and I was required to put aside my horn.After law school and the birth of three children, I decided to pick up the horn again and began to practice. I joined a community orchestra at the College of Holy Names in Oakland and began to play, albeit, as a mediocre musician. Between the demands of a young father, husband and a busy law practice, there was again very little time for practicing.Over the remaining years and two more children, I con-tinued playing in various musical organizations in the Bay Area. I also took lessons with professional horn players, including TBA’s Jonathan Ring, and attended a music camp one week each year.As a result, over the years I did improve and was able to hold down my part in the orchestra. In community orchestras, there are usually weekly rehearsals followed by 4-5 concerts before live audiences. It is difficult to describe the elation and sense of personal satisfaction that comes from a solid

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performance of the great classical musical repertoire before a live audience. Also, there is a special pleasure derived from sitting in the midst of 65 musicians playing the great music of the masters and adding one’s part to this great engine of sound. This can be a special and thrilling experience. Of course, none of this would be possible without discipline, attending regular rehearsals and private practice.Looking back, it seems to me that the music has had a sta-bilizing influence, helping me to keep a balance between the stresses of raising a family and a busy law practice.Approximately five years ago, I was fortunate to reach retire-ment. Now that I have the time, I can practice my instru-ment to my heart’s content and can expand my musical outlets. I am now a member of three separate orchestras and various music groups. Music is a precious gift, given to me which has enriched my life. I feel very fortunate.

Singing My Way Through lifeBy Alicia von Kugelgen

I honestly don’t remember a time when I didn’t sing. My mom says that she was told by the time I was in kinder-garten that I had “perfect reproductive pitch,” meaning that when someone played a note on the piano I could reproduce it. In third grade my parents sent me to what was then called an alternative school – today it would be a magnet. It was for “Gifted,

Talented, and Creative” children, nobody ever told me which one of the three I was, but I did join the performing arts troop. We performed all over the Wichita area and it was a lot of fun. Looking back, I think my addiction to applause started at Isley school. When I was eleven years old I auditioned for my first professional theater produc-tion. Wichita Summer Music Theater was doing “The Sound of Music” and needed children to play the von Trapps. A friend of my mom’s suggested that she take me to the auditions and so my parents drove me downtown. I don’t remember what I sang – probably Happy Birthday – but I do remember my father taking me to the callbacks (second round of auditions). They had all the children line up on stage by height and I remember the director making a line of seven of us, then the producer would come in and move me out of the line and move in another little girl, and the director would switch me back in again. I think per-haps there was a battle over whom to cast going on, not the last time this has happened since then! I did end up being cast as Brigitta, my first professional production. I remem-

ber loving everything about the process, from learning my lines, to music rehearsals, to blocking and running the show – from noon to midnight (!), and performing.From then on I was in a show or in rehearsals pretty much at all times through High School. At age 16,, I was taken on as a voice student by one of the professors from Wichita State University. He told me that I had a decision to make, I could continue working on my voice for musical theater or I could begin training for a career in opera, that I had the voice for it. Opera seemed so very exotic at that time, so I went for it. I did my undergraduate work in Opera at Northwestern University and my graduate work at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory. After marrying Bruce and moving here to the Bay Area I was determined to get back into performing as quickly as pos-sible. I have been extremely fortunate in that I have found several communities here where I can stretch my wings, both vocally and as an actress. I never get tired of the pro-cess – from auditions, which still make my pulse race and my hands shake; through the rehearsals; learning my lines, my music, my blocking; and the performing! Nothing in the world gives me the same kind of thrill as singing in front of people – even if it’s only my children, who are, after all, my very best audience! I sing pretty much whenever and wherever I am, if you ever need a pick me up, feel free to ask and I will likely indulge you…My next production happens to be a straight show – no singing. I will be playing the role of Sibyl Chase in Noel Coward’s Private Lives at the Douglas Morrisson Theatre. Performances are from February 25 - March 20, 2011. For more information go to www.dmtonline.org or get in touch with me personally.

roshambo By Richard Kauffman

Roshambo is an Oakland a cappella sextet that performs dynamic and complex vocal Jazz, with a Latin, funk influ-ence. Known for their tight harmonies and distinctive arrangements, they have performed in the Bay Area for over 15 years at such venues as Anna’s Jazz Island, Oakland’s Uptown Unveiled Festival, La Pena Cultural Center and

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various farmers’ markets and private events. To hear them on the web, please visit www.roshambosings.com.The group is currently looking for a new tenor. If you’re in great voice, can sing solos as well as harmonize, have vocal percussion skills and can commit to weekly rehears-als on Tuesday evenings, please email TBA member Audrey Kauffman at roshambosings@yahoo.com. Audrey is on the far left of the Roshambo photo (see prior page).

“You Went to Four Years of College to Stick Your Head in a Garbage Can?”By Rebecca Sparks

These were the words from my beloved Bubbe when I announced that I was going to do recycling and grounds management for music fes-tivals and concerts. I was excited. To me, it was the perfect match between my desire to help the environ-ment, and my longing to be involved in the music busi-ness. Who knows where it would lead? Certainly,

if someone tapped my grandmother on the shoulder and told her that someday her granddaughter would be produc-ing major music festivals that would attract thousands of people, she would smile and say, “Now that’s my grand-daughter.”My love for music started at a very young age, and matured as I did. I always loved to sing. I took piano lessons for several years as a child, and studied various forms of percus-sion as a young adult, but I knew deep down I wasn’t meant to be on stage. I wanted to be behind the scenes. As a teen I fantasized about being a record producer or music pro-moter. I wasn’t sure exactly how to fit into the music busi-ness then, just that I wanted to be in it. The allure of being around the people making the music, and helping facilitate their careers and performances was so compelling. When I was in high school, my parents had an acquaintance involved in the music business. My mother asked him, “So, my daughter wants to get into the music business. Do you have any advice?” He said simply, “Don’t.” That just made me want to do it even more.Fresh out of college I parlayed my experience working at the university recycling program into volunteering and then getting paid for doing recycling at various music festivals and events around Northern California with my now busi-ness partner. He had the connections and experience, and needed a college graduate to help him write proposals to

get bigger clients like Bill Graham Presents. That’s where I came in. I didn’t realize it at the time, but that was my back door into the music business. Within a few years, I was working for him at the newly formed High Sierra Music Festival, and in 1994 I took my Bat Mitzvah money and bought into the company. Over the last two decades, we’ve produced many music festivals from Massachusetts to Georgia, and currently produce not only High Sierra, but also DelFest in Maryland. The festivals are a lot of work to produce, but present world class music in beautiful settings, and allow people to relax and recreate with family and friends. They bring people together for a few days to create community, reunite with old friends, and make new ones that last a lifetime. Last summer we celebrated the 20th annual High Sierra Music Festival. As I stood on the stage overlooking the crowd on a hot summer day in July, and stopped to take in the incredible music and all the joy that the event was bring-ing to so many people, I couldn’t help but think of my Bubbe kvelling over how her granddaughter followed her dream.

Come to Shul, Sing BarbershopBy Jon Shuster

My love of music began as a child. I took piano les-sons in second grade and began playing trombone in middle school. I gravitated to jazz, playing the trombone in jazz bands through high school and into college. It was my attending Shabbat services

at TBA, however, that opened the latest (and current) chap-ter of my musical experience.After sitting next to me one Shabbat morning, Charles Feltman noted “it seems you like to sing, Jon. Have you ever sung barbershop?” I never had, but after going with Charles to visit the San Francisco Cable Car Chorus, I found a new and different way to broaden my musical horizons. In singing with the chorus, I rediscovered the joy and challenge of learning new music, as well as following a director. I enjoyed the harmonies and found my years as a trombone player enabled me to listen well and blend with the other voices. Finally, my time in the chorus intro-duced me to Greg, Orv, and Tom (a lead, bass, and tenor). Together, we formed Bayside, a barbershop quartet (see the photo above).

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focus on tba musiciansAs Bayside, we’ve sung together for over four years. We rehearse two to three times a month and have performed a number of gigs in a variety of locations, including a back-yard Mother’s Day party in Marin, dinner parties in the St. Francis and South Beach Yacht clubs, at a wedding in Golden Gate Park, and as part of a Benicia Day town celebration. Our most fun and interesting performances, though, are on Valentine’s Day, when we deliver Singing Valentines* to folks all over the Bay area. I enjoy walking into an office or restau-rant wearing a bow tie (ok, it helps to have three other guys wearing the same thing) and notice the something-is-very-dif-ferent-here expressions on peoples’ faces. To then sing a few love songs to someone or a group and have them really enjoy it is a wonderful experience. I’m amazed at how special, and intimate, the bond created between musician and audience can be, even in just a few minutes. *By the way, Bayside and other quartets of the Cable Car Chorus will be delivering singing valentines this coming Valentine’s Day, Monday, February 14! It’s a fun and dis-tinctive way to say “I love you.” Write me at jonshuster@comcast.net for more information.Our music spans a wide range, from more traditional bar-bershop melodies of the early 1900’s to doo-wop and even more modern pop songs like Can You Feel the Love Tonight (from the Lion King). While we don’t sing specifically Jewish music, we happily perform songs from an array of Jewish composers, lyricists, and singers, including Irving Berlin, Al Jolson, and Frank Loesser. It’s fun to sing as well as perform and I appreciate that my connection to TBA, via Charles Feltman, helped expand my musical boundaries. For those readers interested in barbershop, contact Charles, who is now the Director of the San Francisco Cable Car Chorus.

My life as a MusicianBy Debbie Spangler

When I was 3 years old I would sit at the piano and try to bang out tunes, so my parents, fortunately, started me on lessons. Today, methods such as Suzuki and Kodaly focus

on how to teach very young children. However, back then no one had a clue what to do with me, so lessons were short-lived; a relative taught me again around age 7 or 8. Soon after, in 4th grade, notices went home about starting an orchestral instrument. A good friend said she wanted to play violin, so I said I would, too.After going through the Oakland Public School system, I attended various UC’s for a few years but then travelled all over the U.S. seeking what I needed to learn the violin. Later, I married Ward, a classical percussionist; we travel all over the Bay Area to play in symphonies as far-flung as Sacramento, Modesto, Santa Rosa, and Monterey, and we teach privately. We have 2 daughters, now 19 and 22, who grew up around all this music; both play violin. Raising children in this crazy/wonderful lifestyle involved patch-work babysitters, a big calendar, and lots of flexibility! The girls played steadily through high school, joining Young Peoples’ Symphony Orchestra (an all-area group based in Berkeley) and going on their international tours, but both chose non-musical majors in college. Both still play for fun in various orchestras, and when they’re around we play duets and trios. I am also involved in orchestral politics: I represent two of my orchestras every August at a meeting of representatives of 83 mid-budget orchestras, where we discuss problems and solutions different from “the big guys” (orchestras such as New York, Boston and San Francisco Symphonies). I get to travel to unusual places not normally on vacationers’ itineraries, such as Dayton, Charleston WV, Omaha, and Chattanooga. Not too exciting, you say? Each of these plac-es has a full-time orchestra (sometimes a ballet and/or opera too); the weather may not be great, but these towns always have other creative aspects: museums, cuisine, and some sort of personal charm. I try to seek out something interest-ing during each trip, and I love connecting with other musi-cians around the country on a personal level, and hearing creative solutions to supposedly insurmountable problems.Being a professional musician has been a wild ride. Learning an instrument involves a lot of childhood sacrifice: weekly lessons from an early age (which are not cheap!), hours of solitary practice, playing in school and outside orchestras, less free time for sports, dating, etc. But the rewards are great: lifelong friends with a common goal, travel all over the world, and if you don’t turn pro, a lifelong hobby. And the life lessons you learn! Patience, discipline, motivation, persistence, teamwork. No quick solutions to all your prob-lems like in a 23-minute sitcom. No instant success like a 3-minute microwave meal. And you can’t achieve a perfor-mance by pulling an all-nighter! Being a musician can be difficult, challenging and frustrating; but when work and life come together in a wonderful, creative way, it’s worth it!

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Jory FankuchenBy Asher Zelig

When he was three years old, Jory Fankuchen crawled under his father’s bed and there among the boxes of papers, pine cones, and rocks discovered an old violin. Though he had shown no interest in the guitar, banjo, zither, or bongos lying around their apartment, Jory picked up the violin and asked how it was supposed to be played. Five years later his curiosity got the better of him, so he traded his budding career as a nationally ranked chess prodigy to find out what a violin actually could do. A $20 half-size fiddle purchased at the Alameda drive-in movie flea market got him started. A year later Jory joined an orchestra and, not long after that, began playing Kol Nidrei at TBA. When he showed up intending to sight-read the Beethoven Violin Concerto for his audition, Anne Crowden, the founder of The Crowden School, recog-nized Jory’s abilities and took him under her wing. Under Anne’s tutelage, which mixed a deep love of kids and quartets with the understanding that a pitcher just might have to show up and play the Bruch Concerto in his Little League uniform, Jory delved deeply into both the chamber and solo repertoires. When he was sixteen, Jory quit the College Preparatory School in the middle of his junior year, unconvinced that his time there was consonant with who he was and what he wanted to do. Significantly, a stint at Greenwood Music Camp in the Berkshires had convinced him that chamber music was not only his passion but his future.

Four years at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, with summers playing at Greenwood, Kneisel Hall, and the Mendocino Music Festival, led Jory to pursue further stud-ies at the New England Conservatory of Music and at the Tanglewood Music Festival. Solo performances at Tanglewood, at the Legion of Honor on the Heifetz Guarnerius del Gesu violin, and with the Berkeley Symphony, performing quartets with the likes of Robert Mann, Joseph Silverstein, Bonnie Hampton, Joel Krosnick, Mark Sokol, and Ian Swensen allowed Jory the opportunity to become closely involved at the very highest level with the chamber music that formed his core musical love. It was at Tanglewood that Jory formed the Kailas Quartet, which soon became the resident quartet at the Shepherd School of Music, with a summer residency at the Aspen Music Festival. After its first year, the quartet won the Chamber Music International Competition and took the silver at the National Fischoff Competition. On the eve of an international tour, personnel necessities forced the cessation of the group. The last concert given by the Kailas Quartet was at The Kennedy Center in Washington in May 2007.After another summer playing chamber music at Aspen, Jory returned to the Bay Area, where he hooked up with the newly-formed Classical Revolution (www.ClassicalRevolution.org), a group which seeks to take chamber music out of the constrained environment of the concert hall and bring it to new audiences in bars, cafes, art houses, and other non-traditional venues.Presently Jory plays with the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra and the Modesto Symphony, as well as with many other Northern California orchestras and chamber groups. He is a member of the Musical Art Quintet, a tango string ensemble, and Magik Magik Orchestra, where he performs with the likes of Sting, Mary Wilson, and Bob Weir. His long-time love of teaching is currently being expressed as a member of the faculty at The Crowden School, Marin Academy, and PACO Music Camp. Most recently, Jory joined the Bridge Chamber Virtousi for a performance in Shanghai, China, as part of the World Expo celebration.When asked his single greatest musical regret, Jory respond-ed without hesitation: much to his chagrin, he finds himself still singing along to the country music he had to endure during the extensive camping trips he and his father used to take in the red rock canyons and pinon plateaus of the Southwest.

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Dancing to the Music By Evan Kharrazi

TBA Member Evan Kharrazi is an honor student of Dance at the Oakland School for the Arts, Maccabi Gold Medalist, and previous Junior Mr. Dance of California. He attends Oakland Midrasha and is the recipient of the Isaac Sevi Holocaust Memorial Award for artistic interpretation. Evan will be dancing this summer in Israel with Maccabi ArtsFest. He has studied with many notable choreogra-phers including auditioning for Broadway’s Billy Elliot and acceptance into the Boston Arts Academy. Evan has been dancing for seven years and is currently a member of OSA’s Dance Troupe. He is also an apprentice in Savage Jazz Dance Company and early applicant for Juilliard.

Music is My lifeBy Jonathan Ring

Music is my life. Literally. I have been surrounded by it, mes-merized by it, and drawn to it ever since I can remember. I vividly recall my great uncle playing mandolin and my grandmother sing-ing Yiddish songs. My mother was a profession-al pianist and teacher and it seemed that there was always music in the

house including chamber music evenings and family musi-cals where we would all get up and perform.I guess being a somewhat shy person, I realized that I could communicate things through music that were hard for me to say in words, and that continues to this day. It also serves as my “island” of refuge where I can relax and be uplifted.I play horn in the San Francisco Symphony and have been there almost 20 years. It is a great job, though four con-

certs a week every week can be tiring and stressful. There’s teaching at the San Francisco Conservatory as well as many outside projects, concerts and recording sessions. Oh, and did I mention the weird hours (thanks, Maya!)? But I never take for granted how fortunate I am to be able to do what I love as a career. Keeping it from becoming routine is prob-ably my biggest challenge.Symphony is only one side of my musical personality. The other, of course, is my love of rock and roll, jazz, and any other kind of music that makes you want to get up and move! Most of what we listen to around our house isn’t classical music! My keyboards, writing and arranging keep me sane and allow me to have other musical outlets besides the symphony.The TBA Rock and Roll Shabbat Band has also been a great outlet for my other musical personality and is really fun and rewarding. Working with Murray Davis on the band’s CD was a highlight as well as donning the traditional Purim wig (I’m thankful for ANY hair these days, even if it’s yellow or blue!) It’s also great to be involved in some Jewish music. We had Nigun and Ladino songs played at our wedding and even sang in our former synagogue’s choir. I have to say, also, that Cantor Kaplan is truly an inspiration and one of the main reasons I love coming to services.Music is my family’s life as well. My wife, Maya Rath, is the Finance Director of the Oakland East Bay Symphony and an amateur flutist. Our two sons, Julian and Benjamin, both play instruments (bass and drums) and are actively involved in many outside musical activities. We all even decided to send out a family musical Chanukah card this year doing our own version of Maoz Tzur.I think music is such a powerful form of communication and it fascinates me how it can bring people together in such varied contexts. With all the craziness in the world today, I am always happy to return to my “island”, even if only for a quick visit.

a Musician’s Dream JobBy Jessica Siegel

I count myself as one of the lucky few. I am surrounded every day with people who are passionate about music and want to learn about the harp. I have the privilege of sharing the joy of making music.During my performance career I have spoken with many people who’ve expressed their desire to play this magical instrument. Their dreams

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gan avraham Our Gan Music SpecialistBy Wendy Siver

Susan Rancer, the Gan music specialist, comes to the Gan every week, alternating days so that each child at the Gan has the opportunity to sing with her. I thought you might enjoy knowing more about Susan and what she brings to our school. Here is an introduction to Susan in her own words:Although I have been in the Bay Area for more than 30 years, I grew up in Amarillo, Texas. My first exposure to music was at age 6 when my classroom teacher played piano every day. At back-to-school night, having never touched a piano, I started playing with both hands, duplicating every-thing our first grade teacher ever played for us. Immediately after that, my parents found a music teacher for me and that was the beginning of my music education.Later in my childhood I was the accompanist in religious school at our small synagogue. I played organ and piano regularly from when I was very young. This was a time when only hymns were sung, not the wonderful contempo-rary music that is available today.Later I began to play the violin as well as the piano. I played throughout my school years and then went on to get my college degree from Eastern New Mexico University with a major in music therapy. Music therapy uses music as a vehicle to accomplish a therapeutic goal. I trained and interned with adults but got my first job back in Amarillo working at a hospital for emotionally disturbed and autistic children. After two years there I established a practice of my own, which has been my profession for nearly 35 years now. My use of music therapy includes teaching piano and other instruments to special needs children, exposing them to musical experiences and related means of expression. In 1980 I came to the Bay Area on vacation and ended up moving here. I relocated my private practice in music therapy, this time to San Jose. At the same time I also worked at various synagogues as a song leader and cantorial soloist. I met my husband Mike at a Jewish singles event in San Jose and went on to have two children, Emily and David. I am very proud of Emily, who is now finishing up an MBA at UC Davis and planning to marry in March. David, sadly, passed away at age 11 in 2001 from Familial Dysautonomia (FD), a Jewish genetic disease. Mike and I continue to raise money in his memory to support research on treatments for FD. I built a very successful private practice in San Jose from 1980 until 1996, when Mike got a job at UC Berkeley. We moved to the East Bay, where I then started a new practice for the third (and last) time. Since moving here, my prac-tice has focused increasingly on autistic children. Using my experience with this community, this past April I was able to publish a summary of my experiences and observations by contributing a chapter to a book by Dr. Darold Treffert entitled Islands of Genius. My chapter described ways to

teach special needs children with perfect and relative pitch.In addition to my music therapy practice, I have continued as a song leader for local synagogues. My husband and I are members of Temple Sinai in Oakland. But shortly after arriving in the East Bay, I was asked to play at a birthday party for a child at the Gan. When the director, Barbara Ogman, heard me, she hired me saying “You’re a teacher, not a performer. That’s what we need.” I have been here ever since. I also lead songs and do some Friday night ser-vices at Beth Israel Judea in San Francisco. To keep my music fresh, I make yearly trips to the weeklong Hava Nashira workshop to study with Debbie Friedman, Craig Taubman and other great Jewish musicians.I am committed to using the best in contemporary Jewish music to help our children find the joy in Judaism.

Donations, Time needed to Help with 1950s-Themed Schools auctionBy Lisa Fernandez

The Schools Auction is always a fun time.But this year, the May 15 event proves to possibly even be more grand, as co-organizers Rick Heeger and Alice Hale have decided to add a Roman Holiday twist to it, complete with a menu designed by our own Jing Piser.“It’s seen as sort of a sunny and bright time,’’ Rick said, referring to why he and his wife chose the theme of 1950s-era Italy.“In the movie Roman Holiday, Audrey Hepburn ‘escapes’ to enjoy the city of Rome,” Alice added. “We’re hoping TBA members will ‘escape’ to the auction for an evening to help us celebrate our schools.” But more important than the theme, is the TBA com-munity’s participation in the fundraiser. This year, the money raised is being earmarked especially for Gan and Bet Sefer scholarships. Now, more than ever, there is a greater demand from our congregants who need these funds. “The TBA schools have been so important to our family,” Alice said. “I would hate to think that families might not attend the Gan or Bet Sefer because of financial barriers. It’s important that Jewish education is available to all the fami-lies who want it.”Last year, the auction raised $40,000, and this year’s orga-nizers hope to top that.If you can donate an item, or a service, or create-your-own-party, please contact Amy Moscov or Jennifer Ferguson, who are heading up our solicitations at amymoscov@aol.com or (510) 531-3430; or jennyc@speakeasy.net or (510) 451-2393.Volunteers who would like to donate their time are also needed. Please contact Rick or Alice by emailing them at rpheeger@sbcglobal.net or alicemhale@sbcglobal.net or call them at (510) 336-3044.

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bet sefer

Please Join Us for TBA’s Youth ServicesFebruary T’fillat Y’ladim is designed for children in Kindergarten,

1st and 2nd grade and their families. This service is held in the Chapel on the Third Shabbat of each month and will bridge the gap for those stu-

dents who are too old for Shabbat Mishpacha and too young for Junior Congregation.

Junior Congregation is designed for children in grades 2 through 6.

This services is held in the Chapel on the First Shabbat of most months.

Build your child’s sense of community, reinforce what they learn in religious or day school, and foster their interest in Jewish practice by making youth services a regular part of your Shabbat schedule.

The Bet Sefer DilemmaBy Susan Simon

What is a dilemma? We can define it as a problem – we often use the word that way in conversation. One online dictionary I consulted defines it as a state of uncertainty or perplexity especially as requiring a choice between equally unfavorable options. When I think of Jewish congregation-al school learning, I think in terms of dilemmas. What do we teach our children in two to four hours per week? What are our goals for them and for us? In the ideal world, all of our graduates will finish Bet Sefer with a love for Jewish learning, Jewish practice, and Jewish community. They will have thoroughly enjoyed every moment learning with their friends. They will have a com-plete knowledge of Torah, Tanakh and be fluent Hebrew decoders with a good Hebrew vocabulary. They will be able to participate fully in services and have a passion for social justice and mitzvot. In short, they would be on their way to continuing their lives as literate Jewish adults.And the dilemma? The time we have with them isn’t enough to accomplish these goals. We cannot succeed at everything we would like for them in such a limited amount of time. And to complicate things further, because their accomplishments (or lack thereof ) won’t appear on any college transcripts, despite our best teaching practices, some students just don’t really learn the material. They may participate in our learning activities, but for some students, because the material just “doesn’t count,” there is no reason to retain it, to really integrate it into the body of knowledge we carry in our brains and our hearts.So we pick and choose what we teach, what we reinforce, what we insist that they learn. We teach them stories from the Torah because we believe that every Jewish child needs a foundation in these lessons. By teaching these stories, we also teach the moral lessons that they reflect. Each of these stories provides us with wisdom at every stage of our lives – wisdom that we can uncover as we mature. Teaching and

re-teaching these stories gives us a chance to grown as our ability to reason matures.We teach mitzvot – we teach the students how Judaism values caring for one another, for the environment, for ani-mals. We reinforce this as the students get older when we teach midrash, kashrut and the killing of animals, and Pirke Avot. We teach about the holidays. Probably more than anything else, it is the celebration of Jewish holidays that makes such an impact on the psyche of Jews all over the world. When we come together for a Pesach seder or to light the Chanukkiah, we feel connected to other Jews in the pres-ent and who came before. It is a powerful emotion that we know is critical to help establish in our young people.We teach how to read in Hebrew and how to recite the prayers. Of everything we teach this can be the most important. When we teach these practical skills, we give the students the ability to continue their learning for the rest of their lives. We teach these skills at a time when they are easiest for most students to learn – ask any adult who is tackling the Alef Bet for the first time and they will tell you how difficult it is at an older stage of life. People who learned to decode Hebrew and learned the prayers are auto-matic insiders in any synagogue. If you can read Hebrew, if you learned the prayers well as a child, you can join any Jewish community and within a very short period of time, feel that you are part of the community. When someone joins a synagogue without these skills, it can be such an uphill battle to feel like s/he is fitting in. Knowing basic synagogue skills makes it much easier to continue your edu-cation as an adult.And so we continue to battle all sides of the dilemma – what do we teach, what do we emphasize, at what can we be successful? We have endless wishes for educating our children Jewishly. If you got to decide, what would you choose?

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check out our local jewish day schoolsrock n’ roll at the Contra Costa Jewish Day SchoolBy Amy Wittenberg, Admissions Director

“As a teen growing up in Wales I played in a rock band, making music with my friends gave so much pleasure and kept me busy! Now, as the teacher overseeing CCJDS’s Middle School Rock Band elective, I’m excited to see my students have the same passion for music as I do.” said Mr. Lawrence Delaney who also is the popular second grade general studies teacher at CCJDS. This year the CCJDS rock band will be learning about the history of Rock Music, the sentiments behind the lyrics and the difference between America Rock and British Rock music. The yet-to-be-named band will have the opportunity to perform for the community several times during the year. When the students were interviewed about why they like being in the band all of them enthusiastically shared their thoughts - here are some of their comments; “the band is like a team, we need to work together to make the music sound good, we’ve become tight, it’s the music that helps bonds our friendship”, “I love to sing and hope to become a famous singer, I think I’m starting my career here”, and “the band lets me express myself, as a musician you let your emotions out through the music.”The CCJDS 12 member band is a point of intrigue for many prospective middle school students. Daniel Pascal, a recent 6th grade transfer student and TBA member said “I was excited to be part of a Jewish School’s rock band, I play bass and it’s fun, really fun.”If you think your child would thrive in a school with small classes, strong academics, a welcoming Jewish community and an awesome Rock Band, please consider CCJDS. We are located in Lafayette, only 17 minutes from TBA! We work with families to offer a flexible tuition, we strive to not make the cost of tuition a stumbling block for families. Private tours of the school are available by appointment, call Amy Wittenberg, Admissions Director, (925) 284-8288 or email: amyw@ccjds.org. Applications are now being accepted for next fall.

Music at OHDSBy Melanie Marcus, Admissions Director

At OHDS, music is a way to reach the hearts and minds of students. The start of each day begins in song as the American, Israeli and California flags are raised to the familiar tunes of the Star Spangled Banner and Hatikvah, followed by the uplifting melodies of tefillah in the class-rooms. When Rosh Chodesh falls on a school day the Rosh Chodesh Student Band rouses the students to sing and dance during the morning mifgash, flag raising ceremony.A Jewish day school, by default, boasts a song-filled day. There’s always a reason to celebrate in the Jewish cycle; chaggim, shabbat, s’machot, rosh chodesh and the myriad of Jewish rituals – learning and celebrating each is never with-out song. And, there’s more.Learning subject material to music helps students retain the information, and is a quick way to trigger the brain to retrieve even complex mathematical procedures. Songs can be used as memory aids and for verb conjugation and building. The brain learns so much better when the stu-dent feels calm and relaxed. Music can create this feeling of calm while giving the student a chance to practice rote skills in a fun way. This technique is commonly used with the school’s full-time Resource Room faculty.Music brings us closer to the land of Israel and its people. One of the middle school electives is a study of Ashkenazi and Sephardic Shabbat songs, looking at the diversity between the two cultures through music. Even teachers are moving to the sounds of Israel. Every Friday, OHDS faculty is invited for Coffee and Conversation, with a new Israeli themed presentation. Teachers recently learned about Piyutim, a movement that’s sweeping Israel where old, sacred text is being set to Sephardic tunes to make a kind of musical poetry. Music also helps teach American history. Folk songs, like the Back Of The Bus about Rosa Parks, can help students have a deeper feeling of the Civil Right Movement. We Shall Not Be Moved is another powerful song about Cesar Chavez and the fight to help the migrant workers.Music transforms ordinary class lessons. Music touches the heart and nurtures the neshama in children. We invite you to come see it for yourself. To schedule a personal tour of the OHDS campus, please call Melanie Marcus at (510) 531-8600, ext. 26.

Parent Education – All are welcome, no fee Help Me, Help YouA Two Part Parent Workshop With Sarah Spencer Thursdays, February 3 and March 3, 7:00-9:00 p.m.Explore some of the obstacles and opportunities parents face while raising kids and adolescents. For more details, email mmarcus@ohds.org.

Some of the members of the CCJDS Rock Band

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check out our local jewish day schools

Give a New Mom or Dad an Hour to Shower

A perfect mitzvah for those with daytime flexibility.

Volunteers needed to provide short daytime sits free of charge to our new moms and

dads allowing them to shower, get a haircut or just take a walk.

Interested sitters should contact us at womenoftba@tbaoakland.org.

Welcome a New MemberDo you have time to help deliver TBA’s

new members baskets?If so, please contact

Stacy Margolin at stasch.margolin@gmail.com or by phone (510) 482-3153.

volunteer bulletin board

Tehiyah Day School and Music Go Together like lox and BagelsBy Donna Sidel, Director of Communications

Music permeates every aspect of life at Tehiyah Day School. After English and Hebrew, music is the third language of Tehiyah instruction. Every school-wide event at Tehiyah is filled with music. It is no wonder that Tehiyah is blessed with so much musical talent on our faculty and staff, many of whom are known recording artists, and within our stu-dent body.Nowhere does the inextricable connection between the school and music become more evident than at the begin-ning of every single school day, when the entire school gathers together to sing Modeh Ani and welcome the day with song. Similarly during the school day, our classrooms are filled with music. As Tehiyah’s Rabbi Tsipi Gabai says, “Singing is the most powerful and ancient way of express-ing yourself, and singing together in unison as a commu-nity can bring peace and heal the world - tikkun olam..” Rabbi Tsipi, who is known for her rousing musical spirit, has recorded a CD for the High Holidays, and is currently working on a recording of piyutim/sacred prayers.T’fillah/prayer classes at Tehiyah are always musical. Students are lucky enough to have their t’fillah classes accompanied by Katja Cooper, an accomplished record-ing artist and percussionist. She has performed around the world with a variety of well-known artists, and was a regular on Israeli national television and radio with the top-chart pop artist Rami Kleinstein. Katja feels strongly that her use of the drum, a primal instrument of expression, is an aid to internalizing the pulse of the prayer. This year, Tehiyah added a new music teacher, Sarita Pockell, who has been teaching music and performing arts to young people for over 15 years and regularly performs for young children with her band Octopretzel. In addition

to our ongoing drum circle and middle school rock band, Sarita Pockell and Katja Cooper have teamed up this year for two new fun and exciting middle school music pro-grams - World Music Ensemble and Glee Club (think the tele-vision show “Glee”). These two groups have already performed at two school events and are currently recording their first CD.Our creative arts teacher, Eric Silverberg, is also a musi-cian who plays guitar every morning during our Modeh Ani assembly. His creative arts program includes musical improvisation, and his youngest students work with Orff-Schulwerk, a hands-on musical approach that combines music, movement, drama, and language. Our parents, as well, are talented musicians, including TBA’s own Jill Rosenthal. Other musical parents include profes-sional blues musician (and TBA member) Steve Utstein, who has performed on keyboards with blues greats Junior Wells, Otis Rush, and Bo Diddley. Parent Cathy Fara Brown is recording her first CD of her own songs, and talented violin-ist Virginia Morgan performs with a variety of groups. If you would like more information about music at Tehiyah, or how a Tehiyah education can help shape your child’s identity, please contact Amy Utstein at (510) 233-3013, ext. 239 or autstein@tehiyah.org.

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midrasha la’atid

La’atid A Youth Group For 4th-7th Graders!

Next Event: February 27: QZarMarch 27: Chocolate Seder May 15: Six Flags Discovery KingdomWe look forward to another great year with TBA’s La’atid group!! To RSVP or if you have questions, contact your trusty advisors, Dina and Phil Hankin at dinahankin@aol.com.

Oakland Midrasha UpdateBy Kendra Lubalin

Save the Date: March 6, 2011 for an Oakland Midrasha pre-Passover Wine TastingThis is a Midrasha fundraiser, and open to ALL, so please bring your friends and family members (over 21, of course!). This pre-passover event is an opportunity to sam-ple wine and food for your seder. We will be featuring both Kosher wine and wines made by local Jewish vineyards! We will taste and schmooze and eat and have fun! Stay tuned for more information…and save the date. Location: Temple Sinai

Parent Program - February 8 at 7:15 p.m. is the next oneMidrasha in Oakland has piloted a series of classes for par-ents to have their own Midrasha experience! On December 7, 18 parents gathered for a two-hour Jewish Meditation class, presented in Midrasha elective style, by Midrasha teachers. The class was a hit. The feedback was very posi-tive, and folks relayed that they really loved the chance to experience what their kids are doing here on Tuesday nights for themselves. An added bonus was the opportunity to mix with other parents and enjoy latkes. Our next class in this series will be February 8 at 7:15.

Midrasha Retreats:Our Fall retreat also piloted a new experience, that of hav-ing all our students retreat together. Approximately 150 Midrasha students from all four Midrasha campuses came together for a weekend of community building, learning, and fun. Despite quite a bit of rain, our students rallied for Shabbat, hikes, Havdallah, Israeli dancing and singing, and a myriad of programming and learning opportunities. Our January retreat will have happened by the time you read this update.

Class Sampler: What do our students study on Tuesday nights? In addi-tion to a set core curriculum, students select electives each

semester that look at different topics through a Jewish perspective. This month we are highlighting one of our fall electives: From Bernstein to Hip-Hop: The Jewish American Music Experience. This class used the history of American music as an avenue to understanding the evolution of the American Jewish experience. It was designed to help stu-dents connect to their own identity as American Jews.Sound interesting? It’s not too late for teens to register for the Spring semester! For more information please contact Director Kendra Lubalin at bayareamidrasha@gmail.com or (510) 501-6692.

Midrasha in BerkeleyBy Diane Bernbaum

Midrasha Berkeley invites you to have a Really Good Time. This year we have decided to sponsor an evening that will be fun, not too expensive, social and have something for everyone. Welcome to our first ever Midra-Shabang. It will be held on Sunday, March 13 from 5-8 p.m. at Congregation Netivot Shalom, 1316 University Avenue in Berkeley. The evening will feature a dynamite Silent Auction, great music, a Buffet and an Open Wine Bar. We’ll have remarks by special guests (and you’ll have to show up to find out who they are). The auction prizes are beginning to pour in. They include several vacation homes, a ride in a two-seater plane over the Bay, meals cooked for you in your home, lots of exotic wine, great art, an extraor-dinary quilt of the Seven Species and too many other items to list here. We will also be having a raffle where prizes include free 2011-2012 tuition. To see a copy of the invitation, go to the Midrasha website at www.midrasha.org. You can also download an RSVP card there. If you’d like to donate items to our Silent Auction, contact the Midrasha office at (510) 843-4667. It’s great advertising for your business. But the main thing is, come to our wonderful event. We’ve kept the price really, really low: $36, so we want to fill the house. And bring your checkbooks. The auction items will be really tempting.

19

cooking corner

Faith Kramer blogs her food at www.clickblogappetit.blogspot.com. Her food columns appear twice a month in the j. weekly.

Turkey “CarniTas”Carnitas is traditionally braised or roasted pork that is cut into cubes, fried in lard until crispy and then shredded. Recipes vary by region throughout Mexico. Here I replace the pork with turkey and the lard with schmaltz. If you’d rather not cook in chicken fat, use the oil but try adding just a tablespoon or two of the rendered chicken fat to boost the flavor. 1 tsp. salt, plus additional as needed½ tsp. ground black pepper, plus additional as needed½ tsp. dried, ground oregano½ tsp. ground cumin1 Tbs. oil1 Tbs. plus 1 Tbs. fresh lemon or lime juice 1 ½ lbs. of boneless, skinless turkey thighs4 oz. rendered chicken fat (about a half jar of schmaltz) or ½ cup canola oil

Mix salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, oil and 1 Tbs. lemon or lime juice into a paste and rub on tur-key meat. Let marinate for 20 minutes to an hour. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place tur-key thighs in a roasting pan, tent pan with foil and bake until the internal temperature is 170 degrees or the meat is opaque throughout and juices run clear. Be careful not to overcook. Cut cooked turkey into 1" cubes. Heat chicken fat in a large fry pan and heat until liquid and hot. (Or heat canola oil until hot.) Add turkey cubes. Fry, turning cubes over often, until well browned and very crispy. Remove turkey from pan with a slotted spoon or tongs and drain cubes on a paper-towel lined plate. (There will be a lot of fat or oil left in the pan.) Using two forks, shred the turkey meat. Taste. Toss with additional lemon juice and salt and pepper as needed. Use to make Oakland Taco Truck Tacos (see following recipe) or burritos, or serve with rice and beans.

QuiCk PiCkled JalaPeños and CarroTs

This quick pickle is a typical accompaniment for street tacos. The tacos are also often served with thick slices of cucumber, whole or sliced radishes and a grilled or fresh green onion or two. Remove the jalapeño seeds for a bit less heat.1 cup thinly sliced carrots1-2 fresh jalapeño peppers, slicedWhite vinegar

Cook the carrots in water to cover until just begin-ning to soften. Drain. Rinse with cold water. Put carrot and jalapeño slices in glass bowl or jar. Mix well. Cover with vinegar (or use half vinegar, half water for a milder pickle). Chill for at least an hour or two before serving. Store leftover pickles in the vinegar mixture in the refrigerator.

oakland TaCo TruCk TaCosMakes about 12-16 small tacosAbout 32 small corn tortillas (6"-8" in diameter)1 recipe turkey “carnitas”Salsa and other toppings as desired, such as hot sauce, guacamole and or avocado slicesWedges of lime or lemon1 recipe quick pickled carrots and jalapeñosFresh radishes or radish slices, cucumber slices, grilled or fresh green onions

Heat the tortillas in a steamer or in the micro-wave wrapped in a damp paper towel for 20-30 seconds until warmed. For each taco, stack one tortilla directly on top of another and place on plate. Top with a few tablespoons of the turkey. Add salsa or other toppings as desired. Serve with wedge of lime to spritz over taco and a few pickled carrots and jalapeños on the side with radishes, cucumbers or other accompaniments as desired.

Turkey “Carnitas” for the Oakland Taco Truck experienceBy Faith Kramer

Oakland’s many cultural traditions help make it a vibrant place. Part of the flavor this mix gives the city is literally a taste of how others live, with lots of ethnic and street food to choose from. But for those who observe the laws of kashrut, sam-pling these local treats can be problematic. So here in the pork-free zone, I’ve adapted a traditional Oakland street taco filling for turkey and give directions on how to serve it just like the taco trucks that line International Boulevard.

20

life cycles

Is your birthday information wrong or missing from this list? Please contact the TBA office to make corrections.

1Miriam IlfeldAnn Rapson

Hannah RebackNancy Rose

2Elise Hannah Schleuning

Lisa Tabak 3

Carolyn Bernstein Arjun BornsteinAmy Friedman Max Gochman

Leah HagarJing Weng Hsieh

Jacob Raskin4

Akash BornsteinJason Prystowsky

5Dan Maidenberg

6Julia Johnson

Dawn Margolin Susan Sasson Jeremy Weiss

Stuart Zangwill 7

Barbara Rose Cecile Schlesinger

9Noah Kincaid

Abby Klein

10Sarah BookinDavid Sasson

11Joanne Goldstein Rebekah Kharrazi

Liam SondrealJoni Tanis

12Julie Katz

Jacob NagelJessica Sterling

13Alex Handlers Larry Miller

14Mira GellmanAllan Gordon Karen Klier Mark Liss

Jake MooreJesse Teichman

15Alexander Finkelstein

James Kleinmann Yonathan Wolf

16Avi Eliahu

Steve Fankuchen Allison Hagey

Deren Rehr-DavisDavid Rosenthal Josh Sadikman

17Eric Jones

18Roslyn Aronson Loryn Hudson

19Daniel Harvitt

Victoria Reichenberg 20

Jacob Liron21

Joseph CharlesworthRita Frankel

Ward Spangler 22

Judith Klinger Zoe Hannah Setton

Debbie Spangler 23

Ari GoldbergNicolas Louis-Kayen

25Joshua DeBare

26Phil Hankin Oren Jacob

27Julian Goldstein

28Marc Bruner

Paula Hamilton Jonathan Ring Isabella Scharff

February Birthdays

A note to new members: We would like to introduce you to the TBA community in an upcoming newsletter. Please send a short introduction of you and your family, with a digital photo, to omer@tbaoakland.org. Thanks!

Welcome New & Returning MembersReturning Members

David Weiner & Ellen Kaufman Ellen Beilock

New Members David Coltoff & Debra Perrin Coltoff

Mazel Tov To Ari & Patricia Eliahu on the birth of a son.

21

life cyclesB

’nai

Mit

zvah

Madeleine leibovitch, February 19, 2011Hi, I’m Maddy Leibovitch. My Hebrew name is Margolit. I’m so excited for my near Bat Mitzvah.I’m in the seventh grade at Oakland Hebrew Day School and I am currently learning two languages, Mandarin Chinese and Hebrew. I enjoy acting, and sing-ing, and I also play soccer. I also love hanging out with my brother Paul, who is a second grader at my school.My Parasha is Ki Tissa. It contains the well-known story of the golden calf. The theme of the story is forgiveness; G-d forgives B’nai Yisrael for the huge sin that they committed. However, the triennial that I will be reading is the part with the famous passage, the Veshamru. I would still like to take the lesson of G-d’s forgiveness, as I become a Bat Mitzvah. I would like to thank my parents Judy Chun and JB Leibovitch, for supporting me along the way, and Outi Gould for teaching me everything I need to know to read Torah and Haftarah. I can’t wait to see you guys there!

zepora zangwill, February 26, 2011My Parasha is Vayakhel which is about building the Mishkan. In my drash, I will be talking about the responsibilities of Betzalel, the main builder. I am a seventh grader at Oakland Hebrew Day School. I love to play soccer, hang out with my friends, and mess with video games. I also love animals and as part of my Bat Mitzvah, I plan to make a donation to the SPCA.Thank you to Outi Gould for helping me prepare for my Bat Mitzvah, and thank you Rabbi Bloom for helping with my drash. And thanks to all my friends and family.

were often deterred because finding a harp and teacher were daunting tasks. In 2002, in an effort to make the harp more visible and accessible to all, I opened Harps Etc. There is a definite resurgence of interest in this ancient instrument played by King David. Many people are look-ing for an instrument that has a lovely sound, is beautiful to look at and is as versatile and easy to learn as the piano. Each week, over one hundred students from age five to eighty-five attend lessons, ensemble classes and workshops at Harps Etc.What drives this resurgence is the emergence of mass media, and the ability to produce harps and print music more effi-ciently and economically. On the third Saturday of each month, I offer a free “Try the Harp Class.” In this hands-on group class, students learn some of the basics needed to play the harp while playing simple, familiar tunes on different types of harps. I try to dispel the common misperceptions of the harp, such as the harp being too expensive or difficult to play. Many people don’t realize that harps can be rented or financed and that it is very much like playing the piano.

The harp is now used in innovative settings for therapeutic activities, meditation, and relaxation. People are surprised to find that they can play any style of music on the harp and that no previous musical experience is needed. Because of cuts in music education programs, parents understand that they need to be proactive in providing music lessons for their children. Research has found that studying music improves one’s self-esteem, builds self-confi-dence, improves academic achievement and engages the stu-dent in a worthwhile recreational and social activity. Many adults come to explore their dormant creativity, to fill time once occupied by raising their families, to fulfill a lifetime dream and to engage the mind and body in new ways. One of the greatest joys in my life is playing and teach-ing the harp. My goal is to have Harps Etc feel like visit-ing your best friend. Visitors are greeted by my friendly, cheerful Cocker Spaniel, Bella, who gratefully rolls over for tummy rubs. I am honored to be able to share my passion with the community. I am living my dream job.If you’re interested in learning more about the harp, please contact me at info@harpsetc.com, or (925) 937-4277.

Focus on TBA Musicians, continued from page 13

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life cycles

SHeVaT 27-30February 1-4Elizabeth BernsteinHyman BrodkeJoseph GouldSamuel Aaron GrinbergRose HillmanBernard PollackNancy Von KugelgenMilton WeinerSamuel BandelBarnett EpsteinIrving GoronkinRose KotzSam WolfJoseph ZuckerbergGeorge FankuchenDorothy GlasserJoseph G. KayJoseph KvintLillian AdlerHelen AldeffEric BaumTillie ElsenbergKalman GluckPearl S. Goodman

aDar I 1-7February 5-11Rose BruderIrving Selig GoldmanCassel GulensonAnna JacobsEsther SegalMoses SeligsonDavid HillmanJulius KohnSimon Lerch

David ReismanRuth RothMary BergerMatilda Bloom HolzmanBenjamin OttovichSara GoldbergLouis RothenbergDaniel ShusterMax PearlClara RamoHarry SimonRobert BurnsteinCelia GoldsteinHarry David LevineFrederick Harland SpectorAbraham BaimLeonard BaumSylvia HertzSamuel JaffeSara SchmulowitzArthur Yarman

aDar I 8-14February 12-18Louis AdlerPhilip BakarJohn MillerLucy Jackson DaytonHarry GoldenharSue KraftElaine ReismanFriedman ZieselLilly ShoehalterRegina WeissNathan FeldmanAvram Mendel GoldbergJacob SaidanCharles Bernard Bernstein

Mollie ForkosPhyllis GoldbergJames JonasRaymond KivelNathan PolseJacob RubinLloyd SilverHoward Morse SpectorSheba Widlan BookinRuth Miriam CowanWilliam GroskopfSharon LernerMorrey RanzerDorothy SarverIsaac BiedermanJennie CoopersmithMorris KlangWillliam MillerEli SchwartzSidney Jerome Zywotow

aDar I 15-21February 19-25Emily FriedmanEsther GershensonShirley HandloffJack JacobsLillian LevineIsador MargolinRachel RutterGoldie WeisbrodHelen GoldbergLatifa NaggarUry RathDavid RoachWilliam TeneryJacob WeinsteinJ. Leon Bloch

Dora SpellmanGoldie BrodyPearl BrookHarvey CassonAudrey CohenRegina SingerBenjamin SutzEdith GruberAllen SilverSylvia TurkenitzHarry Jaffe

aDar I 22-24February 26-28Sophie BreslovMax ClarIda B. Edelson RiskindMildred Arenbart AdlerPauline BelzerFlorence BrettlerAnna CohenSue KantorEthel Rose KaplerBernice RingFaye ZaslovMaria BelinHarry BercovichKate M. BerkovitzMorris K. CohenMorris DavisAnna DietzEsther GoldAlbert HymanFreda KatzMorris LermanMildred DavisDavid Rosenfeld

May God comfort you among all the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem

February Yahrzeits

MeMOrIal PlaQUe Anyone wishing to purchase a memorial plaque, please contact Pinky at the synagogue office at extension 229.

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Centennial ProjectStephen & Susan ShubAlan & Mary Ellen SilverMichael & Deborah Sosebee, in memory of Marty Stone’s father

Centennial MatchMarc & Debra BarachCharles Bernstein & Joanne Goldstein, in memory of Norman Stone

Leon & Judy BloomfieldPhil & Dina HankinHennie Hecht, in memory of Ilse Sanders and Reba Schechtman

James Kleinmann & Lara GilmanEly & Shirley Langfeld, Happy Birthday Lynn Langfeld

Charles & Edna LevineJosh & Rebecca PosamentierPaul & Florence RaskinElizabeth Simms, in honor of Misha Nudler, Jack Jeger and Pola Silver

Stuart & Abby Zangwill, in honor of Beckett Natherson’s Brit Milah

Stuart & Abby Zangwill, in honor of Eli Posamentier’s Brit Milah

Stuart & Abby Zangwill, in honor of Eli Teichman’s Brit Milah

Stuart & Abby Zangwill, in honor of Evan Motamed’s Brit Milah

Stuart & Abby Zangwill, in honor of Evan Sobel’s Brit Milah

Stuart & Abby Zangwill, in honor of Jacob Sobel’s Brit Milah

Stuart & Abby Zangwill, in honor of Mason Dolder’s Brit Milah

Jeannette Jeger Kitchen FundJack Coulter, in memory of Gertrude Yarman

Richard & Edie Mills, in honor of our granddaughter Brynne Fisher, in memory of Jeanette Jeger, Marian & David Migdal, Harold Nudler, Tobe Burnstein, Reba Schechtman, Frank Weinberg, and Larry Miller’s mother.

Steven Rosenthal & Ailsa Steckel

Bet Sefer Discretionary FundSteven Rosenthal & Ailsa SteckelGary Zimmerman & Kathy Saunders

GAN Fundraising EventJesse & Rachel Teichman, Challah

High Holy Days Yizkor BookSteven Rosenthal & Ailsa Steckel

General FundSteve FankuchenDoris Weiner Gluckman, in memory of Etta Kushner and Alice Gluckman

Edward & Paula Hamilton, in memory of Frank Weinberg

Mark & Maribel Mogill, in memory of Minnette Mogill

Henry Ramek & Eve Gordon-RamekSteven Rosenthal & Ailsa Steckel, in memory of Erna Pikarski

Steven Rosenthal & Ailsa SteckelAndrea ShareElizabeth Simms, in honor of David Galant

Stuart & Abby Zangwill

Kiddush FundHennie Hecht, in memory of Esther Drozda, Freida Silverberg and Geertje Silverenberg

Steven Rosenthal & Ailsa Steckel

Minyan FundFifi Goodfellow, in memory of Moshe Naggar

Sheldon & Barbara Rothblatt, in memory of Benjamin Goor

Camper/Scholarship Fund Elinor DeKoven, in memory of Marcia Benjamin’s father

Robert & Maxine HalemDavid KaplanJoan & Hershel Solomon, in memory of Blanche Roth Nueman

Rabbi Discretionary FundBruce M. Barbash & Janis Rosenfeld Barbash, Happy Birthday Lynn Langfeld

Patrick Bukowski & Eve Grossman, Thank You

Steven Rosenthal & Ailsa Steckel, speedy recovery to Warren Gould

Steven Rosenthal & Ailsa SteckelJerome & Beverly Turchin, in memory of Leslie Turchin

Steven & Victoria Zatkin, in memory of Joseph Zatkin

Cantor Discretionary FundMaurice & Barbara Weill, in memory of Lawrence “Sunny” Singerman

Celia & Morris Davis Hunger FundJoan Aldeff, in memory of Helen AldeffSharon E. Fogelson, in memory of Lily Fogelson

Hennie Hecht, in memory of Tobe Burnstein

Endowment FundJeffrey & Judith Quittman, in memory of Leonard Quittman

Leonard Wolf, in memory of Marion N. Wolf

Hertz Interfaith FundGerald & Ruby Hertz, in memory of Walt and Harry Morotsky

Wasserman FundMarc & Janet Wasserman, in memory of Leo Wasserman

Charity is equal in importance to all the other commandments combined.

donations

“How wonderful it is that no one need wait a single moment to start to improve the world.”

anne Frank

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web

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aoak

land

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ongr

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La’a

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Sed

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(Bau

m Y

outh

Cen

ter)

PERIODICALS POSTAGE

P A I DOakland, CA

Permit No. 020299

Temple Beth Abraham327 MacArthur BoulevardOakland, CA 94610

TBA Directory ................................ i

What’s Happening ......................... 1

Rabbi’s Message ............................ 2

President’s Message ....................... 3

Editor’s Message ............................ 4

Women of TBA .............................. 5

Men’s Club ...................................... 5

Notes From the Ritual Committee ... 6

Israel ............................................. 7

Focus on TBA Musicians ................ 8

Gan Avraham News .................... 14

Bet Sefer News ............................ 15

Local Jewish Day Schools ............ 16

Volunteer Bulletin Board ............. 17

Midrasha ..................................... 18

La’atid ......................................... 18

Cooking Corner ........................... 19

Life Cycles ................................... 20

Donations .................................... 23

Calendar ................................ ......24

what’s inside

TBA Schools Auction Sunday evening, May 15, 2011

An evening of amazing items, yours for the bidding, fantastic food, great fun and great friends.

All in support of scholarships for TBA schools.

For more information or to volunteer for this important event, contact

Rick Heeger rpheeger@sbcglobal.net or Alice Hale alicemhale@sbcglobal.net.

RomanHoliday