Our Music

Lisa B. Segal - Music Director and Cantorial Soloist

Lisa B. Segal Lisa has been singing her whole life, and has been leading prayer at Kolot for over eight years.  She has been a featured soloist at the annual Brooklyn Brownstone Jewish Choral Festival for the last few years, and has sung at numerous other synagogues in the area, as well as Congregation Bet Simchat Torah.  She is currently pursuing cantorial studies at the Academy of Jewish Religion.  In addition, Lisa spent 12 years as a non-profit arts fundraiser, most recently serving as Development Director for St. Ann's Warehouse in DUMBO, producing concerts and new music theater, and in 2002 she appeared there with Suzzy and Maggie Roche (of the Roches) in Zero Church: the Prayer Project.

Lisa married Kolot Maggid Arthur Strimling so she could be a lead character in one of the world's best love stories. She and Arthur have collaborated on a new music theater piece called "Under the Chuppah,"  using the story of their wedding as a frame for songs and stories of and about the traditions of Jewish weddings.  They have performed the piece in various venues, melding traditional and personal stories with traditional and new music.
 

A Letter From Lisa

A little over a year ago, I made an enormous leap in my professional life, leaving a long-time career and job in not-for-profit Arts Administration to focus my attentions on expanding my Cantorial knowledge and working with Kolot on an even deeper basis.  It was a year of exploration and study, rest and renewal, hard work and planning, and I feel truly ready as I move into a paid part-time position at Kolot (with many, many thanks to the Board of Directors and the support of our community).  To quote our president, Lisa Zbar, I look forward to "engaging with the sacred and detailed and time-consuming work of Kolot."

During the coming year, in addition to leading services, I look forward to working with many of you in our Shabbat Matching program, designed to offer resources and ideas that encourage more Shabbat home practice and Lisa B. Segal participation.  I am also looking forward to collaborating with our energetic and talented new Education Director, Leah Zimmerman (also a singer!), to share music and encourage pollination between our Shabbas davenners and our school kids and their families.

I will also continue to work with the many talented and dedicated musicians and musical leaders with whom our congregation is blessed to enhance all of our services and programs.

As I expand my life into this new direction I look forward to introducing new and 'traditional' music to Kolot for Shabbat and other holidays.  With so many talented musicians in our community I am working to incorporate their gifts in our services.  Each Kabbalat Shabbat this year has and will feature one or more of these folks, which I know will deepen and broaden the musical reach of our prayer.

Kolot Chayeinu Music Fund

Moving into a closer to full-time position at Kolot has represented a big commitment by the Board and this community to the music that is such a big part of our worship and Jewish lives.  In addition to my new position, plans to bolster our musical capabilities include purchasing amplification equipment for our weekly services, making instructional cds for the school, home activities and adult learning, and bringing in guest musicians and soloists at services.   All of these additions mean money -- so to help the community make this move forward, the Board has launched a "Music Fund" with a goal of raising the necessary additional contributions ($10-$12,000 this year).  We have already started reaching out to the community for such support, and if you're interested I encourage you to talk with Andy Stettner about a gift.
 

Jewish Music Ideas

Great music should be shared - here are recommendations of a handful of my favorite CDs these days - ENJOY!:
  • A Jewish Odyssey, on the Putumayo label
  • Ashkelon by Moroccan Cantor Emil Zrihan
  • Celebrate Shabbat, produced by Craig Taubman on the "Celebrate Series"
  • Festival of Light (I and II), two great Chanukah compilations on the Six Degrees label
  • Let Go by Rabbi David Zeller
  • Life's A Lesson by Ben Sidran
  • Sabbatical by Rabbi Joe Black
  • Sojourn by Marty Erlich, also on Tzadik
  • Songs of our Fathers - Andy Statman and Dave Grisman
  • Tanz, Neshama, At the Rebbe's Table, and Masada Guitars by Tim Sparks (on John Zorn's Tzadik label).
  • The Freedom Music Project by Peri Smilow
  • They Call Me by Cantor Natasha J. Hirschhorn
  • The Zmiros Project by Frank London and Loren Sklamberg
  • Tuning the Soul and Life of the World by Cantor Richard Kaplan
  • Hanukah CDs:
    • Happy Joyous Hanuka!, the new CD by The Klezmatics, rejoices with many newly unearthed Woody Guthrie lyrics celebrating Woody's Hanuka! Did you know his mother-in-law was the wonderful Yiddish poet Aliza Greenblatt? I just spoke to his granddaughter, Anna (Arlo's neice) about this CD and the upcoming Holy Ground, which will be released in Spring '05.
    • Two gorgeous CD's called Festival of Light on Six Degree Records, featuring such artists as Rebbe Soul, Peter Himmelman and David Broza, Jane Siberry, The Klezmatics and Frank London's Big Band, Don Byron, Marc Cohn, Masada String Quartet, They Might be Giants, Neshama Carlbach, etc. etc. Fantastic!
    • Craig Taubman's Celebrate Hanukkah as part of his wonderful Celebrate Series. More great artists like Danny Maseng, Shirona, Sam Glaser, Pharoah's Daughter, Rick Calvert, Rebbe Soul and Debbie Friedman.
    • And if you're into reggae.... try Reggae Chanukah by Alan Eder and Friends (my brother plays with them in L.A. sometimes)


To find these CDs and more, other then the usual suspects, useful websites to search for Jewish music include www.jewishmusic.com, www.tzadik.com, and www.etranscon.com (Transcontinental Music/part of the URJ).  You can always contact me if you need more information on how to find these special selections.