Remember the ad for Levy's rye bread? One of them featured a Native American biting into a deli sandwich, and the caption read: "You don't have to be Jewish to love Levy's real Jewish Rye." But do you have to be Jewish to compose Jewish music? Max Bruch wrote a Kol Nidre. Sergei Prokofiev wrote an Overture on Hebrew Themes. John Williams wrote a stirring score for the film Schindler's List. 

For more than 40 years, Zamir has been performing several of the great heroic oratorios by George F. Handel based on the stories of the Hebrew Bible: Judas Maccabaeus, Saul, Israel in Egypt. This December, we will present another dramatic work about a hero from ancient Israel, King David, in a stunning musical composition by French composer Arthur Honegger (1892-1955). Honegger composed Le Roi David based on music he had written in 1921 for a stage play by René Morax, based on the biblical accounts of the turbulent life of King David. The composer and librettist then adapted the play for concert performance, with the chamber orchestra setting the scenes, while the dialogue and the action were assigned to the chorus, several soloists, and a narrator. And what a story it is! 

We first encounter the young David as a shepherd boy, composing sacred songs to his God, while tending the sheep. Then we see his rapid rise to prominence, secretly anointed by Samuel to be the next king of Israel, slaying the giant Goliath, harpist/therapist to King Saul. Then David on the run, escaping the jealousy of the king, his friendship with the king's son and marriage to the king's daughter. King Saul's mental illness and his visit to the seeress, the Witch of Endor, the death of Saul, and the coronation of David, and the new king's incredible military successes and alliances with neighboring kingdoms. 

The story also includes the dark side of King David: his affair with Bathsheba, the death of their baby conceived out of wedlock, the sons who revolt against their father but who ultimately fall in battle. The tale ends with the death of King David and the coronation of his youngest son, Solomon. Honegger depicts the story with his extraordinary musical palette: serene psalmody, rousing battle music, majestic coronation fanfares, a spooky soundscape for the Witch of Endor, and much more. 

Don't miss our performance December 24 at Temple Emanuel in Newton. See details below. And if you want to read more about the fabled life of King David, you can find it in 2Samuel, 1Kings, Chronicles, and, of course, the Psalms. I heartily recommend Robert Pinsky's insightful The Life of David, and Joseph Heller's hilarious and outrageous take on the David story, God Knows. 

On August 19, Zamir performed at the Colonial Theater in Pittsfield, Mass., in the heart of the Berkshire mountains. Sponsored by the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, a capacity crowd enjoyed a medley of tunes, including liturgical masterpieces, jazz, Israeli folk songs, and a selection of music from the Berlin tour repertoire. The hills were most definitely alive--with the best of Jewish choral music!