{"id":11117,"date":"2014-12-02T17:14:59","date_gmt":"2014-12-02T22:14:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/themagicalbuffet.com\/blog1\/?p=11117"},"modified":"2014-12-02T17:14:59","modified_gmt":"2014-12-02T22:14:59","slug":"twas-the-night-before-hanukkah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/themagicalbuffet.com\/blog1\/?p=11117","title":{"rendered":"‘Twas the Night Before Hanukkah"},"content":{"rendered":"

I learned of an interesting exhibit going on at the National Museum of Jewish American History that I thought was fun and interesting. Something that those of you in Philadelphia may want to check out this holiday season.<\/em><\/p>\n

The history of Hanukkah and Christmas songs and the Jewish musicians, artists, and songwriters who wrote and performed them is the focus of the National Museum of American Jewish History\u2019s newest installation, \u2018Twas the Night Before Hanukkah<\/a>, opening November 4, 2014. The installation combines a cozy living room setting with modern technology to deliver a compelling story about the blending of the American and Jewish musical season, the soundtracks of religious holidays, and the musical standards we know today.<\/p>\n

Featuring well-known artists such as Irving Berlin, Benny Goodman, Bob Dylan, the Ramones, and Lou Reed, as well as Christmas gems by the likes of Jewish salsa giant Larry Harlow, and Jewish stage and screen icons Eddie Cantor and Al Jolson, this multimedia installation will set to music American Jewish efforts to invent, re-invent, and celebrate a season marked by family, gift-giving, food traditions, and well-loved music\u2014across multiple faiths.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Christmas music industry, as a quintessentially American enterprise, provided a way for Jewish songwriters, many of them immigrants or children of immigrants, to feel American. By showing how an outsider community can enter mainstream American culture, Christmas songs highlight a classic American Jewish narrative,\u201d says Ivy Weingram, associate curator of NMAJH and co-curator of \u2018Twas.<\/p>\n

$\"\"$ In a gallery styled as a cozy living room, visitors will be able to enjoy interactive song and video platforms, as well as images of holiday-related artifacts from the Museum\u2019s collection of 30,000 objects, delivered on curated iPads accompanied by text and graphics of holiday celebrations. In addition to the audio visual component of the installation, visitors will have hands-on access to record albums, a wide selection of books on American popular music and Jewish history, and kids\u2019 toys and books.<\/p>\n

A \u2018Twas-themed self-guided tour highlighting holiday-related objects in the permanent collection will also be available.<\/p>\n

The installation is inspired by the critically-acclaimed 2012 music compilation produced by the Idelsohn Society for Musical Preservation, which draws on jazz, folk, rap, Latin, and Klezmer musical styles. \u201cAt the Idelsohn Society, our goal has always been re-examining the Jewish-American musical past in new contemporary contexts,\u201d says Idelsohn co-founder, Josh Kun. \u201cCollaborating with NMAJH offers a rare opportunity to do this in a premier Museum setting where these songs and their commentaries on Jewish life, identity, and ritual will take on new meanings with new publics.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Twas the Night Before Hanukkah will build on the cutting-edge interactive media for which the Museum has been widely recognized. This family-friendly, seasonal installation will run through March 1 and is designed to be enjoyed by visitors of all backgrounds.<\/p>\n

For those of you who are interested, I have the \u201c\u2018Twas the Night Before Hanukkah\u201d musical compilation CD in the \u201cI Recommend\u201d widget on the site here. It\u2019s also available for download through Amazon.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"