Jeff Klepper is a cantor and influential figure within

Contemporary Jewish religious music For the purposes of this article, “contemporary” refers to the period from 1967 ( Israel's Six-Day War) to the present day, “Jewish” refers to the various streams and traits of Judaism practiced. Many Orthodox Jews use the term “relig ...

, particularly the "American nusach" scene. He has performed with Rabbi Dan Freelander as part of the group Kol B'Seder since 1972. Their melody for

Shalom Rav Shalom Rav ( he, שָׁלוֹם רָב; "Abundant Peace") is a blessing that is recited at the end of the evening and afternoon Amidot in the Ashkenazic tradition. In Provence tradition, it was recited in all prayers. There is a different version o ...

is the most popularly sung in the denominations of Judaism where many prayers are sung rather than chanted. His compositions have been preserved in the

Milken Archive of Jewish Music The Milken Archive of Jewish Music is a collection of material about the history of Jewish Music in the United States. It contains roughly 700 recorded musical works, 800 hours of oral histories, 50,000 photographs and historical documents, an ext ...

. Jeff was ordained at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and earned a master's degree in music from

Northeastern Illinois University Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU) is a public university in Chicago, Illinois. NEIU serves approximately 9,000 students in the region and is a Hispanic-serving institution. The main campus is located in the community area of North Park wi ...

. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Music from HUC-JIR in 2005. He co-edited the song section in the Reform prayer book, ''Mishkan T’filah'', and co-founded (with

Debbie Friedman Deborah Lynn "Debbie" Friedman (February 23, 1951 – January 9, 2011)Horn, JordanaBeloved US Jewish songwriter, Debbie Friedman, dies ''The Jerusalem Post'', January 9, 2011Fox, MargalitDebbie Friedman, Singer of Jewish Music, Dies at 59 ''The ...

) the annual Hava Nashira song-leader workshop."Jeff Klepper Bio"
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Klepper, Jeff Jewish American musicians Living people Jewish folk singers Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American Jews