Leib Glantz ( yi, לייב גלאנץ; June 1, 1898 – January 27, 1964) was a Ukrainian-born
lyrical tenor cantor (
chazzan
A ''hazzan'' (; , lit. Hazan) or ''chazzan'' ( he, חַזָּן , plural ; Yiddish ''khazn''; Ladino ''Hasan'') is a Jewish musician or precentor trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer.
In English, thi ...
),
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
,
musicologist
Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...
of
Jewish music
Jewish music is the music and melodies of the Jewish people. There exist both traditions of religious music, as sung at the synagogue and domestic prayers, and of secular music, such as klezmer. While some elements of Jewish music may originat ...
, writer, educator, and
Zionist
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
leader.
He was born in 1898 in
Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
, Ukraine, then part of the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
. His father and both grandfathers were important cantors with
Chassidic backgrounds. Leibele, as he was fondly nicknamed, was eight years old when he first appeared as a cantor in Kyiv. Word spread swiftly about the
child prodigy
A child prodigy is defined in psychology research literature as a person under the age of ten who produces meaningful output in some domain at the level of an adult expert. The term is also applied more broadly to young people who are extraor ...
, and he was engaged to appear in concerts all over Europe. In his teens he organized and conducted a large choir in his father's Talner Chassidic synagogue.
Glantz studied piano with the Ukrainian pianist and composer, Nikolai Tutkovski, and later graduated in piano and composition under composer
Reinhold Gliere at the Kyiv Music Conservatory. In those years Glantz traveled numerous times as a delegate to congresses of the He'Chalutz movement and to World Zionist Congresses. He also assumed the position of
chief editor
An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies.
The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...
of the
Labor Zionist
Labor Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת סוֹצְיָאלִיסְטִית, ) or socialist Zionism ( he, תְּנוּעָת הָעַבוֹדָה, label=none, translit=Tnuʽat haʽavoda) refers to the left-wing, socialist variation of Zionism. ...
newspaper Ard Un Arbeit.
In July 1926, due to his intensive Zionist
activism
Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in Social change, social, Political campaign, political, economic or Natural environment, environmental reform with the desire to make Social change, changes i ...
, and the growing
antagonism towards the Jews by the Romanian regime in
Bessarabia
Bessarabia (; Gagauz: ''Besarabiya''; Romanian: ''Basarabia''; Ukrainian: ''Бессара́бія'') is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Be ...
, Glantz left
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...
. His plan was to immigrate to Palestine, which was then governed by the British, in order to join those of his Zionist friends who had already immigrated to Israel. However, he first traveled to the United States to record with RCA his compositions
Shema Yisrael
''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; he , שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Šəmaʿ Yīsrāʾēl'', "Hear, O Israel") is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewis ...
and Tal. He was invited to appear in New York, made a great impression and was offered a prestigious position as chief cantor of the Ohev Shalom synagogue in New York.
In America Glantz continued to develop his musical education, under the guidance of professor Aspinol, the vocal teacher of the opera singers
Enrico Caruso
Enrico Caruso (, , ; 25 February 1873 – 2 August 1921) was an Italian operatic first lyrical tenor then dramatic tenor. He sang to great acclaim at the major opera houses of Europe and the Americas, appearing in a wide variety of roles (74) ...
and
Benjamino Gigli.
In 1929 he made a series of LP recordings at
RCA
The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
included Shema Yisrael, Tefilat Tal, Shomer Yisrael, Kol Adoshem, Lechu Neranena, Birkat Kohanim, Ki Ke'Shimcha, Ki Hineh Ka'Chomer and Ein Ke'Erkecha.
Glantz appeared in concert tours all over the United States,
[ ] Canada, Mexico,
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
, western and Eastern Europe,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, and Palestine.
In 1936 Glantz married Miriam Lipton. They had two sons, Kalman and Ezra (Jerry).
In 1941, the family moved to
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, where Glantz served as Chief Cantor of Sinai Temple, and from 1949 to 1954 at the Sha'arei Te'filah synagogue. He was also professor of Jewish Music at the
University of Judaism
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
in Los Angeles.
In 1948 he lectured before the delegates of the First Annual Conference of the Cantors Assembly of America on the subject: How the different Jewish Nuschaot (Prayer modes) were created.
He articulated his musical theories in a famous lecture to the delegates of the 5th Convention of the Cantors Assembly in 1952—a lecture that created serious debate, as his ideas were considered a new path toward the analysis of the ancient
Jewish prayer
Jewish prayer ( he, תְּפִלָּה, ; plural ; yi, תּפֿלה, tfile , plural ; Yinglish: davening from Yiddish 'pray') is the prayer recitation that forms part of the observance of Rabbinic Judaism. These prayers, often with i ...
modes, the Nusach. In general, his research and theories established a historical continuity of Jewish music from its beginnings in the Holy Temples of Jerusalem. Glantz theorized that many centuries ago the
Jewish people
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...
transformed certain Greek scales and modes, in the process creating original Jewish combinations. These became the foundations for the Cantillation of the Torah (Ta'ameiHa'Mikrah) and the Jewish prayer modes (Nusach Ha'Tefila).
Glantz continued to be active in the
Zionist movement
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Jew ...
as one of its outstanding leaders. He was nominated to be a delegate at no less than eleven World Zionist Congresses from 1921 till 1961—the last two as a delegate representing Israel.
Glantz lived in Israel for the last ten years of his life (1954–1964). Many of his most important compositions were composed in this period of his life. In total, Leib Glantz composed 215 compositions of Cantorial, Chassidic and
Israeli music
The music of Israel is a combination of Jewish and non-Jewish music traditions that have come together over the course of a century to create a distinctive musical culture. For almost 150 years, musicians have sought original stylistic elements ...
.
In addition to his cantorial career, Glantz appeared in leading tenor roles in, among others, Alan Hovhaness' "Shepherd of Israel", Jacques Halevy's
"La Juive", and Joseph Tal's "Saul at Ein Dor".
In 1959, Glantz founded the Tel Aviv Institute for Jewish Liturgical Music, and an academic level conservatory for training cantors—the Cantors Academy (Ha'Akademia Le'Chazanut). He was also a founding member of AKUM, The
Israel Music Institute
The Israel Music Institute (IMI) is the first publicly owned music publishing house in Israel. It is devoted primarily to the publication of Israeli art music, but also publishes books and booklets on Israeli music and composers, CDs of Israeli a ...
, The
Israel Composers' League, and was a member of the
editorial board
The editorial board is a group of experts, usually at a publication, who dictate the tone and direction the publication's editorial policy will take.
Mass media
At a newspaper, the editorial board usually consists of the editorial page editor, a ...
of "Bat Kol."
Following Glantz's death on January 27, 1964, while in concert in Tel Aviv, the Tel Aviv Institute for Jewish Liturgical Music was transformed into the publishing organ of Leib Glantz's musical compositions, as well as his research and
literary work
Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...
. This body, in conjunction with the Israel Music Institute, has published seven books of Glantz's musical compositions, as well as the Hebrew book "Zeharim – In Memory of Leib Glantz."
In 2008, his son, Jerry Glantz, published a new book (in English): ''Leib Glantz — "The Man Who Spoke To God."'' This book includes two compact discs with Leib Glantz singing 30 of his important compositions.
References
*''The Best Cantorial Works of Cantor Leib Glantz'', New York: the Greater Recording Co. (formerly Golden Voice Recordings) GRC242, 1972, liner notes biographical sketch
External links
The Man Who Spoke To God
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glantz, Leib
1898 births
1964 deaths
20th-century American educators
Hazzans
Musicians from Kyiv
Ukrainian Jews
Ukrainian emigrants to the United States
American Zionists
American emigrants to Israel
Musicians from Los Angeles
20th-century Ukrainian male singers
20th-century American musicologists