Just wondering; you mention Reginald Rose as the librettist for “The Final Ingredient,” but I was given a copy of the original broadcast in 1995 by Arnold Weinstein (librettist for “View from the Bridge,” “Mr. Dynamite,” and many other works. I was under the impression that he wrote the libretto. But I guess I could clear that up by checking with Dave Amram.

In deference to his vast knowledge and experience in the field of Jewish music, I feel that his criticisms of my book deserve a thoughtful response. First off, I must confess that there are certainly some areas of the book that may have been a bit less than exact, such as the category of “Ethnic Interest” – anyone knows the field of taxonomy can always be messy. Likewise, some works deserving mention in this bibliography could not always fit well into neat categories.

Likewise, it is certainly true that there are many large-scale works on, or touching on, Jewish themes written by non-Jewish composers. Composers such as Dave Brubeck, a Catholic, wrote, “Gates of Justice.” It is on my short list of personal favorite works. The problem is that these works simply do not fall within the parameters I set out when collecting this volume. Taken in its totality, from Palestrina to Pinkham, the number of large-scale works with solo voice by non-Jewish composers is legion, for certainly, I could not exclude from this categorization all of the works taken from the “Old” Testament. To even attempt to create an in-depth survey of this ocean of compositions within a single volume that is seeking to be comprehensive would be both foolhardy and intellectually dishonest. One only need take a simple stroll through any good university music library or a browse through Slonimsky’s “Baker’s Bibliographical Dictionary of Musicians” to realize the dizzying number of compositions that exist under such an umbrella. Further, this field has already been well picked over, if inadequately, by other researchers in the past, such as Moshe Gorali, and does not need the equally inadequate redundancy of my labors.

Much of his review centers on the issue of the art songs within this volume, namely that I was remiss in excluding this critically important genre. I wish to point out again that art songs were intentionally sidestepped, and for good reason. As Dr. Jacobson correctly points out, there are many resources readily available for the researcher to begin compiling a listing of significant art songs, such as Tischler’s, “A Descriptive Bibliography of Art Music my Israeli Composers” and IMI’s online catalog. Further, many of the wonderful songs he mentions are ones I know and love very well. As painful as it was for me to ignore this wonderful genre, I realized at the onset of working on this compilation that this field might be equally as large as the large works by non-Jewish composers, if not larger. Much of this is because I did not want to adjudicate which songs deserved inclusion or not. That is the proper role of the music critic. Likewise, if one were to include the large-scale works of non-Jewish composers, by extension, it would be illogical to exclude all of their art songs on “Old” testament themes. By this definition, it would take a burgeoning team of musicologists several decades’ research to create a comprehensive survey of Jewish art songs – something one lone researcher could never undertake. Wisely, I decided to limit the scope of my book precisely so that I could be more or less comprehensive in listing the large-scale works for solo voice(s).

What is clear, however, is that Dr. Jacobson loves the Jewish art song genre and feels passionately about its great worth. Who cannot be incredibly stirred when hearing a rendering of a Moshe Milner or Lazar Weiner song by a great practitioner of art songs? I believe just as strongly that these works do deserve their rightful place among the pantheon of great 20th century composers of art song such as Samuel Barber, Francis Poulenc, or Elliot Carter.

Given his strong feelings about this topic, might I throw down the gantlet and suggest that Dr. Jacobson himself initiate such an undertaking as its chief editor? His deserved reputation in both Jewish and non-Jewish academic circles would make him an exemplary candidate. Given our present financial situation, we would need the status of such an individual to help galvanize the forces necessary to begin such a marvelous venture.

Respectfully Submitted,

Cantor Kenneth Jaffe, M.S.M.