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As an American rabbi in King Charles’ court, I’m learning to love the king (in addition to the King)
(JTA) — Perhaps the strangest part was sitting through a Sunday service in the 1,000-year-old nave of St. Albans Cathedral (the longest nave in England!) and hearing the Hebrew Bible (specifically I Kings 1:32-40) read aloudt in English. Maybe stranger yet was hearing part of that passage set to the music of 17th-century maestro George Friedrich Handel! These, and many other oddities, were only a fraction of the wonderful and unusual experiences of being an American-born British rabbi during the first coronation this country has seen in 70 years.
As with the funeral last year of the late Queen Elizabeth, the scale of organization and competence required to pull off such an event is astounding. For a country where it often feels that small-scale bureaucracy can get in the way of day-to-day life, the coronation was, by all accounts, seamless. This of course makes it the exception rather than the rule, as coronations past were often marred by logistical issues, bad luck and sometimes straight-up violence.
It was the coronation of Richard I in 1189 that unleashed anti-Jewish massacres and pogroms across the country and led to the York Massacre in 1190, in which over 150 local Jews killed themselves after being trapped in Clifford’s Tower, which was set ablaze by an angry mob. During that year there were attacks in London, Lynn, Bury St. Edmunds, Stamford, Lincoln, Colchester and others. It was exactly 100 years later, in 1290, that Edward I would expel Jews from England altogether. They wouldn’t return (officially) for 400 years — or get an official apology from the church for 800.
This weekend’s festivities, thankfully, were of a very different caliber. Not only were Jewish communities front and center, but Jews, religious and not, were active and welcome participants in the ceremony in Westminster Abbey. Indeed, despite the ceremony taking place on Shabbat, the United Synagogue (a mainstream Orthodox denomination that accounts for 40-45% of British Jewish synagogue membership) was represented by Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, who, together with other faith leaders, played a role in greeting the king as he left the church. This was especially unusual as it has long been the position of the United Synagogue that their rabbis and members should not go into churches (much less on Shabbat). In many ways, this demonstrates one of the consistent themes of the coronation: the interruption of normal routine and the continued exceptionalism of the royal family.
Rabbi Adam Zagoria-Moffet stands atop the bell tower of St. Albans Cathedral before Rosh Hashanah in 2020. (Talya Baker)
Judaism is agnostic, at best, about kings. Our own monarchy came about because the people insisted on it, but against the will of the prophet Samuel against the desire of God. Once it was established — a process which involved several civil wars, a lot of bloodshed and the degradation of many historical elements of Israelite society — it did, for a brief time, bring some stability to the fragile confederacy of Israelite tribes. But it was really only the half-century golden era under King Solomon that managed this feat. After him, and ever since, the monarchy has been a source of conflict and violence. While we still hope that a righteous heir of the Davidic monarchy will reappear and take their place as king of Israel, we, famously, are not holding our breath.
Our approach to non-Jewish monarchs is even more complex. Whilst King Charles III was being coronated to the words of our holy texts and being anointed in oil (the ceremony for our monarchs) from the Mount of Olives (in our holy land), we were at the same time reciting a litany of prayers, as we do daily, to remind us (in the words of our prayers): “We have no king but You” (Avinu Malkeinu); “Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom” (Ashrei); “God is King, God has ruled, God will rule forever (Y’hi Khavod); “God’s kingship is true there is none else” (Aleinu).
These words were chosen by our sages for our prayers in part because they shared the biblical anxiety about monarchs. Halacha, Jewish law, does retain the notion of a king over Israel, but that king is so heavily bound by legislation, it is far from the absolutist monarchies of most of Europe.
However, since 1688 at least, after the brief (and failed) experiment with the notion of divine right of kings, England (and now the United Kingdom) has endorsed the notion of a constitutional monarch — a king or queen who is esteemed, but also bound by the law and by restrictions imposed by the people. In practice, this makes today’s monarchy an awful lot like that of ancient Israel, and very different from historic European monarchies, as well as very different from how Americans and others often see it. After nearly six years living and working on these green isles, I’ve come to appreciate the complexities and absurdities of the British monarchy, and to value the role that the ceremonies play in the collective life of Britons.
Many here are surprised to find that, being a Yankee, I’m not also a republican (an anti-monarchist, in the British context). Indeed, while I have my doubts about the idea of monarchy and while, religiously, there is a strong argument against human authority, the monarchy as it operates in modern Britain is fairly compatible with the idea of kingship as established by halacha — restrained, limited and primarily occupied with being a moral exemplar rather than an authoritarian ruler. Maybe then it shouldn’t be so strange that so much of the ceremonies this weekend were drawn from our texts, and so much of the symbolism referential to our tradition. We can be grateful that King Charles’s coronation, the first in a generation, went off without a hitch and without bloodshed, and with the support and involvement of a diverse representation of Britain’s peoples and faiths.
To the outside, this weekend has likely appeared to be just a lot of pomp and pageantry. No doubt, it is often Americans who are camping out on the Mall in see-through tents or wearing the royal family’s faces as masks in coronation parties — but this American, after more than half a decade here in Britain, can appreciate the depth of the monarchy in ways I couldn’t before. I see both its deep significance and history, its connection to our own tradition (sometimes through appropriation), and its negatives. As a rabbi and a Jew, I will always be of the opinion that there is only one Sovereign who truly rules, but there is something to be said for having a king as well as a King.
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The post As an American rabbi in King Charles’ court, I’m learning to love the king (in addition to the King) appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Is there a future for Yiddish in Antwerp?
פֿון לייזער בורקאָ
איך בין געקומען קיין אַנטווערפּן מיטן ציל צו פֿאָרשן דאָס ייִדיש, וואָס מע רעדט דאָרט, ווײַל אַנטווערפּענער ייִדן האָבן אַ שם, אַז זיי רעדן דאָס בעסטע און דאָס עכטסטע ייִדיש. אַזוי האָב איך געהערט אַ סך מאָל; געלייענט אין חסידישע פֿאָרומס, און געהערט לעצטנס אין אַן אינטערוויו מיט ר׳ מענדל הערש פּאַנעט, אַן אַנטווערפּענער חסיד, וואָס וווינט הײַנט אין ניו־יאָרק.
די ייִדישע באַפֿעלקערונג אין אַנטווערפּן איז זייער קליין אין פֿאַרגלײַך מיט די גרויסע ייִשובֿים אין ניו־יאָרק און ארץ־ישׂראל. עס וווינען דאָרט סך־הכּל 20,000 ייִדן, מערסטנס חרדים — סײַ חסידים סײַ מתנגדים. דאָס איז אַנטקעגן 300,000 חרדים אין אַמעריקע און איבער אַ מיליאָן אין ארץ־ישׂראל, און 40,000 אין לאָנדאָן אַפֿילו. דער פּראָצענט ייִדן וואָס רעדט ייִדיש איז זיכער העכער אין אַנטווערפּן, אָבער דער ציבור איז פֿאָרט נישט אַזוי גרויס.
עס וווינען אויך מאָדערנע אָרטאָדאָקסישע ייִדן אין אַנטווערפּן. איך האָב געהערט, אַז אַ סך פֿון זיי קענען אויך ייִדיש, אָבער רעדן אין דער היים, דער עיקר — פֿראַנצויזיש.
די אַנטווערפּענער ייִדישע באַפֿעלקערונג איז נישט איינהייטלעך, אַפֿילו אויב אַ סך חרדים זעען אויס ענלעך. אַ גרויסע צאָל פֿון די מענער זענען פֿון ערגעץ אַנדערש, אָבער האָבן זיך אַריבערגעצויגן, כּדי חתונה צו האָבן מיט אַן אַנטווערפּענער כּלה. דערפֿאַר הערט מען דאָרט אויך נישט ווייניק ענגליש און עבֿרית אויף דער גאַס. פֿון דעסט וועגן, איז דאָס אַנטווערפּענער ייִדיש נישט אַזוי געמישט מיט ענגליש און עבֿרית, ווי דאָס ייִדיש בײַ אַמעריקאַנער אָדער ישׂראלדיקע חרדים. זיי ניצן אָבער יאָ אַ מאָל פֿלעמישע ווערטער, ווי למשל דאָס וואָרט „מוילבאַק“ (מיסטקעסטל) פֿון פֿלעמישן vuilbak.
אויף וויפֿל איך האָב געהערט, האָט דאָס אַנטווערפּענער ייִדיש טאַקע אַן אַנדער טעם ווי דאָס אַמעריקאַנער ייִדיש. ערשטנס רעדט מען מער אויפֿן פּויליש־גאַליציאַנער שטייגער מיט אַן אוּוווּלאַרן ריש (אַזוי ווי אויף עבֿרית, אָדער אויף פֿראַנצויזיש און דײַטש). מע הערט אָפֿטער דעם ווייכן למד אין ווערטער ווי „גלײַך“ און „קלײַן“. מע זאָגט ווערטער ווי „אויס“ און „אויך“ מיט אַ קלאָרן o.
לייענענדיק די אַלע נײַעס וועגן די פּראָטעסטן קעגן מדינת־ישׂראל אין מערבֿ־אייראָפּע און וועגן די אַנטיסעמיטישע אינצידענטן דאָרט, האָב איך זיך געזאָרגט אַ ביסל וועגן די אַנטווערפּענער ייִדן. מיט יאָרן צוריק האָב איך געמאַכט אַ וויזיט און איך האָב געדענקט, אַז עס וווינען דאָרט אַ סך מוסולמענישע אימיגראַנטן. צי זענען די ייִדן דאָרט טאַקע זיכער?
די שטאָט אַנטווערפּן איז טאַקע זייער אַ געמישטער עולם. איך בין אײַנגעשטאַנען נישט ווײַט פֿון אַ גרויסן פּוילישן סופּערמאַרק און אַ געשעפֿט פֿון אַפֿריקאַנער סחורות. די ייִדן וווינען אין מיטן שטאָט אין דרום פֿון דער פּרעכטיקער צענטראַלער באַנסטאַנציע, וווּ עס געפֿינט זיך דער באַרימטער דימענטן-קוואַרטאַל. ייִדן אַרבעטן שוין הונדערטער יאָרן אין אַנטווערפּן ווי שלײַפֿערס און סוחרים פֿון דימענטן. הײַנט אַרבעטן דאָרט מערסטנס אינדיער, ווײַל די דימענטן־אינדוסטריע איז כּמעט אין גאַנצן אַריבער קיין אינדיע, וווּ די שלײַפֿערס אַרבעטן פֿאַר ביליקער.
צי זענען די ייִדן דאָרט אין אַ סכּנה? איך אַליין האָב זיך געפֿילט זיכער, אָבער איך האָב נישט קיין באָרד און פּאות. אַ חסיד מיטן גאַנצן לבֿוש האָט אפֿשר אַן אַנדער דערפֿאַרונג.
קיין פּאָליציי אָדער זיכערהייט־כּוחות האָב איך נישט געזען אין דער ייִדישער געגנט, כאָטש אַ שומרים־אָרגאַניזאַציע („שמירה“) איז יאָ פֿאַראַן. איך בין אַרײַנגעגאַנגען אינעם גרויסן סאַטמערער בית־מדרש און אַרומגעגאַנגען דאָרט — קיינער האָט מיך נישט אָפּגעשטעלט אָדער געפֿרעגט, וואָס איך טו. די אַנטווערפּענער ייִדן האָבן נישט מורא פֿאַר פֿרעמדע, דאַכט זיך.
לויט די נײַעס־באַריכטן זענען יאָ פֿאָרגעקומען אַ סך מער אַנטיסעמיטישע אינצידענטן זײַט דעם אָנהייב פֿון דער עזה־מלחמה — אָבער אַזוי איז דער מצבֿ אומעטום. די אַנטווערפּענער ייִדן פֿילן זיך דאָרט אין דער היים און וועלן אַזוי גיך נישט אַנטלויפֿן.
אין אַנטווערפּן פֿאָרן אַ סך ייִדן אויף ביציקלען, וואָס זיי רופֿן „וועלאָס“ (פֿון פֿראַנצויזיש), אפֿשר נאָך מער ווי די פֿלעמער (Flemings בלע”ז). מע זעט אַפֿילו טאַטעס וואָס פֿאָרן מיט אַן עופֿהלע אויף אַ צווייט בענקל, וואָס דאָס זעט מען נישט אין אַמעריקע. דאָס איז דערפֿאַר ווײַל די ייִדישע געגנט איז קאָמפּאַקט און מע דאַרף נישט פֿאָרן ווײַט. נאָכן טאָג אין חדר גייען די קינדערלעך אַהיים אָדער פֿאָרן אַהיים אויף קליינע סקוטערס. בכלל הערשט אַ געפֿיל פֿון זיכערקייט, מער ווי אין ניו־יאָרק, למשל. ס׳איז פֿאָרט אייראָפּע, וווּ די מענטשן שיסן זעלטענער, און וווּ ווייניקער משוגעים דרייען זיך אויף די גאַסן.
אַחוץ אַנטווערפּן האָב איך אויך געמאַכט אַ וויזיט אין דער בעלגישער הויפּטשטאָט, בריסל. איך האָב באַלד באַמערקט אַן אונטערשיד: אַ סך פּאַלעסטינער פֿענער, אין ערטער אויך אַנטי־ישׂראלדיקע און אַנטיסעמיטישע גראַפֿיטי. די מוסולמענישע באַפֿעלקערונג פֿון בריסל איז אַ סך גרעסער. אין געוויסע געגנטן — ווי מאָלענבעק, וווּ איך בין אײַנגעשטאַנען — זעט עס אַ מאָל אויס ווי אַן אַראַבישע שטאָט. איך האָב זיך געהיטן דאָרט פֿון טראָגן אַ העמד אָדער עפּעס מיט אַ ייִדישער אויפֿשריפֿט. אין בריסל וווינען אויך מער אָרעמע־לײַט ווי אין אַנטווערפּן. מיר איז געווען אַ חידוש צו זען דאָרט פּוילישע שיכּורים, וואָס דרייען זיך אויף די גאַסן — אַ סך מער ווי איך זע אין וואַרשע.
אין בריסל האָב איך געכאַפּט אַ לאַנגן שמועס מיט ר׳ אַנשל מיכאָלי, אַ היגער ייִדישיסט און אַ געבוירענער בריסעלער. ער זאָגט, אַז די בריסעלער ייִדישע באַפֿעלקערונג איז אַ מאָל געווען גרעסער ווי די אַנטווערפּענער, אָבער זי גייט באַרג־אַראָפּ שוין אַ סך יאָרן, סײַ דעמאָגראַפֿיש, סײַ גײַסטיק. אין די 1960ער יאָרן זענען די מערסטע טראַדיציאָנעלע ייִדן געוואָרן זייער ציוניסטיש־געשטימט און זײַט דעמאָלטס האָבן אַ סך יונגע לײַט עולה געווען. די פֿאַרבליבענע וועלטלעכע ייִדן באַטייליקן זיך ווייניק אינעם קהילה־לעבן. קיין געפֿיל פֿאַר ייִדיש אָדער ייִדישקייט האָבן זיי נישט, בדרך־כּלל.
לאָמיר האָפֿן, אַז אַנטווערפּן וועט אויסמײַדן דאָס אומגליק, וואָס האָט געטראָפֿן בריסל, און אַז די קהילה וועט בלײַבן זיכער און וועט וואַקסן. עס וואָלט געווען אַ גרויסער שאָד, ווען עס גייט אונטער איינער פֿון די לעצטע ייִדישע אינדזלען אין אייראָפּע, וווּ מע רעדט אַזאַ שיינעם ייִדיש.
The post Is there a future for Yiddish in Antwerp? appeared first on The Forward.
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In NYC, Election Day arrives with all eyes on Jewish voters
It’s Election Day in New York City
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Many New Yorkers are thinking far beyond the five boroughs as they cast their votes in an election some see as a referendum on the Middle East.
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Jewish and Muslim New Yorkers — two populations of about the same size, both nearing 1 million — are being closely watched today, as views on Israel, Palestine, antisemitism and Islamophobia mobilize voters with intense enthusiasm.
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Polls show Cuomo, a proud defender of Israel, leading with Jewish voters. And Mamdani’s longtime pro-Palestinian activism tapped into a movement of New Yorkers galvanized by the Gaza war, pollsters say.
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“There’s a large swath of New Yorkers, particularly those that were showing up at these protests, who in 2025 were looking for something to latch on to, some sort of organized effort,” Democratic pollster Adam Carlson told The New York Times. “There’s a lot of natural overlap between those groups, and I think that just fueled momentum.”
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Some anti-Zionist Jews, like members of the increasingly influential group Jewish Voice for Peace, strengthened Mamdani’s rise as he won the primary and held onto a strong lead in general election for months. But many others say they are worried about Mamdani’s views on Israel setting the stage for a “political normalization” of anti-Zionism that can bleed into antisemitism.
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Polls are open until 9 p.m. today, and election officials say results could come within an hour of that time. Find your polling site here.
A Mamdani Israel policy?
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If Mamdani is elected mayor, how could he actually take action on his pro-Palestinian advocacy?
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We dug into Mamdani’s greatest push for a new Israel policy in the state Assembly, where he proposed the bill “Not On Our Dime” to target donations to Israeli settlements. The legislation, which never advanced, faced a backlash from lawmakers in both parties, including Jewish Democrats.
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Shortly after winning his Assembly seat in 2020, Mamdani also called for a boycott of Cornell Tech on Roosevelt Island, a campus of Cornell University that partners with Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, because of the Israeli university’s ties to the military. His comment on the “Talking Palestine” podcast with Sumaya Awad resurfaced during the primary and again this week after a spokeswoman told The New York Times that, if elected, he would assess the Cornell partnership.
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Mamdani has said he does not intend to invest city funds in Israel bonds as mayor, in keeping with current Comptroller Brad Lander’s decision in 2023. But we also found that two of New York City’s five public pension funds could be vulnerable to a mayor-backed divestment push.
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Mamdani would be able to stack the boards of these two pension funds to put divestment from Israel on the table, and his supporters are pushing for that move.
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He will also face pressure from the Democratic Socialists of America, which counts him as a member, to implement boycott, divestment and sanction moves against Israel.
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On Sunday, the party’s “NYC Palestine Policy Committee” held a meeting to “iron out policies that the anti-war working group membership would like to see implemented at the municipal level,” according to a schedule on the D.S.A. website.
Corbyn hosts Mamdani phone bank
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Former U.K. Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn, who was booted from his party amid an antisemitism scandal, hosted a phone bank for Mamdani on Sunday evening.
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The event was co-led with the New York City D.S.A. chapter and paid for by Mamdani’s campaign, according to a post shared on X by Corbyn.
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During the Zoom call, Corbyn said that Mamdani “will ensure that the world doesn’t pass by on the other side while the terrible genocide goes on in Gaza, which has been so terrible for the Palestinian people,” according to the Forward.
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We covered the accusations against Corbyn, including a 2020 government watchdog report that said his leadership was responsible for “unlawful acts of harassment and discrimination” against Jews.
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Cuomo pounced on the alliance. “Having Jeremy Corbyn – someone whose party was found to have committed unlawful acts of discrimination against Jewish people under his leadership – phone-banking for @ZohranKMamdani says everything you need to know,” he said on X.
Trump and Musk endorse Cuomo
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Cuomo got an official endorsement last night from President Trump, who has frequently opined on the race and insulted all of the candidates.
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“Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job. He is capable of it, Mamdani is not!”
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Trump also warned voters away from Republican nominee Sliwa, who is polling third. “A vote for Curtis Sliwa (who looks much better without the beret!) is a vote for Mamdani,” he said, referencing the red hat that Sliwa wears as the founder of the Guardian Angels.
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Cuomo is balancing his outreach to Republican voters with criticism of the president, who is deeply unpopular in New York City. “The president is right. A vote for Sliwa is a vote for Mamdani, and that’s why this election is now up to the Republicans,” he said in response to Trump’s post on 77 WABC.
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Mamdani, who has repeatedly linked Cuomo to Trump, pounced on the endorsement. “The MAGA movement’s embrace of Andrew Cuomo is reflective of Donald Trump’s understanding that this would be the best mayor for him,” he said in Astoria, according to Politico.
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Elon Musk also urged New Yorkers to vote for Cuomo, and to “bear in mind that a vote for Curtis is really a vote for Mumdumi or whatever his name is.”
Last call for Jewish voters
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Sliwa promised to protect Jews at the Society for Advancement of Judaism last night. “I’m standing outside of a synagogue on the Upper West Side tonight, as I’ve stood for many many years outside of synagogues, protecting Jews as they worship during their High Holidays all over this city,” he said on Instagram, referencing again his role in defending Jews during the 1991 Crown Heights riots.
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In a pointed gesture of solidarity with Jews, Cuomo posted his condolences for the family of Omer Neutra, an Israeli-American Long Island native whose body was returned by Hamas to Israel on Sunday.
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Dov Hikind, an Orthodox Jewish politician and former top surrogate of Sliwa’s who recently switched to Cuomo’s side, said in a Yiddish video that Jews would no longer be able to live in New York if Mamdani is elected.
Following the money
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Super PACS spent more than $29 million in the general election through Sunday. By today, that figure will likely surpass the $30.1 million spent ahead of the primary.
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Cuomo has the most money behind him. He received about $10 million in support, with another $13.6 million spent on negative ads against Mamdani, reported Politico.
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The post In NYC, Election Day arrives with all eyes on Jewish voters appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Amsterdam’s Royal Concert Hall cancels annual Hanukkah concert, citing singer’s IDF ties
(JTA) — Last year, Amsterdam’s Royal Concert Hall held its 10th anniversary of a Hanukkah concert series that was rebooted 70 years after it was halted by the Nazis, in what some Dutch Jews saw as a repudiation of antisemitism that had swelled during the war in Gaza.
This year, the concert has been called off — and the prestigious concert hall citing the chosen singer’s ties to the Israeli army.
The Chanukah Concert Foundation, which organizes the event, had booked Shai Abramson to sing. Abramson is a retired lieutenant colonel for the IDF who serves as the army’s chief cantor.
The Royal Concert Hall, or Concertgebouw, said in a statement on Sunday that it had pressed for months for a change to the program and canceled the concert, scheduled for Dec. 14, when one was not made.
“This decision was made because it was not possible to reach an agreement on an alternative to the performance by the IDF Chief Cantor,” the statement said.
It continued, “For The Concertgebouw, it is crucial that the IDF is actively involved in a controversial war and that Abramson is a visible representative of it.”
The Hanukkah concert was rebooted in 2015, 70 years after the Nazis ended the longstanding tradition in the city and murdered three-quarters of the Dutch Jewish population. The relaunch was billed as a chance to connect and celebrate the city’s Jewish residents, a community that has never come close to its pre-Holocaust size.
Now, the Chanukkah Concert Foundation says the Concertgebouw is contributing to the “isolation the Jewish community feels it is being pushed into in the current era,” even as the concert hall said it “always remain a place where the Jewish community is welcome.”
“The Jewish community has been facing exclusion in the cultural sector for over two years,” the Chanukah Concert Foundation said in a statement on Sunday. “It is ironic that the Concertgebouw — where Chanukah celebrations have been held since December 14, 1921, a tradition interrupted only by World War II — is now confronting the Jewish community with exclusion and isolation.”
The Chanukah Concert Foundation said it would pursue legal action against the Concertgebouw, whose characterization of Abramson as an IDF representative it rejected.
“He is an independent artist, invited by the State of Israel to sing at national memorial ceremonies,” the foundation wrote in a statement. “Labeling him as an IDF representative fosters unwarranted negative sentiment toward Israel, the Jewish community in the Netherlands and visitors to the concert, purposely turning this great musical experience into a political event.”
The cantor’s website says his performances around the world are done “with the intention of developing and strengthening ties with Jewish communities around the world, and intensifying connections with Israel and with the IDF.”
The Hanukkah concert’s cancellation is not the first time the war in Gaza has interfered with plans at the Concertgebouw. In November 2023, a planned benefit concert for the Israeli humanitarian nonprofit Zaka was canceled after the Concertgebouw demanded that half of the proceeds go to a Dutch Palestinian aid group that had been accused of anti-Israel bias. The following year, the concert canceled performances by a Jerusalem-based quartet citing “safety” concerns over planned pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
Amsterdam has been a hotspot of such demonstrations. Last year, the city was roiled by pro-Palestinian protests, and a soccer game between the local team and Maccabi Tel Aviv sparked antisemitic mob violence against Israeli supporters.
In March, the University of Amsterdam suspended a student exchange with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, accusing the school of failing to distance itself from the war in Gaza.
As for the Hanukkah concert, the concert foundation says it will “assume that the concerts on December 14th will go ahead, including Cantor Abramson,” amid its planned litigation.
The Concertgebouw, meanwhile, has removed the concert from its website, where among the other upcoming performances listed are multiple by the Jerusalem Quartet, the group whose concert was canceled last year over security concerns.
“Making this decision was extremely difficult,” Concertgebouw Director Simon Reinink in a statement about the Hanukkah concert cancellation. “Only in very exceptional cases do we make an exception to our important principle of artistic freedom. To our great regret, such an exception is now occurring. The intended performance by the chief cantor of the IDF is at odds with our mission: connecting people through music.”
The post Amsterdam’s Royal Concert Hall cancels annual Hanukkah concert, citing singer’s IDF ties appeared first on The Forward.