The Temple Micah music program is proud to announce its latest innovation!

On Friday evening, Nov. 12, members of the Temple Micah pickup band will spice up the Kabbalat Shabbat service with the joyous sounds of their instruments.

The service is a re-creation of the Friday Evening Service I produced last year at New Yorks Central Synagogue during the annual convention of the American Conference of Cantors/Guild of Temple Musicians.

In addition to our regular complement of Meryl's guitar and my piano, we will pray to the lively accompaniment of drums, clarinet, flute, and violin. Perhaps we might pick up a trumpet or trombone along the way.

We will begin with a medley of niggunim (prayers without words), followed by the thrilling L'cha Dodi "waltz" of Abie Rotenberg. The Barchu is from Craig Taubmans well-known Friday Night Live service. (We often use his Dixieland setting of L'cha Dodi from that service.)

The Sol Zim setting of Mi Chamocha will be familiar to most of us at Temple Micah, while the music for Vshamru will be new to us--it is from the Jewish community of South Africa. I will write a new arrangement for our instrumentalists of Jeff Kleppers "Shalom Rav" for this special service.

We will close the service with one of the niggunim that opens the evening.

I am hopeful this mode of praying, with many new and exciting sounds, will be a monthly "happening" at Temple Micah.