By Andie Arthur

Once a month, the Beth David Congregation in Miami has a Shabbat Service of a tropical flavor, when Cantor Julie Jacobs sings to the accompaniment of a four-piece local Latin band.

Cantor Julie Jacobs

There are other ways to try to popularize services, so why did Jacobs choose Latin music? 

“It came out of my desire to be creative, to learn other musical cultures, to blend cultures,” Jacobs says.

This change from a more traditional service has brought in quite a crowd – from “young couples to people in walkers,” according to Jacobs, who says the attendance to the service has grown from “10 people to a 100 people.” While the audience is mostly congregants, the band is very popular in the area, bringing a diverse population to the synagogue.

Along with growth in attendance came a demand for a CD. In May, Jacobs and her band released Shabbat Pasion – a selection of songs from the Friday night services. The songs are all in Hebrew, but with a “different texture to the ensemble.” Jacobs found a “folkloric sound” that mixed the traditional poems and prayers with the tropical beats of Latin music.

Some of the songs on Shabbat Pasion are spiritually uplifting and welcoming, such as “Shalom Aleikhem”, the first track. Others are slower and have a beautiful, melancholy sound, as “L’kha Dodi”. The mixture of the slow Latin beat with the rich tones of Jacob’s voice adds to the spiritual depth of the songs with a slower tempo, creating the standout tracks on the album.

Shabbat Pasion also showcases a new way of presenting traditional music. Though some jazz-based interpretations are out there, Jacobs knows of nothing else on the market like Shabbat Pasion.

Because creating a CD of music from a religious ceremony is a delicate matter, Jacobs chose her songs carefully. She steered away from sacred music, choosing poems and songs instead of prayer.

Beth David Congregation in Miami now grooves to a Latin Beat

There could have been some resistance, as when Jacobs arrived at Beth David Congregation. “Being a woman was new enough for them,” she says. Introducing instruments was a major step in changing the tenor of the services, but has been met with a younger, more diverse crowd.

Jacobs wanted to capture the flavor of the local neighborhood, where there aren’t very many Jewish people. By bringing in a local band, with some members from Cuba, she achieved that.

The Latin flavor also grounds the music.

“I steer away from melody and motif,” Jacobs says, explaining how the use of the band changes the traditional versions of the songs and poems. “The mode changes from major to minor.”

The instrumentation at the services (there are more instruments on the CD) include a guitar and a harmonium. Jacobs wanted to use traditional Latin music instruments to create a unique “texture of the ensemble.” The band helps the uniqueness as they bring an authentic Latin feel, adding sensuality to the spirituality.

Julie Jacobs and her band

Along with fulfilling Jacob’s desire to be creative, the music marks a departure from her musical background. She originally came from an opera background and earned an undergraduate degree from Indiana University’s School of Music. After graduating from University, she received a Masters degree from the Jewish Theological Seminary. She spent five years there, going through rabbinical training. The training deepened her relationship with the liturgy.

“Walk into a synagogue you know when and where you are depending on the music,” she says.

“It is intimate and thought out – amazing.”

Perhaps it is Cantor’s profound respect for her work and the traditional music that makes her departure from it work as well as it does. It has certainly been popular with the congregants, who actually came up with the idea for a CD because they wanted to learn the music.