Richard Tucker Live Rosh Hashana The Hineni Prayer

[@BytomGirl]

OMG, I know him as amazing opera singer, just recently discovered him as Cantor and cry every time. My grandfather was a Cantor too and how this reminds me of services in our Synagogue in Poland

[@greatestcantor]

Hi what was your grandfathers name?

[@BytomGirl]

@@greatestcantor I am sorry, that is a private information, not for internet

[@greatestcantor]

if you can please email me at [e-mail]

[@BytomGirl]

@@greatestcantor I just did...

[@shicoff1398]

Great Nussach skill was his.

[@TimothyJonSarris]

Very moving and for me as an eastern orthodox christian I can hear many similarities in the chanting styles. I used be a cantor in our church and am now an operatic tenor, but there the similarities end as I was never able to make such beautiful sounds or given the opportunity to pour my heart out during the divine liturgy as Tucker does here during this incredibly moving service. It does my heart good to just listen to this and remember, reflect and give thanks. Thank you a thousand times for sharing this gem 🙏🏻

[@miltonverskin9882]

Interesting and moving to learn about such similarities.

[@asherfelsenburg1086]

Wow!!! What a voice I never heard this side of him.a superb chazzan he was with such fiery energy!!!-I wish I could hear the rest of that davening.

[@shicoff1398]

Especially from #1300 on to the end, powerful and passionate live, RIP.

[@alexmrmusic]

Fantastic ,i have been waiting years for this ,i knew it existed .Can we please have some more .thank you so much

[@hashatz]

Very impressive.

[@shicoff1398]

He knew the words and the meaning, it just grows more and more as he goes along, I have seen him do it in Schul as he does here live of course, many times --- I can tell you when he finished this I noticed many people, especially older men and women openly sobbing , they obviously where so moved, by him and this prayer. RIP--- Cantor Richard Tucker .

[@shicoff1398]

Peerce (1904-1984) knew the liturgy and sang it many times in many places, in Schul as a cantor, however he never made his living as such, Tucker as a leading cantor in the beginning. Jan early on played the violin, was a radio singer of fame and then opera, made his Met. debut in 1941.

[@evolutionarybiology1247]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKbKqHZ_m7aBrZo

[@CantorialArt]

Awesome!!!! please upload the complete high holiday prayers this is truly beautiful!!!

[@shicoff1398]

You have recently posted, about a month ago, a very rare and wonderful Cantor Tucker that sounds much earlier then this Hineni live, it's not Hineni but also during the high Holiday's, Have you any idea about what year that was? The prayer name is in Hebrew on the screen, so I cannot read the description, but heard and saw Tucker many times singing during the high Holiday's in Chicago, up till his last time, in 1974, just a few months before he died. Thank you for your excellent posting.

[@CantorClassics]

Absolutely amazing! Better than any of Tucker's studio recordings of cantorials.

[@shicoff1398]

Yes, in his live singing during the holiday's, he was able to sing and give even more then the more conservative studio commercial recordings, and this was late in his life, but still a first rate Cantor with a great voice, besides the great operatic tenor--- RIP

[@TelAvivIsreal]

What a wonderful surprise! Thanks for posting

[@danielcolthof6734]

I am in tears.. such warmth and emotion. What a great singer and sounds like he was a wonderful man and a warm and proud jew. The rendition itself is not the best I've heard but this is a jewl! Thank you SO MUCH for posting this, and please post more!

[@schwartzesq]

AMAZING!!!!!

[@Levke604]

Wow! Very well crafted. Warm up time, moving up to the upper middle of the voice, then back down grounding the voice and then the home runs! In the tradition of the zogers goes back and picks up some earlier phrases repeating them.

[@meirwise1107]

Richard Tucker grew up in the Synagogue. He was a proud, believing Jew. Chazan first and then Opera singer.

[@shicoff1398]

Correct.

[@robarts001]

Wonderful, Impressive, Thank You very much for posting the rendition of Hineni a golden Oldie from Richard Tucker.It alone made us more curious to want to hear more of his prayers of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur we hope and wish to be able to share so we can hear it soon.

[@lsmart]

What a truly beautiful, breathtaking and heartfelt treat. It shows you how sweet and utterly gorgeous his sound and singing was when he did not emote. The biggest surprise for me was how well he interpreted the words. I doubt he knew their meaning on his own; he probably used a translation. But the tempo, volume, and emotions fit the words perfectly, which makes it that much more effective for those who actually understand the meaning of this prayer as he recites it. Thanks a million for the upload (among so many other great ones), and I too would love to hear more of this service if it is available).

[@lsmart]

***** Just 2 quick points: 1) I'm aware that he grew up in a religious home and was a chazzan, and thus knew how to read Hebrew. But that does not mean that you "understand" Hebrew. 2) Even if you understand the word meanings, it is another thing to "appreciate" their meaning and "feel" it in your heart when reciting them. It was no coincidence that Yossele Rosenblatt, the only one of the great old cantors who was a truly pious Jew, was unparalleled in the feeling of his prayers and the fitting of the melodies to their specific meanings. Likewise, I do not think it was by chance that the two chazzanim who came closest to him in "gefiel" (feeling+taste+ emotion) were Kwartin and Waldman, both of whom were raised in Chassidic homes. That is why I was surprised that someone who spent his life in opera, and kept very little of his religion (unlike Peerce), still had that much understanding of and feeling for the words.

[@lsmart]

First of all, I appreciate all your info. I did know that he refused to appear on stage with Karajan, and as a son of Holocaust survivors, that elevated him tremendously in my eyes, as I unfortunately know lots of Jews whose own families were greatly affected by the Holocaust, yet they pick Austria out of all places for their annual summer vacation, and do very little to commemorate the Shoah. Regarding the point about feeling in prayer, first of all, forgive me for saying so, but I get the feeling that your personal closeness to Tucker is so great that it might prevent you from accepting any criticism of him. And I don't think that is anything to be ashamed of. Secondly, all personal tastes differ regarding what singer moves one more with his emotion or taste in his singing. Finally, I still think you are missing my main point. I never said that Peerce was a more heartfelt cantor. My point was that the prayers of one who is truly religious and god-fearing in his entire daily life, and who is learned enough to understand the true meaning of the prayers, can be more heartfelt in delivering them than one who delivers them as a musical performance. Anyone who hears a piece by Rosenblatt can be moved and blown away by the beauty and sweetness of his voice and singing, but when you know the meaning of the words and the context of the piece, you enjoy it on an entirely different level, because the tempo, mood and emotion of his compositions and singing, fit the words and their context more than those of any other cantor in history IMHO. In this particular prayer, the cantor asks God, "Accept me as the representative of the congregation, look upon me as if I was a saintly man with a long beard whom the people love and revere, and do not ignore my prayers on their behalf due to my own sins, for I am a sinner." When someone is truly pious, these words are truly heartfelt, and the feeling with which they are expressed come across on an entirely different level. Tucker was a decent man, who continued to observe certain aspects of the religion that he was taught as a child. But I did not expect someone with his lifestyle and level of observance to be able to express the words of this prayer with as much depth and feeling as he did. I hope that explains my point.

[@lsmart]

+SHICOFF1 1) Jadlowker was indeed incredible in his colaratura. 2) I rank Sirota extremely high in both voice and singing. I also think his opera arias are superb, far better than Koussevitsky, who just doesn't have the feeling and excitement in his 5 or 6 opera recordings. 3) Yossele would never sing any opera bec. he would never sing with a women, let alone in real opera, where there has to be physical connection. He only appeared in the Chicago outdoors concert after it was agreed that he would leave before any female singer appeared on stage. He was a truly Hassidic Jew until his last day, which included not even trimming his beard.

[@lsmart]

+SHICOFF1 Thanks for the info about Tucker's religious convictions, esp. his wearing tzitzis (I had heard about that, but thought it was Peerce). It makes me have great respect for him, because: a) it is not even an absolute requirement, b) he had to bother with it every day, and c) it was an act for which he got no credit. It shows that he tried to keep as much of his religious upbringing as he could, even things no one knew about. I presume it was also partly out of respect for his parents. Says a lot about the man.

[@lsmart]

+SHICOFF1 I only recently came across Lemmer on KZbin and he sounds really promising. As for Helfgott, in terms of the very top notes, I don't think he has any real competitors in chazzanut (and few in opera). The man can roll off a string of high C's and D's like a piece of cake. However, I've heard him live 3 times, and I was disappointed by the size of his voice, which sounded far smaller than on recordings. I also am not a big fan of his taste in chazzanut. He is one of those cantors whom I can listen to for 3 or 4 pieces and be in awe of his voice, but any more than that starts to bore me. For me, Chaim Adler is the best living chazzan (even now, at age 75), both in terms of the sheer richness and beauty of his voice, and the "gefeel" (heart and soul) of his singing. In my opinion, you can hear what I mean by comparing the live KZbin videos of their respective Selichot services.

[@edwardbraun6286]

he was Chazzan first then a opera singer because the feeling he has as say the prayer is from the heart

[@evolutionarybiology1247]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKbKqHZ_m7aBrZo

[@fixirr]

much better than his commercially released cantorial pieces

[@shicoff1398]

Yes, live he was always best and in fact was a great Cantor and opera singer both .

[@lokinvar1]

very fine....I always thought he was a better opera singer than chazan. This interpretation belies that notion. Thanks for making it available.

[@shicoff1398]

Exactly right.

[@midrash100]

He was a chazzan, if you did not already guess. His brother in law (also a chazzan) convinced him to try opera.

[@shicoff1398]

No, it wasn't Jan Peerce who suggested opera, it was both Tucker and his teacher when he himself decided to study opera and then emulate (so to speak) his brother in law, who at the time he looked up too, I knew both men very very well on a personal basis, and it's true Peerce did recommend Paul Althouse for Tucker to go and work with, but Tucker himself told Sara his wife ( Jan's younger sister ) -- I'm going to bud and grow in opera, and confident and a hard worker, he did just that. Jan did not have to convince him of anything, Jan did not in fact early encourage an operatic career for Richard, after all Tucker was a leading successful cantor and the Brooklyn Jewish Center where he sang around the time of his Met. debut was a very big and important position, so Peerce knew what Tucker would be giving up, but at that point his biggest support came from his wife Sara and his coach Mr. Paul Garnett, and his voice teacher Paul Althouse, who had also some students who we know as famous, and Paul did have great confidence in him, anyhow later Peerce and Tucker grew apart, as friends, but at the time back then they where friendly and of course brother in laws by marriage. I knew Jan very well, had been to his home (and Tucker's also) I knew Tucker as well as Peerce, but If you want a complete picture of the great American Spinto tenor Richard Tucker, then read the James Drake book. "Richard Tucker"

[@shicoff1398]

Sorry---- I meant to say above "Joe Garnett" Paul was his operatic teacher, it was Paul Althouse .

[@met2023]

This is phenomenal! I always wondered what he sounded like on the Bimah. Is there more of this davvening?

[@shicoff1398]

Very little ever has existed from his "live" singing during the high holiday's, so we are lucky at least to have this clip.

[@MadeleineBettina]

i have enjoyed reading the comments here. i'm curious to know who wrote this version of "Hineni." Did Mr. Tucker compose it? Any idea if this has been notated? My family has some recordings of Tucker, but this recording is just breathtaking! Surely the best, most convincing version I have found on youtube so far.

[@shicoff1398]

No, most likely it was written by Sholom Secunda. Tucker was even greater singing live performances as here, and also in opera as with some other singers, Tucker gave more of himself with his powerful Spinto voice and ability to sing with great emotion.

[@alexmrmusic]

i would love the whole service on a CD so i can listen and marvel at one of the greatest singers i have heard Please can someone mail this to me it would make me so happy ,thank you so much

[@fixirr]

Unbelievable

[@sf952001]

Where and when was this recorded? It is breathtaking.

[@shicoff1398]

In his late 50's, of course it's during the high Holiday's, most often he sang those holiday's in Chicago, where he was also very much loved in opera .

[@shicoff1398]

I attended his high holiday services nearly every year, from 1962 on. He was amazing, and I did prefer his live more traditional Cantorial singing over the excellent Cantorial studio records, as live in Schul he gave even more then in a studio, same thing in opera, live he gave great warmth, emotion and power to his public. ---- RIP Richard Tucker

[@jefolson6989]

Fantastic! In opera that "yodel" he uses to suggest the Italian tenor cry seems strange and jarring. Not here.