Melton guest speaker – Dr. Miranda Crowdus at Adath Jeshurun

Join us this evening as we welcome Dr. Miranda Crowdus. She will be speaking about her recent research in South Tel Aviv and her forthcoming book: Hop Hop in Urban Borderlands: Music-Making, Identity, and Intercultural Dynamics on the Margins of the Jewish State. Hip Hop emerged in Israel in the early 1990’s, but really took off in the 2000’s. In the aftermath of the Second Palestinian Intifada, Hip Hop began to embody themes of nationalism and intra-Jewish solidarity. Since then, it has branched out into a variety of sub-genres totally different from their American counterparts. Moreover, the individuals and groups that perform it are often divided by conflicting aesthetics, ideologies, positionalities, and national identities. For instance, the 10-piece ensemble System All brings together divergent political views in their lyrics as well as contrasting musical genres, including reggae, Klezmer, Hip Hop, pop, rock and classical. Their original lyrics are delivered in a variety of languages (Hebrew, Arabic, Engligh and Russian). This talk highlights some of the fascinating qualities of this music: its multi-genre musical composition, multi-lingualism, and performances in urban borderlands, as well as its role in negotiating relationships between Jewish and non-Jewish practitioners in contemporary Israel.

The event will be held at Adath Jeshurun, 2401 Woodbourne Avenue, in the Charles & Jean K. Erskine Auditorium (large auditorium.)

This event is open to the community. For more information contact Cantor Lipp at dlipp@adathjeshurun.com or call 458-5359.