Meir Finkelstein
| Meir Finkelstein | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Meir Finkelstein |
| Born | 1951 Israel |
| Genres | Contemporary Jewish Liturgical Music |
| Occupation(s) | Hazzan |
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Website | www |
| Notable instruments | |
| Piano | |
Meir Finkelstein (Hebrew: מאיר פינקלשטיין; born 1951) is a cantor and composer of contemporary Jewish liturgical music. He has composed more than 200 settings for the liturgy, as well as scored numerous television programs, made-for-TV movies, and documentary films. His tunes are sung in many Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist congregations. He is considered one of the most popular contemporary Jewish liturgical composers in the United States.
Finkelstein was born in Israel in 1951. His father, the late Zvi Finkelstein, accepted a cantorial position in London, England, and the family moved there in 1955.
Young Meir displayed outstanding musical talent at an early age. Together with his older brother, Aryeh, he was soon accompanying their father in concert and on radio and television. At age 14, Meir became the cantor for a small synagogue in Glasgow, Scotland, thereby becoming the youngest cantor in Europe. The Finkelsteins went on to record two albums of original Israeli and cantorial songs.
At age 18, Meir became the cantor for one of London's most prestigious congregations, Golders Green Synagogue. While working at this congregation, he graduated from the Royal College of Music with an ARCM degree in voice, composition and piano.
A few years later he moved to the United States to become the cantor at Beth Hillel Congregation of Wilmette, Illinois. In 1982 he was appointed cantor of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, California, a congregation he served for eighteen years.
...
Wikipedia