Myer Lyon

Myer Lyon (b. circa 1750, Germany; d. 1797, Kingston, Jamaica), better known by his stage name Michael Leoni, was a hazzan at the Great Synagogue of London who achieved fame as a tenor opera singer in London and Dublin, and as the mentor of the singer John Braham.

Myer Lyon was appointed meshorrer (choirboy) to Isaac Polack, hazzan at the Great Synagogue, London, in 1767 'at a salary of £40 per annum, on the understanding that he was to behave as a Yehudi Kasher (i.e. an observant Jew)'. Lyon's origins remain unclear. According to the memoirs of the actor James de Castro he was born in Frankfurt-on-Main and was invited to London by 'the German Jews', where 'a very rich Jew, Mr. Franks, instantly patronised him'. His voice having been brought to the attention of the aristocracy and the actor David Garrick, he was given permission by the synagogue elders to appear on stage (where he adopted the name Michael Leoni), after which he returned to the synagogue and developed thenceforth a dual career.

It is difficult, however, to reconcile this narrative with his known dates. The first record of him is in October 1760 where Garrick refers to him as 'ye boy Leoni' – he sang a role in Garrick's The Enchanter at Drury Lane Theatre which was 'received with great applause'. This suggests that Leoni could not yet have been in his teens at this time, and that therefore the story of his being summoned to London cannot be true. In fact it would be surprising if it were true since there is no evidence that the congregation there had any concerns about musical standards. The fact that the synagogue was only too happy to dock Leoni's pay by £8 a year in 1772, due to its financial problems, also argues against the congregation's supposed dedication to its cantor. It is therefore rather more likely that, wherever he was born, he lived in London from an early age and was talent-spotted, perhaps by Polack, in the synagogue (much as Leoni was later to train his own nephew, John Braham).

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