Bach meets Carlebach?
Bach meets Carlebach?Yoni Kempinski

The familiar melodies of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach will take a different note Wednesday night, in a special concert in Mann Auditorium in Tel Aviv. In tribute of the twentieth anniversary since the Rabbi's death, the soulful tunes will be brought to life by a philharmonic orchestra. 

Arutz Sheva spoke to Dr. Mordechai Sobol, the organizer of the project.

​"This is not a simple project," Sobol stated. "It is difficult to take the songs of a 'man with guitar' and raise them to the highest level of classical music available in Israel without taking away the soulfulness of Carlebach's music." 

The talented classical musicians will be accompanied by some of Israel's finest cantors, including Cantor Hazan Lamar and IDF Chief Cantor Shai Abramson. Cantors Ohad Moskowitz, Avreimi Rut, and Yitzhak Meir are also participating in the concert. 

"[To do this], you need to take a variety of voices and talents and pour them into Carlebach [music]," Dr. Sobol explained. In order to make sure everyone's voices will be heard, he added that two string pieces will be included that incorporate a cantorial ensemble.

For Dr. Sobol, the project is not only a musical feat; it is an expression of the combination of the different types of people in Israeli society.

"He was the bridge that we are still looking for today," he reflected. "The bridge between young and old, and religious and secular."