The Concertgebouw had requested the Chanukah Concert Foundation to replace the singer on the program since the summer. This was stated in a release from The Concertgebouw. However, the foundation insisted on keeping singer Shai Abramson, who serves as the ‘chief cantor’ for the Israeli army.
The 51-year-old singer retired as a lieutenant colonel in 2017 but has remained active as a performer with the military. The Amsterdam concert hall believes it is inappropriate for Abramson to appear as a visible representative, given the Israeli army’s involvement in a controversial war in Gaza.
In early September, the foundation publicly announced that it would not alter the program. They assert that Abramson is an independent artist invited by Israel to sing at ceremonies. The Concertgebouw disagrees, claiming that Abramson actively presents himself as a representative of the Israeli army, a fact he highlights on his own website.
Simon Reinink, director of The Concertgebouw, stated that the decision was “extremely difficult.” “We only make exceptions to our important principle of artistic freedom in very exceptional cases. To our great sorrow, such an exception has arisen now.”
The Chanukah Concert Foundation is taking legal action against The Concertgebouw’s decision. “We cannot and will not agree to a limitation of religious freedom and this isolating and polarizing action,” the foundation announced.
The foundation also argues that religious freedom is at stake. “The Concertgebouw is essentially asking: change your religious leader. That is not their authority.” They further accuse The Concertgebouw of contributing “to the isolation that the Jewish community feels is being forced upon them in the current climate.”
The concert is scheduled for December 14, during the week of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights.
The photo above the article shows Abramson performing at a commemoration this year for the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland.
