Meisels, Saul
MEISELS, SAUL
MEISELS, SAUL (1911–1990), ḥazzan. Meisels was born in Galicia where his father was a ḥasidic ḥazzan. Meisels immigrated to the United States in his youth and sang as a child in cantorial choirs. He studied music with the well-known synagogue composer Max Helfman, and received his vocal training at Juilliard. For 37 years he was the ḥazzan of Temple on the Heights in Cleveland. He was president of the Cantors Assembly and in 1965 organized the first International Conference of Musicians and Cantors, which was held in Israel. Meisels specialized in renditions of Yiddish folk songs and appeared in numerous concerts of ḥazzanut, and sang Yiddish folk songs, songs from the Jewish theater, and modern Israeli songs. In his performances he was accompanied by his wife, Ida Ruth, a well-known arranger of Yiddish folk songs. Meisels made recordings of cantorial works composed by Sholom Secunda, and was a recording artist for rca Victor and Tikvah Records.
[Akiva Zimmerman /
Raymond Goldstein (2nd ed.)]