Thanks to Maestro Eduard Zilberkant, conducting the Fairbanks Symphony and Fairbanks Symphony Chorus, [directed by Emerson Eads] for this heartfelt performance of the "Hanukah Fantasy" from their holiday concert 2014! Thank you for embracing my music with sensitivity, energy and holiday spirit! Special thanks to Lucas Richman for orchestrating this composition. (This is available as SATB/piano at the Hal Leonard Corporatioon; orchestral version available through the LeDor Group)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SV3xIoZeLM0
"The 'Hanukah Fantasy' opens with the shimmering 'shamash' candle in the form of a trill in the piano part, or tremolo in the orchestra, followed by the eight nights of Hanukah represented by eight separate tones. Fragments of 'Hatikvah' and 'O Hanukah, O Hanukah' create the fantasy mood, which leads to the choir's first entrance singing 'Maoz Tzur' in Hebrew. The shamash candle connects each of the four melodies of the fantasy, as the second shimmering candle leads to the 'Dreidel Song' in English and Yiddish. The choir creates a spinning sound to evoke images of the spinning dreidel. This segues to the beautiful song by Naomi Shemer, 'Jerusalem of Gold' for two soloists and the choir sung in Hebrew. The final candle takes the listener to 'O Hanukah, O Hanukah' to close the fantasy sd if in a wild dance known as the 'hora'. 'Jerusalem of Gold', is featured since the city of Jerusalem plays an important part in the ancient story of Hanukah. During the 1960s, Naomi Shemer composed 'Jerusalem of Gold' for a song festival, which has since become a beloved song for many people. Ms. Shemer later shared that a Basque lullaby she had heard was an inspiration for the song."
Special thanks to Emily Holt Crocker at the Hal Leonard Corporation for bringing the 'Hanukah Fantasy' to publication, and to Lucas Richman for orchestrating the piano part for performances with orchestra and chorus.
-Jeffrey Biegel
