The Jewish celebration of Passover begins at sunset. One of my favorite composers, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, wrote this “Passover Psalm” in 1941, on a commission from Rabbi Jacob Sonderling. Sonderling, rabbi of Fairfax Temple in Los Angeles, which he founded, invited a number of prominent composers to write music for the synagogue.
Korngold, who was one of the most celebrated opera composers of his youth, lived out the war years in Hollywood, where he revolutionized the art of film scoring. He was the recipient of two Academy Awards, for his music to “Anthony Adverse” (1936) and “The Adventures of Robin Hood” (1938).
The “Passover Psalm” and “Prayer,” both written for Sonderling, are the only sacred works Korngold ever composed.
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