Holding the Keys
We’re all familiar with the Jewish music scene – the famous names, the popular songs, the trajectory of music trends and what counts as Jewish music. Often, we don’t give a lot of thought to the people who support the artists, night after night and recording after recording – the musicians who accompany the singers. But they have a subculture all their own, and although they might not be as famous as the artists they play for, they are making tracks in every sense of the word.
According to Israeli pop and rock musician, Yerachmiel, Achiya Asher Cohen Alloro is “probably one of the top five pianists in Israel.” Alloro has played for the stars of the music scene in Israel from Yehoram Gaon to Avraham Fried, whom he’s been accompanying for twenty years, and has become a respected contributor to the music industry as a performer, teacher and composer. His original compositions have been recorded by artists such as Yaakov Shwekey. He teaches at his alma mater, The Rubin Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance.
The father of four met his wife, Devorah Leah, an Olah from Argentina at a performance he gave on Shushan Purim.
“I’m all the time either with my family or with my music,” he says. The 40-year-old Alloro, is a fourth generation musician. In his compositions, he intertwines Chassidic tropes with jazz and pop music.
While a student at Jerusalem’s Rubin Academy, Alloro was chosen as one of two students for a scholarship at the Banff Centre for the Arts in Canada. He was asked to play at a reception when director Spike Lee happened to be a guest. He was playing an original piece he had written to the words Esa Einai El HeHarim, when Lee approached him and asked about the music. Lee wanted it for his movie, and it became a song called As We May Dream.
Alloro composed a popular niggun called Niggun Yoseph. Recently Alloro issued a challenge. He sent a complex melody to about 100 musicians asking them to play it and be part of his latest niggun, called Niggun Avraham in memory of Avi Piamenta for his first yartzeit. Piamenta was a musician who had influenced Alloro’s father to become a baal teshuvah in Crown Heights and he became connected with Chabad. The crème the la crème of musicians sent in videos applying to be part of this project.
After October 7, Alloro took upon himself not to speak during prayers at all. From the time he puts on Tefillin until the time he takes it off. For a year he was successful, but his commitment started to wane. A few weeks ago, his Rav, Rav Yitzchak Ginsburg appeared to him in a dream, and said in the name of Rav Chaim Vital, to continue not to talk during prayers. “We are a nation of prayer,” says Alloro, and these prayers help us, all of us, as well as the soldiers.”
Music is a great equalizer. Alloro’s music has crossed borders and divides and has united all kinds of unlikely collaborators, through the music of the soul.
“I think a lot about working on happiness,” Alloro says. “As a musician I felt that I need to have more influence in making Am Yisrael happy. And also to make myself and my family happy. It’s not only an external thing, it’s an internal thing. And lately I’ve put more emphasis on it. We all have to work at making others happy; the world at large, the people close to us and even ourselves.”
And that’s music to everyone’s ears.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-qnmNEUZNc – Yoseph Nigun
