I am so thankful for our Adult choir who sang so beautifully in our “symphony of prayer” at our High Holy Day services at the Santa Clarita United Methodist Church this year – Cheryl Cogan, Miranda Cunha, Marina Eick, Larry Erlichman, Michael Friedman, Melody Greenwald, Ariel Jameson, B J Kaufman and of course, our most wonderful choir director, Eileen Weiser.
 
All the volunteers, the Sisterhood and the Men’s Club and Wendy Hersh and Jennifer Twitchell for the wonderful children’s and “Tween” services. A special “todah rabah” to Ofra Naylor in the office and, of course, our wonderful Rabbi Mark Blazer, and all of those who participated in our magnificent services.
 
October has some of the most fun holidays of the year. We get to build and decorate our Sukkah and even pray on Shabbat in our Sukkah. Eight days later, is Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah when we get to sing and dance around the synagogue with our Torahs. We even unroll the entire Torah for all to see. If you have never seen this, you really should join us on Thursday, October 12th at 6 for a pizza dinner and then at 7pm, we will do our service where we also finish reading one Torah and begin reading another.
 
In November, we have a lot to be thankful for. Not only do we get to observe Thanksgiving on the 23rd, but, we also get to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of Temple Beth Ami on Sunday, November 12th at 7pm at the Knollwood Country Club in Granada Hills. I hope all of you can come out to make this a real celebration of our wonderful temple where we will have a night of fun and surprises.
 
On a personal note, I had the wonderful opportunity to play a rabbi on two television shows airing this month. On Sunday, October 22nd at 10pm on HBO, I will be on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” with Larry David and on Tuesday, October 24th at 10pm on NBC, I will be on “Law and Order True Crime: The Menendez Brothers” with Edie Falco. So now I can say that I am not really a rabbi, but I play one on tv!!
 
B’shalom,
 
Cantor Kenny Ellis
 

Summertime is a fun time for all. While you and your family are away, wherever you may be traveling to, try to find a synagogue and attend a Shabbat servicethere. You will see how different services are at different places and how similar, too.

 

Today, it really easy to find Jewish music to listen to while traveling on Spotify, Pandora,

ITunes Radio, etc., by searching for “Jewish” or even “Israel” music. You might even try “Yiddish” and “Jewish Humor”.  Listening to Jewish music has never been easier.

 

I can’t wait to hear all the wonderful stories about the adventures all of you had in Israel on Birthright, family trips there, European trips, etc. It’s always great to hear about all of the kids who went to camps for the summer, as well.

 

So, enjoy the summer and the music!

 

B’shalom,

 

Cantor Kenny Ellis

June is a time when all the kids finish school, we get ready for camp, summer school and
lots of weddings and anniversaries.

But this June is special for me. I am in a new, very funny comedy film coming out on June 5th called “Larry Gaye – Renegade Male Flight Attendant”. I actually play the part of a rabbi (a big stretch for me) who is ordering a Kosher meal on a flight.

This looks almost like a follow-up to “Airplane” and might just get that “cult” fan base.

The cast is amazing and includes Mark Feuerstein of the TV show “Royal Pains”, who  produced and stars, Stanley Tucci,  Marcia Gay Hardin, Patrick Warburton, Taye Diggs, Henry Winkler, Molly Shannon, Jason Alexander and yours truly, as “the rabbi” – oy!

The filming was done on a sound stage where all they have are interiors of planes and all that goes into a plane. It’s really amazing how it looks like we are flying, but, that’s all Hollywood trickery.

Speaking of “trickery”, on June 7th we have a wonderful magician, Shawn McMaster of the Magic Castle, who will be mesmerizing us at our “Forever Tonight” – a celebration of love for Joyce and Lee Shulman. We also have singing sensation, Rebecca Somberg, comedian, Steve Mittleman and lots of surprises. I am honored to be your master of ceremonies for the evening. Joyce and Lee are such wonderful people and they deserve every accolade that they get. We, at Temple Beth Ami, are so lucky to have them in our congregation. Let’s show them how much we appreciate them. I hope to see all of you there!

Have a great summer!

B’shalom,
Cantor Kenny Ellis

 

 

 

 

 

May is always a fun month. This month, we have several special music Shabbats
for the whole family!.

On Friday, May 8th, we celebrate Mother’s Day Shabbat – lots of songs about our moms.

On Friday, May 15th, Jerusalem Shabbat, celebrating Yom Yerushalayim, the liberation and unification of Jerusalem.

On May 22nd, not only is my birthday, but we will also be singing songs of Shavuot, the Feast of Weeks. 

So, please come on these Friday’s and sing with us as we celebrate Shabbat and other fun stuff!!

B’shalom,
Cantor Kenny Ellis

 

April is always a busy, but fun month…especially musically!

We start off the month with Passover. There are so many great old melodies and a lot of new ones for us to sing at our Seders.  Ma Nishtana, Dayenu, Chad Gadya, etc.

The following week, on April 16th, we observe Yom HaShaoh – the Holocaust Remembrance Day. It’s a very sad day with sad and moving songs and music.  Eli, Eli, Ani Ma’amin to name a few. Don’t forget to light a memorial candle and say Kaddish for the six million brothers and sisters we lost at that horrible time in our history. This year, I was asked to lead a Yom HaShaoah service at California Lutheran University and at Pepperdine University. It is an honor to do so.

On April 23rd, we sing songs of hope and joy for Yom Ha’atzma’ut – Israel’s Independence Day. This year is Israel’s 67th anniversary. We have a lot to sing and be proud about! Hatikvah, Bashana Haba’ah, etc.

We will be singing the songs of these holidays at Shabbat services throughout the month in addition to our community Seder on Saturday, April 4th.

I wish you and your family a Happy, Healthy Pesach!

B’shalom,
Cantor Kenny Ellis

 

 

Purim is such a fun holiday for all. Purim literally means “lots” As in the word “lottery” and there’s no doubt that during this holiday, we’ll all be having “lots” of fun. This year, we begin the holiday with  the TBA Purim Carnival on Sunday, March 1st from 10:20 am-1:30 pm. There will be Mad Dog Video games, Kona Ice, slides, and a moon bounce. Come in costume!!

The Purim fun continues on Wednesday night, March 4th with the chanting of the Megillah or Megillat Esther – the Book of Esther and the annual Purim Schpiel.

Music plays an important role in that fun. The songs we sing at Purim usually describe the merriment that the holiday brings. From masks and graggers to hamantashen and three cornered hats, not to mention the characters of the Book of Esther story.

Once again, at our Purim Schpiel, Wendy and the kids of TBA will be dressed up in costumes and the songs they will be singing will put a new modern spin on the holiday.

Looking forward to a wonderfully musical Purim and a great month of March!

B’shalom,
Cantor Kenny Ellis