MBD Kumzitz

Interview with MBD in the Shiru Lo Magazine October 2003 Translated from Hebrew by Shani Hertz It was but a matter of time before the brand name M.B.D. would be broadcast on the small personal computer screen. ‘Kumzitz’, the first visual album of Chassidic music, soon to be ours. As a warm up to the real thing, we received it first as an audio CD. Just moments before the visual album landed in Israel, we met with Mordechai ben David in a special interview, mainly about the new CD and about other intriguing issues as well. And now for some interesting scoops that we managed to uncover, exclusively for Shiru Lo… By: Avi Kalmarski SL:The moment when M.B.D. would enter the world of computers has finally arrived. We’ve been waiting for quite a while… MBD: “The visual CD has, as of yet, not arrived but it’s real close. As a matter of fact, this idea had actually entered my mind a number of years ago. I’d even begun working on certain projects, yet for various reasons, they have not yet come to fruition.” So when was it actually the first time that you thought about this unique idea- a visual album filmed in Jerusalem? MBD: “Approximately 15 years ago, I started such a project in the Kosel tunnels. It was on a motzaei Shabbos and many of the musical chevra had come to join us, like Mona Rosenblum and Menachem Herman, among others. There were also many bachurim from the organization ‘Zicron Menachem’ who had brought with them some sick children. And so, we formed a special music evening for those children. It was recorded and filmed and I planned to produce it immediately. Yet we soon saw that it had not been recorded well enough or organized appropriately. In the end, nothing concrete came out of that evening.” “The idea of Kumzitz started already then. In the years following that event, I tried a number of similar ideas, but only last year, during the summer, did the idea actually come to yield results, when we began working on this project. Whom do you mean by ‘We began working’? MBD: The choir in the CD is made up of bachurim from the yeshiva ‘Sharei Yosher’ in Jerusalem. These chevra ignited anew the ebullience for Kumzitz when, for the first time, I heard them sing in their yeshiva one evening. I was very impressed as I listened and I thought to myself, I’ve got the right chevra for my project. Avi Blumenthal assisted me in arranging for the bachurim to join me, and in truth, when I brought them with me to be filmed, things went very smoothly. There was no need even for practice. We went upon the roof of one of the buildings in the Jewish Quarter, which overlooks the Kosel, and we simply began recording. I had to do one rehearsal with the musicians for them to know the sequence of the songs and how everything was supposed to be. We began filming and, with the help of Hashem, we produced something incredible, which later also sold incredibly well…” As of yet, only the audio CD is available. When will the real thing be available? MBD: “Actually, we’re at the finishing stages. It is only due to some technical delays that it has not yet been completed. In truth, I’ve never produced a CD of this kind, and so I was unsure as to how long it would take to produce it. The yomim tovim have also held things up, but with the help of Hashem, the CD will be out sooner than later. I’m sitting with the computer people over the final technical details and I expect the CD to be in stores even before Chanukah. Was this your original plan - to produce first the audio CD and then the visual one? MBD: “Yes, we thought about that to begin with. The delays of the visual CD only strengthened our previous decision. Besides, we received information that excerpts from the recording were already rolling around between the yeshiva bachurim. One of the boys must have gotten hold of it somehow, and when you have something that others don’t, you’ve got a real metziah… Unfortunately, ‘lo signov’ didn’t have its affect this time, or maybe they have some other interpretation of the transgression… This concern was also one of the factors that caused us to first produce the audio CD. And how are the sales? MBD: “Baruch Hashem, it’s going very well. I received great feedback the likes of which I don’t remember ever receiving. Everyone enjoys the CD, and all this is even before the visual CD.” Where did you do the filming? MBD: “Mostly, as I’ve said, on the balcony of a roof in the Jewish Quarter, facing Har Habayis. There were three cameras from different angles, and an additional camera on a roof that was above ours, all at the same time. On the CD there are also aerial shots from helicopters that filmed the Har Habayis and the Jewish Quarter from great heights. There are amazing photographs that have never been seen before. There are people out there who’ve never been to the Kosel and these pictures can give them a feeling as if they have. Why did you choose the idea of Kumzitz for a visual CD, as opposed to one of new songs and professional clips? MBD: “Firstly, I’ll disclose to you that there will be a clip on the song Ma’aminim- something astonishing. Besides, the public enjoys CDs of this kind.” Did you ask around? MBD: “I did a survey. This is something that the world of music is lacking, and that people very much desire. On Chol Hamoed Sukkos I was in Geulah and I went into one of the stores to buy a yarmulkah. The owner of the store came over to me and said, “May I ask you for a favor? It would be great if you’d produce particularly such a CD. It’s what makes my yom tov great.” The special style of the singing appeals very much to people, it makes them feel connected. It’s more basic, they can easily join in and sing along, much more than on the CDs where I just sing on my own. From all of your thousands of songs, why did you specifically pick these songs? MBD: First of all, these are songs that I personally love, but I also took the public into account. People just love these songs, which they can relate to. They’re songs with a special ambience, which very much suits the setting. Is it also because of the words? MBD: Definitely. Shwecki’s song, Rachem, which speaks of Yerushalayim and the Bais Hamikdosh, and Carlebach’s ‘V’liyerushalayim Ircha’. Words that suit the place in which we chose to do the filming, facing the Har Habayis and the area of the Bais Hamikdosh. And by the way, we’ve recorded additional songs that don’t appear in the audio CD, but will im yirtza Hashem appear in the visual CD. Who are the musicians participating in the production? MBD: “They’re all Torah and Mitzvos observant, I was very stringent about that. For example, the famous Avi Piamenta and the the drummer as well. The percussionist is a baal teshuvah who has worked in the past with the Tipex Band. Then there’s the bass player Aryeh Berkowitz, and Gershon Freistatt, among other religious guitarists. I’ve always looked to work with such chevra and Baruch Hashem it has always been a great success. What about the musical arrangements to the compositions? MBD: Eli Laufer, a most talented young fellow, arranged the new song ‘Al zeh hayah’. The other songs don’t have new arrangments, they’re based on their original flavor. It’s just a different style with acoustical instruments- 3 acoustical guitars instead of electronic ones. We wanted a sound that befits a Kumzitz, quieter and tranquil, and Baruch Hashem the sound is beautiful. Who produced the CD? MBD: “My son Yeedle. Sharon Daniel arranged the technicalities- musicians and the likes, yet the actually production is Yeedle’s.” How much time did you spend on this project? MBD: We spent more than a year, yet with some breaks. As I’ve said before, there were occasional delays. We worked a lot during the evening hours, before sunset, s