Jackson gracefully weaves together history, politics, ethnography, and her own reflections, so that the audience ultimately feels quite at home in a textually portrayed world that most readers will not know first-hand, or, in the case of those who are familiar, will likely gain new insights and perspectives . . . [T]his is an engrossing, informative, and thought-provoking volume that ... Read moreI enjoyed, learned from, and recommend.
Dr. Judith R. Cohen
Sephardic Horizons
This study of Maftirim, a paraliturgical musical suite sung by men in Istanbul synagogues on Saturday afternoons, is a valuable addition to a growing literature on the cultural life of minorities in Ottoman Turkey and the modern Turkish Republic . . . This book is elegantly written, deeply researched, and beautifully illustrated. It achieves a great deal in its five short chapters.
Martin Stokes
American Historical Review
This remarkable book provides a 'thick description' of the social relations that produced this music . . . Jackson's eminently clear and graceful writing style will help to make the topic available to a wider readership in ethnomusicology as well as Middle Eastern and Judaic studies . . . [T]his book is both a remarkable snapshot of the situation of maftirim in the middle of the first decade of the 21st century as well as a retrospective view of conditions during the transition from Empire to Republic . . . We are grateful to Maureen Jackson for providing us with multiple insights on these topics.
Walter Feldman
International Journal of Middle East Studies
By treating the private, discrete narratives of individual figures, this innovative book brings to life the nuances of daily existence and social accommodation in the musical culture of modern Turkish Jews. This refreshing approach provides new insights on topics that have been left unsaid by more conventional narratives about this subject.
Edwin Seroussi
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
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