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A Well Deserved Tribute

07/08/2020 08:44:40 AM

Aug7

Dear Congregational Family,

During the early part of this week, we marked the tenth yahrzeit ot our beloved Chazzan, Louis Danto, Zichrono L'Veracha, of blessed memory. On Thursday, the Toronto Council of Chazzanim presented a live tribute concert in his memory. Almost 300 people attended on Zoom from 2:00-3:45pm. Several cantors from our area spoke and performed beautifully in Cantor Danto's memory. A thirty minute video of his career was interspersed with words of Torah and music.

I was given the privilege of sharing a Dvar Torah. Among the classical criteria for serving as an emissary of the community are being humble, being acceptable to the community, being versed in Jewish texts, and being knowledgeable of nusach. Cantor Danto excelled in all. In addition, I was always impressed by his sincerity of heart, love for the Jewish people, and his pleasant voice, also essential qualifications for a chazzan.

For the first ten years of my Beth Emeth rabbinate, I was gifted to know Cantor Danto as a teacher, colleague, and friend. Until his passing, I lived a stone's throw away - my family on Blue Forest Drive, with him and Rouhama on Maxwell Drive. Often, Cantor Danto and I would walk home together after Shabbat services on Friday evening and Shabbat afternoon.

During Chanukah, we thank God with the words, "Danta et dinam - You, God, adjudicated our case." At Beth Emeth, we pronounced those words, "DANTO et dinam, you, Chazzan Danto, represented us before God to adjudicate our case."

The Haftarah for this Shabbat concludes with God comforting the Jewish people after the period of the first Temple, restoring joy, gladness, gratitude and the voice of melody.

We will remember over four decades served by Chazzan Louis Danto bringing us the spirituality of joy, gladness gratitude, and the voice of melody.

May his memory always be for a blessing.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Howard Morrison

 

Thu, 28 March 2024 18 Adar II 5784