Algazi, Leon
ALGAZI, LEON
ALGAZI, LEON (Yehudah ; 1890–1971), conductor, composer, and collector of Jewish music. Algazi, who was born in Romania, studied music in Vienna and Paris, and graduated from the Ecole Rabbinique de France. From his early studies with Abraham *Idelsohn, he acquired an interest in Jewish folklore and tradition. For many years, he taught at the Ecole de Liturgie et de Pédagogie in Paris. From 1929 he presented a weekly program of Jewish music on the French radio, and in 1937 became conductor at the Rue de la Victoire Synagogue. He helped to establish the "Mizmor" section of the Salabert publishing house, taught Jewish music at the Schola Cantorum (1936–40), and in 1961 was elected director of music for the temples of the Paris Consistoire. Among Algazi's many compositions of liturgical and folkloristic character are Service sacré pour le samedi matin et pour le vendredi soir (New York, 1955), orchestral suites, psalms, harmonizations of traditional songs, and incidental music for the cinema and the theater. He published one extemely valuable collection, Chants séphardis (London, 1958). He also wrote essays on Jewish music in many scholarly publications.
bibliography:
Sendrey, Music, nos. 488, 2901, 6275, 9121.
[Hanoch Avenary]