Knowing where we come from gives us purpose and passion as we find our way forward
Sruli Adler
Growing up as the son of famous Chazzan Chaim Adler, the chief cantor of Jerusalem’s Great Synagogue, I always figured it was no big deal to perform in front of a crowd. The same way some people worked on a computer, or other people drilled teeth, my family sang in front of hundreds or thousands of people. It was something we enjoyed, something that came naturally.
Then, when I was about nine years old, I traveled with my father to New York to sing at a high-end wedding in Manhattan. And to my surprise, I saw my father pacing back and forth over his notes, humming and singing and repeating snatches of melody. Could it be — was my father nervous?
“Abba, what’s going on?” I asked him. “You just performed at the Siyum HaShas, in front of thousands of people, and I don’t remember you being nervous at all. What’s happening?”
“Let me tell you something, Sruli,” he said. “I may sing at hundreds of weddings, but for the young couple getting married tonight, this is the first — and hopefully only — time they will be standing under the chuppah. For their sake, I have to practice. I have to get it right.”
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