Bracha Jaffe, mother of five — including toddler twin boys — is a nurse practitioner and star singer
Both my parents are musical — my father plays the trumpet and has a beautiful voice; my mother plays accordion and integrates music into ordinary days. A beloved teacher, she was always teaching her students songs about the time of year, various concepts, Yiddishkeit.
As I got older, it was trendy to audition for a frum girls’ choir. I auditioned for a popular all-girls children’s choir — and was passed over. It was a low blow to my self-esteem, but I picked myself up and auditioned for Malky Giniger. Malky was accepting a select few girls into her choir and I was one of those chosen.
Malky was a role model for me. I remember watching her perform with Kinneret at a concert, and being overwhelmed by the beauty of their performances.
On a high after watching them perform, I did something completely unheard of 20-something years ago: I asked my parents for voice lessons. They’ve always been my most stalwart supporters, and they agreed. That’s how I went from being a girl with a pretty voice to a professionally trained singer.
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