As we stand on Erev Yom Kippur, a time of heartfelt tefillah, we go back in time to the chazanim whose voices once reverberated in Boro Park of yore. 

Chazzan Leib Lange

In 1933, Chazzan Lange came to America. His first Yomim Nora’im, he sang in Chicago in the great Nusach Sfard Shul. The second Yomim Noro’im, he davened in the renowned Sfardishe Shul of Boro Park. In this time, Chazzan Lange has traveled throughout the United States and Canada, and has received recognition everywhere from music critics both for his dramatic tenor voice as well as for his deeply traditional davening. 

Chazzan Avrohom Zev Kleiman 

Chazzan Kleiman, who is also known as Zeidele Tetiver, was born forty years ago in Tetiev, in the Kiev region of Ukraine, to Rebe Moshe and Devorah Kleiman, who were chassidishe people. Avrohom Zev learned in the in the beis hamedrosh until he was seventeen years old, while at the same time singing by the town’s chazzan who was a student of the great Nissan Belzer. 

Being an ardent Zionist, he journeyed to Eretz Yisroel and sang in Tel Aviv, Petach Tikvah, Rishon Lezion and Gedera. He then came to America, and was the chazzan in the Pri Etz Chaim Shul in Flatbush, Fordham Talmud Torah, Ocean Parkway Center, Tikvas Yisroel of the Concourse (Bronx), in Cleveland and in Boston. He is now the chazzan of the Beis Knesses Ha’ivri of Boro Park (this was on 43rd Street, and the current site of the Kavonas Halev Shul), the only shul where the mispalelim speak in Hebrew. Chazzan Kleiman has great success in his davening.  

Chazzan Wolf Greenfeld 

Chazzan Yisroel Zev, known as Volf Greenfeld, was born in a Hungarian shtetl Siladi-Shimlau to Chassidic parents. As a young boy, he sang with the local chazzan Berele Klein as an alto. Later, he sang by the renowned Chazzan Chaim Rizenberg in Ungvar. As a young tenor, he sang the by the genius of tefillah, the world-renowned Chazzan Yankel Bachman in Budapest where he learned much from him in davening and in music. At the same time, he learned voice development and music by Professor Lazarus. 

His first position in America was in Mapleton Park Hebrew Institute at 66th Street (right outside Boro Park) in Brooklyn where he served with great honor for five years. 

Chazzan Chaim Kupperschmidt 

Chazzan Kupperschmidt is the ba’al tefillah of First Congregation Anshei Sfard of Boro Park. He greets the Chazzonim Union of America and Canada, its president and vice presidents, and all the members of the union in honor of this forty year anniversary of the union. He wishes the union and its activists that their herculean efforts to raise the level of chazzonus in America should bear fruit, and it should be fulfilled “those who sow with tears will reap with joy.” 

Chazzan R’ Nachman Yosef Ginsporg 

Chazzan Ginsporg was born in Kishinev, Moldova, to orthodox parents. His father is the local rov, and is known under the name Reb Moishele Dayan. It is self-uderstood that he received a strictly religious upbringing. 

He had a number of positions in Russia, and later in Kishivev and Romania, and then he came to America nine years ago. He was connected for a number of years with First Congregation Anshei Sfard of Boro Park where he served with great honor. He is now the chazzan in Congregation Anshei Sfard of Lynn, Massachusetts where he highly regarded not only as a chazzan but also as a communal askan.