Come on in to Hampstead Synagogue, Dennington Park Road. It is 1930, and here is the Friday night service, with Chazan and Choir.
This book is by Rev. Wolf Stoloff. He was born in Shervint, near Kovno, Lithuania, and came to England in 1895. He married Ada Wolk in 1897 at the New West End Synagogue, St Petersburg Place. After serving as chazan and shochet in Stroud, Hastings, and Southampton, he was appointed “temporary reader” at Hampstead in 1899. He became its its permanent chazan in 1902 and ultimately its longest serving chazan until his retirement in 1931. He was also the congregation’s secretary (1902-1910). He was known for his excellent musical knowledge.
Hampstead Synagogue was known for its strong but controversial musical tradition, with paid choristers and a mixed choir (later abolished).
Rev. Stoloff took a special interest in the training of children-and established classes in Hampstead, to inspire them with the beauty of Judaism and the Hebrew language. He was one of the founders of the now defunct Kilburn Talmud Torah and other educational institutions.
He published, from time to time, little pamphlets in which he expounded his original tunes.
This book was his final effort, published a year before he retired. It was intended for children, demonstrating a requirement for children to read music. There are two parts. The first is simply a clear English translation of the Friday evening service. The second is the music, which is reproduced below. The interesting thing about the music, quite disconcerting at first, is that each Hebrew syllable is written in Hebrew from left to right, instead of right to left, so that it follows the direction of the musical notes.
The book was printed by Israel Narodiczky in Whitechapel.
Jewish Miscellanies 