Bluegrass Unites: A Musical Collaboration Between an Orthodox Jew and Evangelical Christian
by Trent Gilliss, senior editor
Bluegrass. One never quite knows where this quintessential American music form might pop up or whom it might unite. Leave it to the podcast Vox Tablet to highlight the story of country music star Ricky Skaggs and klezmer virtuoso Andy Statman, who have recorded a gorgeous rendition of the eighteenth-century hymn “The Lord Will Provide” for Statman’s new album Old Brooklyn.
The audio piece above details how these two men, an Evangelical Christian from a small town in eastern Kentucky and an Orthodox Jew raised in Queens, found each other and came to play together. Their recounting of the first time Skaggs visited Statman’s schul is a wonderful testimony to the power of music and its ability to bring people together, helping folks discover the absolute delight of other religious communities.
Protagonists help organizations become more competitive. After all, the word compete comes from the Latin com petire, which means ‘to seek together.’ Their intent is to not to antagonize, but to drive towards something. Protagonists are willing to name things others don’t yet see; they point to new horizons. Without them, the storyline never changes.
— Nilofer Merchant, from “Are You a Rebel or a Leader?”
Hopefully this excerpt from yesterday’s Harvard Business Review provides some value for us all as we move forward in our daily work lives. Some days it’s really hard to navigate and rise above the struggles of corporate life and haggling hierarchy.
But, this piece creates a space to remember that, even in the most frustrating times, we work with many hard-working folks who have the best of intentions and different approaches to addressing issues. Perhaps it offers some helpful ways of thinking, which avoids the demonization of the other and fresh possibilities for creating new conversations with colleagues.
(photo: James Duncan Davidson/O’Reilly Media/Good Company Communications, licensed under Creative Commons)
by Trent Gilliss, senior editor
