Greek Choir votes against performing with Jewish Choir

Australian Jewish leaders have expressed their disappointment at the decision of a Greek choir not to perform with a Jewish choir at a concert.

A joint Jewish-Greek choral concert, “Concert for Hope and Unity,” planned to raise funds for Bondi Beach massacre victims’ families, was cancelled according to The Australian, following internal opposition from members of the Australian Hellenic Choir to performing alongside a Jewish choir.

The vote, taken last Monday ahead of rehearsals, reportedly saw more than half of the choir’s 50 members object on political grounds, others cited safety fears.

Anne Spira, chairperson, Sydney Jewish Choral Society told The AJN, “Like many other Jewish artists in Australia since 7 October 2023, our Choir has been cancelled. We have been de-platformed and it is deeply upsetting for us and for the broader Jewish community who have been the target of anti-Jewish racism in Australia for two and a half years.”

Australian Hellenic Choir president James Tsolakis, who initiated the event, described himself as “disappointed and pretty upset.”

However, the Australian Hellenic Choir released the following statement on its website:

“Recent media coverage has inaccurately suggested that members of the Australian Hellenic Choir are antisemitic. This is not true! The Choir stands for inclusivity, respect, and cultural exchange. Antisemitism, or any other form of discrimination, has no place in our organisation.

“It is also untrue that The Australian Hellenic Choir refused to sing with the Sydney Jewish Choral Society in a concert titled Hope and Unity. This performance was proposed to the Choir only last week, and was scheduled for 28 June. This date was deemed too close to an end of May concert the choir has been rehearsing for. As a result, the majority of the choir voted against participating, due to time constraints.  Antisemitism had no place in this decision whatsoever!

“Comments published in the initial article in The Australian on 28 April and then taken up by the international media, were made by an individual without authorisation from the Committee and do not reflect the views or values of the Choir or its members. The Committee has taken appropriate steps to clarify the record with the publication.

We thank members and supporters for their continued trust and reaffirm our commitment to transparency, good governance and respectful community engagement.”

The two choirs had previously collaborated in 2022, performing the Ballad of Mauthausen – a work inspired by the love of a Greek prisoner of war for a Jewish prisoner in the Nazi concentration camp of Mauthausen in Austria. Tsolakis had hoped to reprise that spirit of solidarity after the Bondi attack.

The NSW Government had approved $15,000 for the concert, Tsolakis said the funding would go to support the families of the Bondi victims.

Greek leaders condemn cancellation

Presidents of the Greek and Cypriot communities in Australia have condemned the Hellenic Choir’s actions.

Cyprus Community of Melbourne and Victoria president Theo Theophanous commented to Neos Kosmos, “As the President of the Cyprus Community of Melbourne and Victoria I do not believe that Greeks and Greek Cypriots support the decision of the Australian Hellenic Choir to refuse to participate in a planned Jewish- Greek benefit concert in support of the families of the victims of the Bondi terrorist attack which led to the event being cancelled.”

“They have set back Greek Jewish Community relations and indeed the strong friendship and cooperation on issues to tackle antisemitism between Greece Cyprus and Israel.”

Theophanous added that he did not believe that the “timing issue” claimed by the choir is credible.

“There was no attempt to reschedule—only cancellation, despite full awareness of the timeline when the commitment was made. Instead of deflection, the Choir should offer a sincere apology for the hurt caused to both the Greek and Jewish communities, and to the families of those murdered in Bondi. As the president of the Cypriot Community of Melbourne Victoria, I say, we stand with our Jewish Australian brothers and sisters and the victims of the Bondi Terrorist attack.”

Meanwhile, John Kallimanis, President of New Democracy in Sydney, the party ruling  Greece, called the action “an anti-Hellenic”. He told Neos Kosmos, “By no means does this tiny minority represent the inclusive and pro-Jewish sentiments of the broader Greek Australian community. New Democracy in North Australia (Sydney) condemns such a stance and behaviour in the most emphatic way.”

While the president of the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) Bill Papastergiadis expressed to Neos Kosmos, that as the president “the largest Greek community in Australia – I am deeply disappointed with what occurred”.

“I see the failure to go ahead shows a lack of leadership on behalf of the Choir management. If someone did not want to perform then they should, as individuals withdrawal.

“I want to make clear that the Greek community of Melbourne (GCM) stands shoulder to shoulder with the Australian Jewish community. What occurred in Bondi was an abomination and an attack on all of us.”

“A concert as was proposed builds our historic links with the Jewish Diaspora and should never be a victim to self styled advocates and worse overseas events.”

The AJN understands from a credible source within the Australian Greek community that the leadership of the choir has lost the community’s confidence and there are calls for disbandment.

Australian Jewish community leaders respond

Australian Jewish leaders expressed their concern at the cancellation.

Vic Alhadeff, former chair of Multicultural NSW and former chief executive of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies who has Greek ancestry, had been invited to emcee the event. He told The AJN: “The decision by some choristers to pull the plug on the event was extremely hurtful to the Jewish community and very unfortunate. That said, the Australian Greek and Jewish communities have enjoyed a long and collaborative friendship, and our hope is that the two choirs will again share a platform in the near future.”

Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council Interfaith liaison Rabbi Ralph Genende said to The AJN, “I am heartbroken at the decision of the Greek choir. An opportunity for unity has been squandered. These are fractious times when courage is needed in the face of fear ,misunderstanding and intimidation. We need to remind ourselves and our friends that the only thing to fear is fear itself. This decision may discourage those of us in Interfaith and multicultural work but should not defeat us. It convinces me that we need to continue to strengthen our work among people of goodwill; to increase the love that binds people of faith.”

National Council of Jewish Women president Lynda Ben-Menashe remarked, “Reading about this choir’s boycott of Jews is shocking, even though we are well aware that there is a great deal of antisemitism in some areas of Greek society. A number of Jewish women have told us they’ve left singing groups and choirs, because of antisemitic or anti-Zionist bias in the programming or directly from other members.

“Personally I’m grateful for the many Greek friends of our community, including genocide scholars like Dr Panayiotis Diamides, Tina Contos, of the Hellenic Lyceum of Sydney and the wonderful photographer Vasilios Vasilas, who donates his services to NCJWA for many of our events.”

Ben Adler, director of SHIR — Australian Jewish Music Festival, was dismayed by the cancellation:

“As a Jewish artist, we are consigned to one or two options, either to be hated, largely because of antizionist blood libels, or to be punished for being hated that is people don’t want to associate with us or participate with us, because we know that other people may target us because they hate us, and either way, that fate is the same, that we end up being de-platformed and canceled from artistic endeavours and from the cultural public landscape of Australia.” He said he doubted whether the people who voted for this would be ok with that happening to any other minority group.”

The Jewish Hellenic Association of Victoria’s (JHAV) Dean Kalimnou expressed its sadness, telling Neos Kosmos:

“JHAV respects the concerns and sensitivities of all involved and acknowledges the complexities of the present moment. At the same time, we affirm firmly and without hesitation that antisemitism, intolerance and communal suspicion have no place within Australian society. We further affirm that disagreement over international affairs can never justify hostility towards Jewish Australians, just as violence and hatred can never be answered by silence or withdrawal.

“We commend those who sought to create this concert as an act of hope and unity and express our sincere disappointment that it could not proceed. We remain steadfast in our belief that music, culture and shared remembrance are bridges, not battlegrounds.

“The answer to hatred is not separation but robust debate and principled solidarity. The answer to violence is not retreat but insistence that our common humanity will prevail. The Jewish Hellenic Association of Victoria stands with all those committed to ensuring that intolerance and violence will not win the day.”