There was no rehearsal history behind the musical partnership that took over Main Street on Chol HaMoed Sukkot. Aryeh Kunstler and Shimon Deri had never met before that night. By the time the Fifth Annual Queens Unity Sukkot Concert was underway, however, that fact would have been difficult to guess.
The September 29 gathering near Haym Salomon Square drew thousands to Kew Gardens Hills for an evening of music and Simchat Beit HaShoeva. Kunstler and Deri come from different corners of the Jewish music scene. Kunstler has built a strong following among Ashkenazic audiences, while Deri is well known in Sephardic circles. Their first meeting quickly became a natural collaboration, with each bringing a distinct sound to the stage.
DJ Ezra Eliyahu, now of Lakewood, returned for another year, adding another dimension to the program. Together, the three offered a varied musical lineup that connected with the broad audience gathered along Main Street.
The celebration extended beyond the stage. Parents brought children toward the front, youngsters watched from their parents’ shoulders, and families gathered throughout the closed roadway. Some children even got their own opportunity behind the microphone. As the evening progressed, dancing spread through the crowd, with circles continually taking shape as more people joined.
One of the most telling moments came near the end. Previous editions of the concert had seen attendance gradually diminish as the hour grew later. This time, the street remained packed through the closing portion of the program, maintaining the same lively atmosphere well into the night.
The festivities also included a public expression of gratitude. Assembly Member Sam Berger presented an award to Police Officer Kevin McCarthy of the NYPD Community Affairs Bureau, recognizing years of assistance and friendship to the Jewish community. The plaque thanked Officer McCarthy for his protection, determination, and service, including his efforts to help make events possible even when complicated arrangements must be completed on short notice.
Officer McCarthy received the honor alongside fellow Community Affairs Officer Tim Gorman. Event organizer Rabbi Yaakov Horvitz and representatives of Margaret Tietz Nursing and Rehabilitation Center and Queens Shmira joined the presentation. The recognition offered a glimpse of the coordination behind an event of this size and the partnerships that help make it possible.
Support for the fifth annual concert came from Boulevard ALP Assisted Living, EMU Health, Chabad Youth Queens, Chabad of Flushing, Ohr Avner, the Queens Jewish Community Council, Margaret Tietz Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, and Kand Law. This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
For several hours that Tuesday night, an ordinary Kew Gardens Hills intersection became something altogether different. Traffic gave way to music, families filled the roadway, and two singers who had arrived as strangers finished the night performing together before thousands — a fitting image for a Queens Sukkot celebration built around bringing people together.
A First-Time Musical Pairing Brings Queens Together On Sukkot
Typography
- Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
- Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times
- Reading Mode