Simon Sargon

SIMON SARGON (1938-2022) was a renowned composer, pianist, conductor, and educator whose rich and varied body of work may be heard throughout the U.S. and abroad. Highly regarded by musicians and audiences alike, Sargon's compositions include liturgical and secular pieces; opera and musical theatre; works for youth ensemble; choral and art song; chamber ensemble and symphonic works. The Dallas Symphony Orchestra premiered several of his works to critical acclaim and the prestigious Milken Archive of Jewish Music and Hampsong Foundation's Song of America include several of his works in their collections. During his 27-year tenure as Director of Music at Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, Texas he led one of the most distinguished programs in American Jewish music and also served on the music faculty of Southern Methodist University as director of the Opera Theatre and Professor of Composition. His compositions are published by Transcontinental Music and Hal Leonard, among others, and his work as composer and pianist may be heard on the New World, Crystal, Klavier, Ongaku, and Gasparo labels. In November of 2021, the Park Avenue Synagogue in New York City premiered Sargon’s haunting and dramatic multi-movement work, Azkara: A Jewish Requiem, as part of its Kristallnacht commemoration program, "A Jewish Requiem: Music, Memory, and the Will to See."

"[As for 'Elul Midnight: A Cantata of Penitence'] it is a remarkable work by a remarkable composer... it transcends sectarian limits and takes on a universal significance; it may be regarded (to borrow a phrase from Ernest Bloch) as part of the 'gift of Judaism to the whole of mankind.' "
Dallas Observer

"...lyrical, melodic, spare yet fitting the voice perfectly, Sargon's songs can stand easily with the best the twentieth century has to offer."
NATS Journal of Singing

"[Symphony No. 1: Holocaust] ... a dramatic and effective work that used a broad orchestral palette- including a number of unusual instruments- and stark contrasts between reflective passages and moments of angry dissonance. Included among the former was some very attractive melodic material... [Sargon] has added something important and rare to music..."
Dallas Times Herald

"What a marvelous, tuneful, appealing piece this is! ...Sargon's is a name to be reckoned with among those in the know...['Divertimento for Piano and Orchestra'] is tinged with jazz elements-- though with discretion and taste-- yet sounds like American music should: vigorous, wide open, and optimistic, even in the face of tragedy. The piano writing is linear rather than chordal, and the orchestra contributes some lovely solo playing. Certainly this is a composer worth paying attention to. "
American Record Guide

LISTEN ON SPOTIFY