"People swipe a new song and they decide if they like it or not within the first ten seconds"

Monsey-based musician,

Nachman Natan Dreyer,

is lead guitarist for the Freilach Band. Born in Jerusalem’s Meah Shearim neighborhood, he began to study guitar as a teenager, and was soon performing with clarinetist Chilik Frank and saxophonist Ahrele Bender. Over a decade ago, he joined the top-tier Freilach Band, under the direction of Avrumi Schreiber. Nachman also teaches and does private studio work for many leading artists in the industry

MY MOST MEMORABLE SIMCHAH

Playing for Rav Mota Frank’s son’s wedding in Uman, Ukraine, last winter. While I’m a Breslover chassid, I usually only travel to Uman for Rosh Hashanah, so even the journey itself felt very special. Even before the plane touched down in Kiev, I felt an incredible burst of energy. Then there was the whole magical evening itself: to be next to Rebbe Nachman, playing at a wedding that overflowed with genuine joy for a mashpia with whom I’m personally very close. Everyone who was there was fully absorbed in the simchah — this was nothing like a regular, nice wedding party.

A SONG THAT ALWAYS ENERGIZES THE CROWD

The song “Ahalelah” — composed by Yaakov Yosef Buksbaum of Skver and released as a single by Ahrele Samet — is one of those. We’ve been playing it at every wedding for the past few years, somewhere toward the beginning of the first dance. It’s definitely here to stay. Then there’s “Baruch Hashem” by Zusha and Pumpedisa. If I look down at the crowd when we play it, it’s always pumping.

WHAT'S CHANGED IN THE LAST FEW YEARS

People swipe a new song and they decide if they like it or not within the first ten seconds. That’s faster than it took in the old days just to unwrap the plastic from the cassette and put it in your tape deck.

THE FIRST SONG I LEARNED HOW TO PLAY

“Hinei Mah Tov U’mah Na’im,” the old Israeli camp tune. I was 16 at the time, learning in yeshivah in Jerusalem , when I met up with a bochur named Kahane, a rebbishe einikel from the Spinka chassidus, who played a little classical guitar. I had always wanted to play guitar. He lived just a few blocks away from yeshivah, so I went over to his house after seder and he taught me a few chords. Then I borrowed a music book from him. “Hinei Mah Tov” was one of the easier songs, on around page five of the book, because it has only three chords. At first I was self-taught, and later on I found some teachers to study with. I would say I’m definitely still learning new things. After all, it’s the age of information, and so much knowledge is available online. A musician has to keep learning and improving, otherwise his music becomes stale.

MY FAVORITE SHABBOS ZEMIROS

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov’s beautiful “Azamer Bishvachin.” We sing it right after Hamotzi every Friday night. The Breslover minhag is to wash, eat a piece of challah to begin the seudah, then sing these holy words of the Arizal.

A MUSICAL ARTIST WHO I REALLY CONNECT WITH

Shuli Rand is one. I love the fact that both Shuli’s personality and his stage persona are so real. What you see is what you get. He's not staging anything or trying to sound like someone else. I also love the trend of which Shuli and Ishay Ribo are at the forefront, writing their own lyrics rather than singing pesukim. Shuli’s songwriting is done to perfection, and each of his songs is a story from his life, a lesson in philosophy, or a mussar haskel.

MUSIC I ORIGINALLY COULDN’T CONNECT TO, BUT LATER FOUND THAT IT GREW ON ME

When I was young, I couldn’t understand how people listened to chazzanus. I thought it sounded like people screaming and I hated it. Today I see its beauty and have great pleasure listening to it. I’m especially a fan of Chazzan Pierre Pinchik’s recordings, and I enjoy listening to Itche Meir Helfgot and Yanky Lemmer.

A NEAR-DISASTER

I once played at an event where the stage collapsed in the middle. Luckily, it wasn’t too high, and the musicians were fine.

A SONG THAT TAKES ME BACK TO CHILDHOOD

When I was a kid, Chaim Banet’s “Machnisei Rachamim” was being played everywhere.

A SONG THAT GETS ME EMOTIONAL EVERY SINGLE TIME

There is an old Chabad song, a niggun with the words from Tehillim 62, “Ach el Elokim dumi nafshi, ki mimenu sikvasi…” I find the combination of the words and niggun together very powerful. Chabad niggunim often don’t have words, but when they do, they always match the tune perfectly.

THE SONGS A GUITARIST LOVES TO PLAY

Any song which has a great rhythm, or, even better, has a guitar solo. But of course, every guitarist is his own musician.

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 818)