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Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as <mask> () and also referred to by the acronym Rambam (), was a medieval Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah scholars of the Middle Ages. In his time, he was also a preeminent astronomer and physician, serving as the personal physician of Saladin. Born in Córdoba, Almoravid Empire (present-day Spain) on Passover eve, 1138 (or 1135), he worked as a rabbi, physician and philosopher in Morocco and Egypt. He died in Egypt on 12 December 1204, whence his body was taken to the lower Galilee and buried in Tiberias. During his lifetime, most Jews greeted <mask>' writings on Jewish law and ethics with acclaim and gratitude, even as far away as Iraq and Yemen. Yet, while <mask> rose to become the revered head of the Jewish community in Egypt, his writings also had vociferous critics, particularly in Spain. Nonetheless, he was posthumously acknowledged as one of the foremost rabbinic decisors and philosophers in Jewish history, and his copious work comprises a cornerstone of Jewish scholarship.His fourteen-volume Mishneh Torah still carries significant canonical authority as a codification of Halacha. He is sometimes known as "ha'Nesher ha'Gadol" (The Great Eagle) in recognition of his outstanding status as a bona fide exponent of the Oral Torah. Aside from being revered by Jewish historians, <mask> also figures very prominently in the history of Islamic and Arab sciences and he is mentioned extensively in studies. Influenced by Al-Farabi, Ibn Sina, and his contemporary Ibn Rushd, he became a prominent philosopher and polymath in both the Jewish and Islamic worlds. On his tomb is inscribed "From Moses to Moses there was none like Moses". Name
His full Hebrew name is Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon (), whose acronym forms "Rambam" (). His full Arabic name is  (), or  () for short.The portion bin ʿUbaidallāh should not imply that Maimon's father was named Obadiah, instead bin ʿUbaidallāh is treated as <mask>' surname, as Obadiah was the name of his earliest direct ancestor. In Latin, the Hebrew ben (son of) becomes the Greek-style patronymic suffix -ides, forming "<mask>". Biography

Early years
<mask> was born 1138 in Córdoba, Andalusia, in the Muslim-ruled Almoravid Empire, during what some scholars consider to be the end of the golden age of Jewish culture in the Iberian Peninsula, after the first centuries of the Moorish rule. His father Maimon ben Joseph, was a Spanish dayyan (Jewish judge), whose family claimed direct paternal descent from Simeon ben Judah ha-Nasi, and thus from the Davidic line. Maimonides later stated that there are 38 generations between him and Judah ha-Nasi. His ancestry, going back four generations, is given in his Iggeret Teiman (Epistle to Yemen), as Moses son of Maimon the Judge (hadayan), son of Joseph the Wise (הֶחָכָם, he-chakham), son of Isaac the Rabbi (הָרָב, harav), son of Obadiah the Judge. At an early age, <mask> developed an interest in sciences and philosophy.He read those Greek philosophers accessible in Arabic translations, and was deeply immersed in the sciences and learning of Islamic culture. <mask> was not known as a supporter of Kabbalah, although a strong intellectual type of mysticism has been discerned in his philosophy. He expressed disapproval of poetry, the best of which he declared to be false, since it was founded on pure invention. This sage, who was revered for his personality as well as for his writings, led a busy life, and wrote many of his works while travelling or in temporary accommodation. <mask> studied Torah under his father, who had in turn studied under Rabbi Joseph ibn Migash, a student of Isaac Alfasi. Exile
Another Berber dynasty, the Almohads, conquered Córdoba in 1148 and abolished dhimmi status (i.e., state protection of non-Muslims ensured through payment of a tax, the jizya) in some of their territories. The loss of this status left the Jewish and Christian communities with conversion to Islam, death, or exile.Many Jews were forced to convert, but due to suspicion by the authorities of fake conversions, the new converts had to wear identifying clothing that set them apart and made them subject to public scrutiny. <mask>'s family, along with most other Jews, chose exile. The question whether <mask> himself was among those who had to convert to Islam in order to save his life prior to fleeing the area, has been the subject of scholarly debate. This forced conversion was ruled legally invalid under Islamic law when brought up by a rival in Egypt. For the next ten years, <mask> moved about in southern Spain, eventually settling in Fez in Morocco. During this time, he composed his acclaimed commentary on the Mishnah, during the years 1166–1168. Some say that his teacher in Fez was Rabbi Yehuda Ha-Cohen Ibn Susan, until he was killed in 1165.Following this sojourn in Morocco, together with two sons, he sojourned in the Land of Israel before settling in Fustat in Fatimid Caliphate-controlled Egypt around 1168. While in Cairo, he studied in a yeshiva attached to a small synagogue, which now bears his name. In the Land of Israel, he prayed at the Temple Mount. He wrote that this day of visiting the Temple Mount was a day of holiness for him and his descendants. <mask> shortly thereafter was instrumental in helping rescue Jews taken captive during the Christian Amalric of Jerusalem's siege of the southeastern Nile Delta town of Bilbeis. He sent five letters to the Jewish communities of Lower Egypt asking them to pool money together to pay the ransom. The money was collected and then given to two judges sent to Palestine to negotiate with the Crusaders.The captives were eventually released. Death of his brother

Following this triumph, the Maimonides family, hoping to increase their wealth, gave their savings to his brother, the youngest son David ben Maimon, a merchant. <mask> directed his brother to procure goods only at the Sudanese port of ʽAydhab. After a long arduous trip through the desert, however, David was unimpressed by the goods on offer there. Against his brother's wishes, David boarded a ship for India, since great wealth was to be found in the East. Before he could reach his destination, David drowned at sea sometime between 1169 and 1177. The death of his brother caused <mask> to become sick with grief.In a letter discovered in the Cairo Geniza, he wrote:

Nagid

Around 1171, <mask> was appointed the Nagid of the Egyptian Jewish community. Arabist Shelomo Dov Goitein believes the leadership he displayed during the ransoming of the Crusader captives led to this appointment. However he was replaced by Sar Shalom ben Moses in 1173. Over the controversial course of Sar Shalom's appointment, during which Sar Shalom was accused of tax farming, <mask> excommunicated and fought with him for several years until <mask> was appointed Nagid in 1195. A work known as "Megillat Zutta" was written by Abraham ben Hillel, who writes a scathing description of Sar Shalom while praising Maimonides as "the light of east and west and unique master and marvel of the generation." With the loss of the family funds tied up in David's business venture, <mask> assumed the vocation of physician, for which he was to become famous. He had trained in medicine in both Córdoba and in Fez.Gaining widespread recognition, he was appointed court physician to al-Qadi al-Fadil, the chief secretary to Sultan Saladin, then to Saladin himself; after whose death he remained a physician to the Ayyubid dynasty. In his medical writings, Maimonides described many conditions, including asthma, diabetes, hepatitis, and pneumonia, and he emphasized moderation and a healthy lifestyle. His treatises became influential for generations of physicians. He was knowledgeable about Greek and Arabic medicine, and followed the principles of humorism in the tradition of Galen. He did not blindly accept authority but used his own observation and experience. Julia Bess Frank indicates that Maimonides in his medical writings sought to interpret works of authorities so that they could become acceptable. Maimonides displayed in his interactions with patients attributes that today would be called intercultural awareness and respect for the patient's Autonomy.Although he frequently wrote of his longing for solitude in order to come closer to God and to extend his reflections – elements considered essential in his philosophy to the prophetic experience -he gave over most of his time to caring for others. In a famous letter, <mask> describes his daily routine. After visiting the Sultan's palace, he would arrive home exhausted and hungry, where "I would find the antechambers filled with gentiles and Jews … I would go to heal them, and write prescriptions for their illnesses … until the evening … and I would be extremely weak." As he goes on to say in this letter, even on Shabbat he would receive members of the community. It is remarkable that he managed to write extended treatises, including not only medical and other scientific studies but some of the most systematically thought-through and influential treatises on halakha (rabbinic law) and Jewish philosophy of the Middle Ages. Joseph Karo later praised Maimonides, writing of him, "Maimonides is the greatest of the decisors [of Jewish law], and all communities of the Land of Israel and of Arabia and of the Maghreb base their practices after him, and have taken him upon themselves as their rabbi." In 1173/4, <mask> wrote his famous Epistle to Yemen.It has been suggested that his "incessant travail" undermined his own health and brought about his death at 69 (although this is a normal lifespan). Death

<mask> died on 12 December 1204 (20th of Tevet 4965) in Fustat. It is widely believed that he was briefly buried in the beth midrash of the synagogue courtyard, and soon afterward, in accordance with his wishes, his remains were exhumed and taken to Tiberias, where they were re-interred. The Tomb of <mask> on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee in Israel marks his grave. This location for his final resting-place has been debated, for in the Jewish Cairene community, a tradition holds that he remained buried in Egypt. <mask> and his wife, the daughter of Mishael ben Yeshayahu Halevi, had one child who survived into adulthood, <mask>, who became recognized as a great scholar. He succeeded <mask> as Nagid and as court physician at the age of eighteen.Throughout his career, he defended his father's writings against all critics. The office of Nagid was held by the Maimonides family for four successive generations until the end of the 14th century. <mask> is widely respected in Spain, and a statue of him was erected near the Córdoba Synagogue. <mask> is sometimes said to be a descendant of King David, although he never made such a claim. Thirteen principles of faith

In his commentary on the Mishnah (tractate Sanhedrin, chapter 10), <mask> formulates his "13 principles of faith"; and that these principles summarized what he viewed as the required beliefs of Judaism:
 The existence of God. God's unity and indivisibility into elements. God's spirituality and incorporeality.God's eternity. God alone should be the object of worship. Revelation through God's prophets. The preeminence of Moses among the prophets. That the entire Torah (both the Written and Oral law) are of Divine origin and were dictated to Moses by God on Mt. Sinai. The Torah given by Moses is permanent and will not be replaced or changed.God's awareness of all human actions and thoughts. Reward of righteousness and punishment of evil. The coming of the Jewish Messiah. The resurrection of the dead. <mask> is said to have compiled the principles from various Talmudic sources. These principles were controversial when first proposed, evoking criticism by Rabbis Hasdai Crescas and Joseph Albo, and were effectively ignored by much of the Jewish community for the next few centuries. However, these principles have become widely held and are considered to be the cardinal principles of faith for Orthodox Jews.Two poetic restatements of these principles (Ani Ma'amin and Yigdal) eventually became canonized in many editions of the "Siddur" (Jewish prayer book). The principles can be seen listed in the Siddur Edot HaMizrach, Additions for Shacharit The omission of a list of these principles as such within his later works, the Mishneh Torah and The Guide for the Perplexed, has lead some to suggest that either he retracted his earlier position, or that these principles are descriptive rather than prescriptive. Legal works

With Mishneh Torah, <mask> composed a code of Jewish law with the widest-possible scope and depth. The work gathers all the binding laws from the Talmud, and incorporates the positions of the Geonim (post-Talmudic early Medieval scholars, mainly from Mesopotamia). Later codes of Jewish law, e.g. Arba'ah Turim by Rabbi Jacob ben Asher and Shulchan Aruch by Rabbi Yosef Karo, draw heavily on Mishneh Torah: both often quote whole sections verbatim. However, it met initially with much opposition.There were two main reasons for this opposition. First, <mask> had refrained from adding references to his work for the sake of brevity; second, in the introduction, he gave the impression of wanting to "cut out" study of the Talmud, to arrive at a conclusion in Jewish law, although <mask> later wrote that this was not his intent. His most forceful opponents were the rabbis of Provence (Southern France), and a running critique by Rabbi Abraham ben David (Raavad III) is printed in virtually all editions of Mishneh Torah. It was still recognized as a monumental contribution to the systemized writing of halakha. Throughout the centuries, it has been widely studied and its halakhic decisions have weighed heavily in later rulings. In response to those who would attempt to force followers of <mask> and his Mishneh Torah to abide by the rulings of his own Shulchan Aruch or other later works, Rabbi Yosef Karo wrote: "Who would dare force communities who follow the Rambam to follow any other decisor, early or late? … The Rambam is the greatest of the decisors, and all the communities of the Land of Israel and the Arabistan and the Maghreb practice according to his word, and accepted him as their rabbi."An oft-cited legal maxim from his pen is: "It is better and more satisfactory to acquit a thousand guilty persons than to put a single innocent one to death." He argued that executing a defendant on anything less than absolute certainty would lead to a slippery slope of decreasing burdens of proof, until we would be convicting merely according to the judge's caprice. Scholars specializing in the study of the history and subculture of Judaism in premodern China (Sino-Judaica) have noted surprising similarities between this work and the liturgy of the Kaifeng Jews, descendants of Persian Jewish merchants who settled in the Middle Kingdom during the early Song dynasty. Beyond scriptural

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 similarities, Michael Pollak comments the Jews' Pentateuch was divided into 53 sections according to the Persian style. He also points out:

Tzedakah (charity)
One of the sections of the Mishneh Torah is the section dealing with tzedakah. In Hilkhot Matanot Aniyim (Laws about Giving to Poor People), Chapter 10:7–14, <mask> lists his famous Eight Levels of Giving (where the first level is most preferable, and the eighth the least):

 Giving an interest-free loan to a person in need; forming a partnership with a person in need; giving a grant to a person in need; finding a job for a person in need; so long as that loan, grant, partnership, or job results in the person no longer living by relying upon others. Giving tzedakah anonymously to an unknown recipient via a person (or public fund) which is trustworthy, wise, and can perform acts of tzedakah with your money in a most impeccable fashion.Giving tzedakah anonymously to a known recipient. Giving tzedakah publicly to an unknown recipient. Giving tzedakah before being asked. Giving adequately after being asked. Giving willingly, but inadequately. Giving "in sadness" (giving out of pity): It is thought that <mask> was referring to giving because of the sad feelings one might have in seeing people in need (as opposed to giving because it is a religious obligation). Other translations say "Giving unwillingly."Philosophy

Through The Guide for the Perplexed (which was initially written in Arabic as Dalālat al-ḥāʾirīn) and the philosophical introductions to sections of his commentaries on the Mishna, <mask> exerted an important influence on the Scholastic philosophers, especially on Albertus Magnus, Thomas Aquinas and Duns Scotus. He was a Jewish Scholastic. Educated more by reading the works of Arab Muslim philosophers than by personal contact with Arabian teachers, he acquired an intimate acquaintance not only with Arab Muslim philosophy, but with the doctrines of Aristotle. <mask> strove to reconcile Aristotelianism and science with the teachings of the Torah. In his Guide for the Perplexed, he often explains the function and purpose of the statutory provisions contained in the Torah against the backdrop of the historical conditions. <mask> is said to have been influenced by Asaph the Jew, who was the first Hebrew medical writer. Theology

<mask> equated the God of Abraham to what philosophers refer to as the Necessary Being.God is unique in the universe, and the Torah commands that one love and fear God (Deut 10:12) on account of that uniqueness. To Maimonides, this meant that one ought to contemplate God's works and to marvel at the order and wisdom that went into their creation. When one does this, one inevitably comes to love God and to sense how insignificant one is in comparison to God. This is the basis of the Torah. The principle that inspired his philosophical activity was identical to a fundamental tenet of scholasticism: there can be no contradiction between the truths which God has revealed and the findings of the human mind in science and philosophy. <mask> primarily relied upon the science of Aristotle and the teachings of the Talmud, commonly finding basis in the former for the latter. <mask>' admiration for the Neoplatonic commentators led him to doctrines which the later Scholastics did not accept.For instance, <mask> was an adherent of apophatic theology. In this theology, one attempts to describe God through negative attributes. For instance, one should not say that God exists in the usual sense of the term; it can be said that God is not non-existent. We should not say that "God is wise"; but we can say that "God is not ignorant," i.e., in some way, God has some properties of knowledge. We should not say that "God is One," but we can state that "there is no multiplicity in God's being." In brief, the attempt is to gain and express knowledge of God by describing what God is not, rather than by describing what God "is." <mask> argued adamantly that God is not corporeal.This was central to his thinking about the sin of idolatry. <mask> insisted that all of the anthropomorphic phrases pertaining to God in sacred texts are to be interpreted metaphorically. A related tenet of Maimonidean theology is the notion that the commandments (especially those relates sacrifices) are intend to help wean the Israelites away from idolatry. Character development

<mask> taught about the developing of one's moral character. Although his life predated the modern concept of a personality, <mask> believed that each person has an innate disposition along an ethical and emotional spectrum. Although one's disposition is often determined by factors outside of one's control, human beings have free will to choose to behave in ways that build character. He wrote, "One is obligated to conduct his affairs with others in a gentle and pleasing manner."Maimonides advised those with anti-social character traits ought to identify those traits and then make a conscious effort to behave in the opposite way. For example, an arrogant person should practice humility. If the circumstances of one's environment are such that it is impossible to behave ethically, one must move to a new location. Prophecy
He agrees with "the Philosopher" (Aristotle) in teaching that the use of logic is the "right" way of thinking. In order to build an inner understanding of how to know God, every human being must, by study, meditation and uncompromising strong will, attain the degree of complete logical, spiritual and physical perfection required in the prophetic state. Here he rejects previous ideas (especially portrayed by Rabbi Yehuda Halevi in "Hakuzari") that in order to become a prophet, God must intervene. <mask> claims that any man or woman has the potential to become a prophet (not just Jews) and that in fact it is the purpose of the human race.The problem of evil
<mask> wrote on theodicy (the philosophical attempt to reconcile the existence of a God with the existence of evil). He took the premise that an omnipotent and good God exists. In The Guide for the Perplexed, <mask> writes that all the evil that exists within human beings stems from their individual attributes, while all good comes from a universally shared humanity (Guide 3:8). He says that there are people who are guided by higher purpose, and there are those who are guided by physicality and must strive to find the higher purpose with which to guide their actions. To justify the existence of evil, assuming God is both omnipotent and omnibenevolent, <mask> postulates that one who created something by causing its opposite not to exist is not the same as creating something that exists; so evil is merely the absence of good. God did not create evil, rather God created good, and evil exists where good is absent (Guide 3:10). Therefore, all good is divine invention, and evil both is not and comes secondarily.Maimonides contests the common view that evil outweighs good in the world. He says that if one were to examine existence only in terms of humanity, then that person may observe evil to dominate good, but if one looks at the whole of the universe, then he sees good is significantly more common than evil (Guide 3:12). Man, he reasons, is too insignificant a figure in God's myriad works to be their primary characterizing force, and so when people see mostly evil in their lives, they are not taking into account the extent of positive Creation outside of themselves. Maimonides believes that there are three types of evil in the world: evil caused by nature, evil that people bring upon others, and evil man brings upon himself (Guide 3:12). The first type of evil Maimonides states is the rarest form, but arguably of the most necessary—the balance of life and death in both the human and animal worlds itself, he recognizes, is essential to God's plan. Maimonides writes that the second type of evil is relatively rare, and that humanity brings it upon itself. The third type of evil humans bring upon themselves and is the source of most of the ills of the world.These are the result of people's falling victim to their physical desires. To prevent the majority of evil which stems from harm we do to ourselves, we must learn how to respond to our bodily urges. On poisons and death

In a separate work recently translated from Arabic, <mask> warns against lethal drugs which he calls poisons. According to this work these poisons will cause the most severe apathies, and the decay of the human being's vigor right up to death. Skepticism of astrology

<mask> answered an inquiry concerning astrology, addressed to him from Marseille. He responded that man should believe only what can be supported either by rational proof, by the evidence of the senses, or by trustworthy authority. He affirms that he had studied astrology, and that it does not deserve to be described as a science.He ridicules the concept that the fate of a man could be dependent upon the constellations; he argues that such a theory would rob life of purpose, and would make man a slave of destiny. True beliefs versus necessary beliefs
In The Guide for the Perplexed Book III, Chapter 28, Maimonides draws a distinction between "true beliefs," which were beliefs about God that produced intellectual perfection, and "necessary beliefs," which were conducive to improving social order. Maimonides places anthropomorphic personification statements about God in the latter class. He uses as an example the notion that God becomes "angry" with people who do wrong. In the view of Maimonides (taken from Avicenna), God does not become angry with people, as God has no human passions; but it is important for them to believe God does, so that they desist from doing wrong. Eschatology

The Messianic era
Perhaps one of Maimonides's most highly acclaimed and renowned writings is his treatise on the Messianic era, written originally in Judeo-Arabic and which he elaborates on in great detail in his Commentary on the Mishnah (Introduction to the 10th chapter of tractate Sanhedrin, also known as Pereḳ Ḥeleḳ). (Open window for text)

Resurrection

Religious Jews believed in immortality in a spiritual sense, and most believed that the future would include a messianic era and a resurrection of the dead.This is the subject of Jewish eschatology. <mask> wrote much on this topic, but in most cases he wrote about the immortality of the soul for people of perfected intellect; his writings were usually not about the resurrection of dead bodies. Rabbis of his day were critical of this aspect of this thought, and there was controversy over his true views. Eventually, <mask> felt pressured to write a treatise on the subject, known as "The Treatise on Resurrection." In it, he wrote that those who claimed that he believed the verses of the Hebrew Bible referring to the resurrection were only allegorical were spreading falsehoods. <mask> asserts that belief in resurrection is a fundamental truth of Judaism about which there is no disagreement. While his position on the World to Come (non-corporeal eternal life as described above) may be seen as being in contradiction with his position on bodily resurrection, <mask> resolved them with a then unique solution: <mask> believed that the resurrection was not permanent or general.In his view, God never violates the laws of nature. Rather, divine interaction is by way of angels, whom Maimonides often regards to be metaphors for the laws of nature, the principles by which the physical universe operates, or Platonic eternal forms. [This is not always the case. In Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah Chaps. 2–4, Maimonides describes angels that are actually created beings.] Thus, if a unique event actually occurs, even if it is perceived as a miracle, it is not a violation of the world's order. In this view, any dead who are resurrected must eventually die again.In his discussion of the 13 principles of faith, the first five deal with knowledge of God, the next four deal with prophecy and the Torah, while the last four deal with reward, punishment and the ultimate redemption. In this discussion Maimonides says nothing of a universal resurrection. All he says it is that whatever resurrection does take place, it will occur at an indeterminate time before the world to come, which he repeatedly states will be purely spiritual. The World to Come
<mask> distinguishes two kinds of intelligence in man, the one material in the sense of being dependent on, and influenced by, the body, and the other immaterial, that is, independent of the bodily organism. The latter is a direct emanation from the universal active intellect; this is his interpretation of the noûs poietikós of Aristotelian philosophy. It is acquired as the result of the efforts of the soul to attain a correct knowledge of the absolute, pure intelligence of God. The knowledge of God is a form of knowledge which develops in us the immaterial intelligence, and thus confers on man an immaterial, spiritual nature.This confers on the soul that perfection in which human happiness consists, and endows the soul with immortality. One who has attained a correct knowledge of God has reached a condition of existence, which renders him immune from all the accidents of fortune, from all the allurements of sin, and from death itself. Man is in a position to work out his own salvation and his immortality. Spinoza's doctrine of immortality was strikingly similar. But Spinoza teaches that the way to attain the knowledge which confers immortality is the progress from sense-knowledge through scientific knowledge to philosophical intuition of all things sub specie æternitatis, while <mask> holds that the road to perfection and immortality is the path of duty as described in the Torah and the rabbinic understanding of the oral law. Maimonides describes the world to come as the stage after a person lives his or her life in this world as well as the final state of existence after the Messianic Era. Some time after the resurrection of the dead, souls will live forever without bodies.They will enjoy the radiance of the Divine Presence without the need for food, drink or sexual pleasures. <mask> and Kabbalah

In The Guide for the Perplexed, <mask> declares his intention to conceal from the average reader his explanations of Sod  esoteric meanings of Torah. The nature of these "secrets" is debated. Religious Jewish rationalists, and the mainstream academic view, read <mask>' Aristotelianism as a mutually-exclusive alternative metaphysics to Kabbalah. Some academics hold that <mask>' project fought against the Proto-Kabbalah of his time. However, many Kabbalists and their heirs read Maimonides according to Kabbalah or as an actual covert subscriber to Kabbalah, due to the similarities between the Kabbalistic approach and <mask>' approach toward interpreting the Bible with metaphor, <mask>' understanding of God through attributes of action, thought and negative attributes, <mask>' description of the roles of the imagination and intellect in

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 life, sin, and prophesy, <mask>' assertion that the commandments have a function that can be understood, and <mask>' description of a 3-tiered cosmic order whereby God's will is implemented through a system of angels. According to this, he employed rationalism to defend Judaism rather than limit inquiry of Sod only to rationalism.His rationalism, if not taken as an opposition, also assisted the Kabbalists, purifying their transmitted teaching from mistaken corporeal interpretations that could have been made from Hekhalot literature, though Kabbalists held that their theosophy alone allowed human access to Divine mysteries. The Oath of Maimonides
The Oath of Maimonides is a document about the medical calling and recited as a substitute for the Hippocratic Oath. It is not to be confused with a more lengthy Prayer of Maimonides. These documents may not have been written by Maimonides, but later. The Prayer appeared first in print in 1793 and has been attributed to Markus Herz, a German physician, pupil of Immanuel Kant. Views on circumcision
In The Guide for the Perplexed, Maimonides proposes that two important purposes of circumcision (brit milah) are to temper sexual desire and to join in an affirmation of faith and the covenant of Abraham:

Influence

<mask>' Mishneh Torah is considered by Jews even today as one of the chief authoritative codifications of Jewish law and ethics. It is exceptional for its logical construction, concise and clear expression and extraordinary learning, so that it became a standard against which other later codifications were often measured.It is still closely studied in rabbinic yeshivot (seminaries). The first to compile a comprehensive lexicon containing an alphabetically-arranged list of difficult words found in <mask>' Mishne Torah was Tanḥum ha-Yerushalmi (1220–1291). A popular medieval saying that also served as his epitaph states, From Mosheh (of the Torah) to Mosheh (Maimonides) there was none like Mosheh. It chiefly referred to his rabbinic writings. But <mask> was also one of the most influential figures in medieval Jewish philosophy. His brilliant adaptation of Aristotelian thought to Biblical faith deeply impressed later Jewish thinkers, and had an unexpected immediate historical impact. Some more acculturated Jews in the century that followed his death, particularly in Spain, sought to apply <mask>'s Aristotelianism in ways that undercut traditionalist belief and observance, giving rise to an intellectual controversy in Spanish and southern French Jewish circles.The intensity of debate spurred Catholic Church interventions against "heresy" and a general confiscation of rabbinic texts. In reaction, the more radical interpretations of Maimonides were defeated. At least amongst Ashkenazi Jews, there was a tendency to ignore his specifically philosophical writings and to stress instead the rabbinic and halakhic writings. These writings often included considerable philosophical chapters or discussions in support of halakhic observance; David Hartman observes that <mask> clearly expressed "the traditional support for a philosophical understanding of God both in the Aggadah of Talmud and in the behavior of the hasid [the pious Jew]." Maimonidean thought continues to influence traditionally observant Jews. The most rigorous medieval critique of <mask> is Hasdai Crescas's Or Adonai. Crescas bucked the eclectic trend, by demolishing the certainty of the Aristotelian world-view, not only in religious matters but also in the most basic areas of medieval science (such as physics and geometry).Crescas's critique provoked a number of 15th-century scholars to write defenses of Maimonides. A partial translation of Crescas was produced by Harry Austryn Wolfson of Harvard University in 1929. Because of his path-finding synthesis of Aristotle and Biblical faith, <mask> had an influence on the great Christian theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas who refers to Maimonides in several of his works, including the Commentary on the Sentences. <mask>'s combined abilities in the fields of theology, philosophy and medicine make his work attractive today as a source during discussions of evolving norms in these fields, particularly medicine. An example is the modern citation of his method of determining death of the body in the controversy regarding declaration of death to permit organ donation for transplantation. <mask> and the Modernists
<mask> remains one of the most widely debated Jewish thinkers among modern scholars. He has been adopted as a symbol and an intellectual hero by almost all major movements in modern Judaism, and has proven important to philosophers such as Leo Strauss; and his views on the importance of humility have been taken up by modern humanist philosophers.In academia, particularly within the area of Jewish Studies, the teaching of <mask> has been dominated by traditional scholars, generally Orthodox, who place a very strong emphasis on Maimonides as a rationalist; one result is that certain sides of <mask>'s thought, including his opposition to anthropocentrism, have been obviated. There are movements in some postmodern circles to claim Maimonides for other purposes, as within the discourse of ecotheology. <mask>'s reconciliation of the philosophical and the traditional has given his legacy an extremely diverse and dynamic quality. Tributes and memorials

<mask> has been memorialized in numerous ways. For example, one of the Learning Communities at the Tufts University School of Medicine bears his name. There is also Maimonides School in Brookline, Massachusetts, Maimonides Academy School in Los Angeles, California, Lycée Maïmonide in Casablanca, the Brauser Maimonides Academy in Hollywood, Florida, and Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York. Beit Harambam Congregation, a Sephardi synagogue in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is named after him.Issued from May 8, 1986 to 1985, the Series A of the Israeli New Shekel featured an illustration of <mask> on the obverse and the place of his burial in Tiberias on the reverse on its 1-shekel bill. In 2004, conferences were held at Yale, Florida International University, Penn State, and the Rambam Hospital in Haifa, Israel, which is named after him. To commemorate the 800th anniversary of his death, Harvard University issued a memorial volume. In 1953, the Israel Postal Authority issued a postage stamp of Maimonides, pictured. In March 2008, during the Euromed Conference of Ministers of Tourism, The Tourism Ministries of Israel, Morocco and Spain agreed to work together on a joint project that will trace the footsteps of the Rambam and thus boost religious tourism in the cities of Córdoba, Fes and Tiberias. Between December 2018 and January 2019 the Israel Museum held a special exhibit dedicated to the writings of Maimonides. Works and bibliography

Judaic and philosophical works

Maimonides composed works of Jewish scholarship, rabbinic law, philosophy, and medical texts.Most of <mask>'s works were written in Judeo-Arabic. However, the Mishneh Torah was written in Hebrew. His Jewish texts were:
 Commentary on the Mishna (Arabic Kitab al-Siraj, translated into Hebrew as Pirush Hamishnayot), written in Classical Arabic using the Hebrew alphabet. This was the first full commentary ever written on the entire Mishnah, which took <mask> seven years to complete, and it enjoyed great popularity both in its Arabic original and its medieval Hebrew translation. The commentary includes three philosophical introductions which were also highly influential:
 The Introduction to the Mishnah deals with the nature of the oral law, the distinction between the prophet and the sage, and the organizational structure of the Mishnah. The Introduction to Mishnah Sanhedrin, chapter ten (Perek Helek), is an eschatological essay that concludes with <mask>'s famous creed ("the thirteen principles of faith"). The Introduction to Tractate Avot (popularly called The Eight Chapters) is an ethical treatise.Sefer Hamitzvot (trans. The Book of Commandments). In this work, <mask> lists all the 613 mitzvot traditionally contained in the Torah (Pentateuch). He describes fourteen shorashim (roots or principles) to guide his selection. Sefer Ha'shamad (letter of Martydom)
 Mishneh Torah, a comprehensive code of Jewish law. It is also known as Yad ha-Chazaka or simply Yad/"יד" which has the numerical value 14, representing the 14 books of the work. The Guide for the Perplexed, a philosophical work harmonising and differentiating Aristotle's philosophy and Jewish theology.Written in Judeo-Arabic, and completed between 1186 and 1190. The first translation of this work into Hebrew was done by Samuel ibn Tibbon in 1204. Teshuvot, collected correspondence and responsa, including a number of public letters (on resurrection and the afterlife, on conversion to other faiths, and Iggereth Teiman – addressed to the oppressed Jewry of Yemen). Hilkhot ha-Yerushalmi, a fragment of a commentary on the Jerusalem Talmud, identified and published by Saul Lieberman in 1947. Medical works
Maimonides' achievements in the medical field are well known, and are cited by many medieval authors. One of his more important medical works is his Guide to Good Health (Regimen Sanitis) which he composed in Arabic for the Sultan al-Afdal, son of Saladin, who suffered from depression. The work was translated into Latin, and published in Florence in 1477, becoming the first medical book to appear in print there.While his prescriptions may have become obsolete, "his ideas about preventive medicine, public hygiene, approach to the suffering patient, and the preservation of the health of the soul have not become obsolete." <mask> wrote ten known medical works in Arabic that have been translated by the Jewish medical ethicist Fred Rosner into contemporary English. Lectures, conferences and research on Maimonides, even recently in the 21st century, have been done at medical universities in Morocco. Regimen Sanitatis, Suessmann Muntner (ed. ), Mossad Harav Kook: Jerusalem 1963 (translated into Hebrew by Moshe Ibn Tibbon) ()
 The Art of Cure – Extracts from Galen (Barzel, 1992, Vol. 5) is essentially an extract of Galen's extensive writings. Commentary on the Aphorisms of Hippocrates (Rosner, 1987, Vol.2; Hebrew: פירוש לפרקי אבוקראט) is interspersed with his own views. Medical Aphorisms of Moses (Rosner, 1989, Vol. 3) titled Fusul Musa in Arabic ("Chapters of Moses," Hebrew: פרקי משה) contains 1500 aphorisms and many medical conditions are described. Treatise on Hemorrhoids (in Rosner, 1984, Vol. 1; Hebrew: ברפואת הטחורים) discusses also digestion and food. Treatise on Cohabitation (in Rosner, 1984, Vol. 1) contains recipes as aphrodisiacs and anti-aphrodisiacs.Treatise on Asthma (Rosner, 1994, Vol. 6) discusses climates and diets and their effect on asthma and emphasizes the need for clean air. Treatise on Poisons and Their Antidotes (in Rosner, 1984, Vol. 1) is an early toxicology textbook that remained popular for centuries. Regimen of Health (in Rosner, 1990, Vol. 4; Hebrew: הנהגת הבריאות) is a discourse on healthy living and the mind-body connection. Discourse on the Explanation of Fits advocates healthy living and the avoidance of overabundance.Glossary of Drug Names (Rosner, 1992, Vol. 7) represents a pharmacopeia with 405 paragraphs with the names of drugs in Arabic, Greek, Syrian, Persian, Berber, and Spanish. Treatise on logic
The Treatise on Logic (Arabic: Maqala Fi-Sinat Al-Mantiq) has been printed 17 times, including editions in Latin (1527), German (1805, 1822, 1833, 1828), French (1935), and English (1938), and in an abridged Hebrew form. The work illustrates the essentials of Aristotelian logic to be found in the teachings of the great Islamic philosophers such as Avicenna and, above all, Al-Farabi, "the Second Master," the "First Master" being Aristotle. In his work devoted to the Treatise, Rémi Brague stresses the fact that Al-Farabi is the only philosopher mentioned therein. This indicates a line of conduct for the reader, who must read the text keeping in mind Al-Farabi's works on logic. In the Hebrew versions, the Treatise is called The words of Logic which describes the bulk of the work.The author explains the technical meaning of the words used by logicians. The Treatise duly inventories the terms used by the logician and indicates what they refer to. The work proceeds rationally through a lexicon of philosophical terms to a summary of higher philosophical topics, in 14 chapters corresponding to <mask>'s birthdate of 14 Nissan. The number 14 recurs in many of <mask>'s works. Each chapter offers a cluster of associated notions. The meaning of the words is explained and illustrated with examples. At the end of each chapter, the author carefully draws up the list of words studied.Until very recently, it was accepted that <mask> wrote the Treatise on Logic in his twenties or even in his teen years. Herbert Davidson has raised questions about <mask>'s authorship of this short work (and of other short works traditionally attributed to <mask>). He maintains that <mask> was not the author at all, based on a report of two Arabic-language manuscripts, unavailable to Western investigators in Asia Minor. Rabbi Yosef Kafih maintained that it is by <mask> and newly translated it to Hebrew (as Beiur M'lekhet HaHiggayon) from the Judeo-Arabic. See also
 Averroes
 Iggeret Teman (Epistle to Yemen)
 Maimonides Foundation
 Mimouna

Notes

References

See also

Bibliography

  Originally published by the Jewish Publication of America, Philadelphia. See especially chapters 10 through 15. (Volume 5 translated by Uriel Barzel; foreword by Fred Rosner.)Jewish National and University Library
 Facsimile edition of Moreh Nevukhim/The Guide for the Perplexed (illuminated Hebrew manuscript, Barcelona, 1347–48). The Royal Library, Copenhagen
 University of Cambridge Library collection of Judeo-Arabic letters and manuscripts written by or to Maimonides. It includes the last letter his brother David sent him before drowning at sea. A. Ashur, A newly discovered medical recipe written by Maimonides
 M.A Friedman and A. Ashur, A newly-discovered autograph responsum of Maimonides

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1204 deaths
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Court physicians
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<mask> "<mask>" <mask> (17 October 1936 – 20 August 2013) was a South African vocalist and composer, based for nearly 45 years in New York City. Early life
She was born <mask> in Claremont, Cape Town, South Africa; her father, <mask>, was from the island of St. Helena off the coast of West Africa, and her mother, Evelyn Henry, had roots in Mauritius and the Philippines. As an adolescent, she first performed popular music in talent contests at the local cinema (bioscope) during the intermission. By the 1950s she was singing at various nightclubs, community dances and social events, performing with notable Cape Town pianists Tony Schilder and Henry February, among others. She built her repertoire watching British and American movies and transcribing lyrics from songs heard on the radio, where she discovered Nat King Cole, Billie Holiday, Doris Day, Ella Fitzgerald. These musicians would come to influence her singing style, notably in terms of light phrasing and clear diction. At the age of 21, she joined Arthur Klugman's travelling show Coloured Jazz and Variety on a tour of South Africa.When the production failed, she found herself stranded in Mozambique, where she met South African saxophonist Kippie Moeketsi. In 1959, she returned to Cape Town's now thriving jazz scene, where she met pianist Dollar Brand (later known as Abdullah Ibrahim), whom she would marry in 1965. In that same year she recorded what would have been the first jazz LP in South Africa's history. Entitled My Songs for You, with accompaniment by Ibrahim's trio, the recording of mostly standards was never released. Sharpeville Massacre and Europe
In the aftermath of South Africa's Sharpeville Massacre of 1960, <mask> and Ibrahim left South Africa for Europe. The couple, along with Ibrahim's trio of bassist Johnny Gertze and drummer Makhaya Ntshoko, settled in Zurich, Switzerland, and worked throughout Germany and Scandinavia, meeting and occasionally working with American jazz players, including Don Byas, Dexter Gordon, Kenny Drew, Ben Webster, Bud Powell, John Coltrane, and Thelonious Monk. The artist who would have the greatest impact on <mask>'s life, however, was Duke Ellington.Duke Ellington
<mask> met Ellington while he was in Zurich in 1963. Standing in the wings during most of his band's performance, once the concert ended she insisted that Duke hear her husband's trio at the Club Africana, where Ibrahim's band had a standing engagement. Duke obliged, but insisted that <mask> sing for him. Following this encounter, Ellington arranged for the couple to fly to Paris and record separate albums for Frank Sinatra's Reprise label, for whom Ellington functioned as Artists and Repertoire representative. Ibrahim’s record, Duke Ellington Presents The Dollar Brand Trio, was released the following year and subsequently helped him build a following in Europe and the United States. <mask>’s recording, however, remained unreleased and was presumed to be lost until its release in 1996 by Enja Records, under the title A Morning in Paris. The session's engineer, Gerhard Lerner, had surreptitiously made a second copy.She maintained her musical relationship with Ellington. In 1965, he arranged to have her perform with his band in the U.S. at the Newport Jazz Festival (when she sang the Ellington ballad "Solitude"), and at one point asked her to join his band permanently. Due to her recent marriage to Ibrahim that same year, <mask> declined the offer. South Africa, America, and Ekapa
Throughout the 1960s, <mask> and Ibrahim moved back and forth between Europe and New York City, as Ibrahim worked to establish his career. <mask> spent much of the period as a manager and agent for her husband while raising their son, Tsakwe. The year 1976 marked a turning point for <mask>. She and Ibrahim returned to South Africa to live; she gave birth to her daughter, Tsidi (now the underground hip-hop artist Jean Grae); and recorded African Songbird, an album of original compositions, for South Africa's Gallo Records.Shortly after Tsidi's birth, the family relocated to New York city in 1977, to the famed Hotel Chelsea. In 1979, <mask> started the record label Ekapa to produce and distribute her and Ibrahim's music. Between 1979 and 2002, she released eight of her albums on Ekapa, including Sathima Sings Ellington, Dedications, Memories and Dreams, Windsong, Lovelight, Southern Touch, Cape Town Love, and Musical Echoes. Dedications was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1982. <mask>'s collaborators on these albums have included saxophonist Carlos Ward, pianists Stephen Scott, Kenny Barron, Larry Willis and Onaje Allan Gumbs, bassist Buster Williams and drummers Billy Higgins and Ben Riley. For the most part, <mask> has used American musicians for her U.S. recordings and South African musicians when in Cape Town. Her 2002 recording, Musical Echoes, featured American pianist Stephen Scott with two South Africans, bassist Basil Moses and drummer Lulu Gontsana.Later career
In 2000, Danish second-hand bookdealer and fan of South African jazz Lars Rasmussen published a collection of essays and a discography of <mask>'s music in Sathima Bea Benjamin: Embracing Jazz (Copenhagen, 2000). It contains two compact discs of Sathima's music: Cape Town Love and an Embracing Jazz compilation with photographs. In October 2004, South African president Thabo Mbeki gave her the Order of Ikhamanga Silver Award for "excellent contribution as a jazz artist" and for her contribution "to the struggle against apartheid." In March 2005, the art group Pen and Brush, Inc. presented her with a Certificate of Achievement for her work as a performer, musician, composer, and "activist in the struggle for human rights in South Africa". <mask> was profiled in the March 2006 issue of JazzTimes. Her album SongSpirit, was released on 17 October 2006 in celebration of her 70th birthday. A compilation record, it includes tracks from her earlier albums, plus a previously unreleased duet with Abdullah Ibrahim from 1973.In 2007, <mask> began reissuing her back catalogue for download. Cape Town Love, released 19 June, began the process, while A Morning in Paris was reissued in October 2007 to mark her 71st birthday. It was released for download on 16 October, and reissued on CD on 22 January 2008. In December 2008 she performed at the Apollo Theater at the closing of the concert Bricktop at the Apollo, hosted by film director Jordan Walker-Pearlman. She sang "Someone to Watch Over Me". In 2010, she was the subject of the documentary Sathima's Windsong, directed by author and professor Daniel Yon. In 2011 Duke University Press published Musical Echoes: South African Women Thinking in Jazz, which was written by <mask> and Carol Muller, a South African ethnomusicologist, over the course of twenty years.She returned to Cape Town in 2011, where she continued to work as a vocalist. She died on 20 August 2013 at the age of 76. Discography
 African Songbird with Dollar Brand (The Sun, 1976)
 Sathima Sings Ellington (Ekapa, 1979)
 Dedications (Ekapa, 1982)
 WindSong with Kenny Barron, Buster Williams, Billy Higgins (Ekapa, 1985)
 Memories and Dreams (Ekapa, 1986)
 LoveLight (Ekapa, 1988)
 Southern Touch (Enja, 1989)
 A Morning in Paris (Enja, 1997)
 Musical Echoes (Ekapa, 2002)
 Cape Town Love (Ekapa, 2003)
 Song Spirit (Ekapa, 2006)

References

External links
 Official site
 Jeff Tamarkin, "South African Singer Sathima <mask> <mask> Dies at 76", JazzTimes, 21 August 2012. Percy Zvomuya, "Jazz singer Sathima <mask> <mask> dead at 76", Mail & Guardian, 21 August 2013. "Sathima Bea <mask>, Vocalist", Harlem Speaks, National Jazz Museum in Harlem. 1936 births
2013 deaths
South African jazz singers
Anti-apartheid activists
Jazz
Singers
People from Cape Town
Deaths in South Africa
Recipients of the Order of Ikhamanga

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Edward Benjamin
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Gertrude "<mask><mask> ( Pridgett; April 26, 1886 – December 22, 1939) was an influential American blues singer and early blues recording artist. Dubbed the "Mother of the Blues", she bridged earlier vaudeville and the authentic expression of southern blues, influencing a generation of blues singers. Gertrude Pridgett began performing as a teenager and became known as "<mask>" <mask> after her marriage to Will "Pa<mask> in 1904. They toured with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels and later formed their own group, <mask> and <mask>, Assassinators of the Blues. Her first recording was made in 1923. In the following five years, she made over 100 recordings, including "Bo-Weevil Blues" (1923), "Moonshine Blues" (1923), "See See Rider Blues" (1924), "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" (1927), and "Soon This Morning" (1927). <mask> was known for her powerful vocal abilities, energetic disposition, majestic phrasing, and a "moaning" style of singing.Her qualities are present and most evident in her early recordings "Bo-Weevil Blues" and "Moonshine Blues". <mask> recorded with Thomas Dorsey, Tampa Red, and Louis Armstrong, and she toured and recorded with the Georgia Jazz Band. Touring until 1935, she then largely retired from performing and continued as a theater impresario in her hometown of Columbus, Georgia, until her death four years later. Early life
There is uncertainty about the birth date of Gertrude Pridgett. Some sources indicate that she was born in 1882, while most sources assert that she was born on April 26, 1886. Pridgett claimed to have been born on April 26, 1886 (beginning with the 1910 census, taken April 25, 1910), in Columbus, Georgia. However, the 1900 census indicates that she was born in September 1882 in Alabama, and researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc suggest that her birthplace was in Russell County, Alabama.She was the second of five children of Thomas and Ella (née Allen) Pridgett, from Alabama. She had at least two brothers and a sister, <mask> Pridgett Nix. In February 1904, <mask> married William "Pa<mask>. She took on the stage name "<mask>", which was "a play on her husband’s nickname, 'Pa. Early career
Pridgett began her career as a performer at a talent show in Columbus, Georgia, when she was approximately 12 to 14 years old. A member of the First African Baptist Church, she began performing in black minstrel shows. She later claimed that she was first exposed to blues music around 1902.She formed the Alabama Fun Makers Company with her husband, <mask>, but in 1906 they both joined Pat Chappelle's much larger and more popular Rabbit's Foot Company, where they were billed together as "Black Face Song and Dance Comedians, Jubilee Singers [and] Cake Walkers". In 1910, she was described as "Mrs. <mask>, our coon shouter". She continued with the Rabbit's Foot Company after it was taken over by a new owner, F. S. Wolcott, in 1912. <mask> said she found "Blues Music" when she was in Missouri one night performing, and a girl introduced her to a sad song about a man leaving a woman. <mask> said she learned the lyrics of the song and added it to her performances. <mask> claimed she created the term "blues" when asked what kind of song she was singing. Beginning in 1914, the <mask>s were billed as <mask> and <mask>, Assassinators of the Blues.Wintering in New Orleans, she met numerous musicians, including Joe "King" Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Sidney Bechet and Pops Foster. As the popularity of blues music increased, she became well known. Around this time, she met Bessie Smith, a young blues singer who was also making a name for herself. A story later developed that <mask> kidnapped Smith, forced her to join the Rabbit's Foot Minstrels, and taught her to sing the blues; the story was disputed by Smith's sister-in-law <mask>. Recording career

From the late 1910s, there was an increasing demand for recordings by black musicians. In 1920, <mask> Smith was the first black woman to be recorded. In 1923, <mask> was discovered by Paramount Records producer J<mask> Williams.She signed a recording contract with Paramount, and in December she made her first eight recordings in Chicago, including "Bad Luck Blues", "Bo-Weevil Blues" and "Moonshine Blues". She made more than 100 other recordings over the next five years, which brought her fame beyond the South. Paramount marketed her extensively, calling her the "Mother of the Blues", the "Songbird of the South", the "Gold-Neck Woman of the Blues" and the "Paramount Wildcat". In 1924, <mask> recorded with Louis Armstrong, including on "Jelly Bean Blues", "Countin' the Blues" and "See, See Rider". In the same year, she embarked on a tour of the Theater Owners Booking Association (TOBA) in the South and Midwest of the United States, singing for black and white audiences. She was accompanied by the bandleader and pianist Thomas Dorsey and the band he assembled, the Wildcats Jazz Band. They began their tour with an appearance in Chicago in April 1924 and continued, on and off, until 1928.Dorsey left the group in 1926 because of ill health and was replaced as pianist by Lillian Hardaway Henderson, the wife of <mask>'s cornetist Fuller Henderson, who became the band's leader. Although most of <mask>'s songs that mention sexuality refer to love affairs with men, some of her lyrics contain references to lesbianism or bisexuality, such as the 1928 song "Prove It on Me":

They said I do it, ain't nobody caught me. Sure got to prove it on me. Went out last night with a crowd of my friends. They must've been women, 'cause I don't like no men. It’s true I wear a collar and tie. Makes the wind blow all the while.According to the website queerculturalcenter.org, the lyrics refer to an incident in 1925 in which <mask> was "arrested for taking part in an orgy at [her] home involving women in her chorus". The political activist and scholar Angela Y. Davis noted that Prove It on Me' is a cultural precursor to the lesbian cultural movement of the 1970s, which began to crystallize around the performance and recording of lesbian-affirming songs." At the time, an ad for the song embraced the genderbending outlined in the lyrics and featured <mask> in a three-piece suit, mingling with women while a police officer lurks nearby. Unlike many blues singers of her day, <mask> wrote at least a third of the songs she sang including many of her most famous works such as "Moonshine Blues" and "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" which would become standards of the "classic blues" genre. Throughout the 1920s, <mask> had a reputation for being one of the most dynamic performers in the United States due in large part to her songwriting, showmanship and voice. She and her band could fetch earnings of $350 a week on tour with the Theater Owners’ Booking Association, which was double that of Bessie Brown and George Williams while a little over half what Bessie Smith would ultimately command. Toward the end of the 1920s, live vaudeville went into decline, being replaced by radio and recordings.<mask>'s career was not immediately affected; she continued recording for Paramount and earned enough money from touring to buy a bus with her name on it. In 1928, she worked with Dorsey again and recorded 20 songs, before Paramount terminated her contract. Her style of blues was no longer considered fashionable by the label. It is unclear if she maintained the royalties to her songs after she was fired from Paramount. Personal life and death
<mask> and <mask> adopted a son named Danny who later joined his parents' musical act. <mask> developed a relationship with Bessie Smith. They became so close that rumors circulated that their relationship was possibly also romantic in nature.It was also rumored that Smith once bailed <mask> out of jail. The <mask>s separated in 1916. In 1935, <mask> returned to her home town, Columbus, Georgia, and became the proprietress of three theatres, the Liberty in Columbus, and the Lyric and the Airdrome in Rome, Georgia, until her death. She died of a heart attack in 1939. Legacy and honors
<mask> created what is now known as "classic blues" while also portraying black life like never before. As a musical innovator she built on the minstrelsy and vaudeville performative traditions with comedic timing and a hybrid of American blues traditions she encountered in her vast tours across the country. She helped to pioneer a genre that appealed to North and South, rural and urban audiences.Her signature low and gravelly voice sung with <mask>'s gusto and authoritative style inspired imitators from Louis Armstrong, Janis Joplin and Bonnie Raitt among others. In her lyrics, <mask> portrayed the black female experience like few others of the time reflecting a wide range of emotions and experiences. In her 1999 book Blues Legacies and Black Feminism, Angela Davis wrote that <mask>'s songs are full of women who “explicitly celebrate their right to conduct themselves as expansively and even as undesirably as men". In her songs, she and other black women sleep around for revenge, drink and party all night and generally live lives that "transgressed these ideas of white middle class female respectability". The portrayals of black female sexuality, including those bucking heteronormative standards, fought ideas of what a woman should be and inspired Alice Walker in developing her characters for The Color Purple. Bragging about sexual escapades was popular in men's songs at the time but her use of these themes in her works established her as both fiercely independent and fearless and many have drawn connections between her use of these themes and their modern use in Hip-Hop. <mask> was also a fashion icon who pioneered flashy, expensive costuming in her performances, wearing ostrich plumes, satin gowns, sequins, gold necklaces, diamond tiaras, and gold teeth.<mask> was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. In 1994, the U.S. Post Office issued a 29-cent commemorative postage stamp honoring her. In 2004, "See See Rider Blues" (performed in 1924) was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and was added to the National Recording Registry by the National Recording Preservation Board of the Library of Congress. There was also a small museum opened in Columbus in 2007 to honor <mask>'s legacy. It is in the very house that she had built for her mother and later lived in from 1935 until her death in 1939. The first annual Ma Rainey International Blues Festival was held in April 2016 in Columbus, Georgia, near the home that <mask> owned and lived in at the time of her death. In 2017, the Rainey-McCullers School of the Arts opened in Columbus, Georgia, named in honor of <mask> and author Carson McCullers.In popular culture
Sterling A. Brown wrote the poem "<mask>ey" in 1932, about how "When <mask>ey / comes to town" people everywhere would hear her sing. In 1981, Sandra Lieb wrote the first full-length book about <mask>, Mother of the Blues: A Study of <mask>ey. <mask>'s Black Bottom, a 1982 play by August Wilson, is a fictionalized account of a recording of her song of the same title set in 1927. Theresa Merritt and Whoopi Goldberg starred as <mask> in the Original and Revival Broadway productions, respectively. Viola Davis portrayed <mask> in the 2020 film adaptation of the play and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. Mo'Nique played <mask> in the 2015 television film Bessie about the life of Bessie Smith, for which she earned a nomination for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie.Recordings
This sortable table presents all 94 titles recorded by <mask>. The recording dates are approximated. The classification, by Sandra Lieb, is almost entirely by form. Blues songs which are only partly of twelve-bar structure are classified as mixtures of blues and popular song forms. Songs without any twelve-bar or eight-bar structure are classified as non-blues. The JSP and DOCD columns refer to the two complete CD reissues. Click any label to sort.To return to chronological order, click #. Notes

References

Footnotes

Sources

Further reading
 <mask> and the Classic Blues Singers by Derrick Stewart-Baxter (Stein and Day, 1970)

External links
 Ma Rainey Blues Festival official website
 Gertrude “<mask>” <mask> at the New Georgia Encyclopedia

 <mask> (1886-1939) at Red Hot Jazz Archive

." Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. . Encyclopedia.com. 16 Oct. 2020 . (2020, November 22). Retrieved November 22, 2020, from <mask>, <mask> (1886–1939) | Encyclopedia.com

1880s births
1939 deaths
20th-century American singers
20th-century American women singers
Age controversies
American blues singers
American street performers
20th-century African-American women singers
Baptists from Georgia (U.S. state)
Bisexual musicians
Bisexual women
Classic female blues singers
LGBT African Americans
LGBT people from Georgia (U.S. state)
LGBT people from Alabama
Musicians from Columbus, Georgia
Paramount Records artists
People from Rome, Georgia
Vaudeville performers
LGBT singers from the United States
20th-century Baptists

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<mask> (born 17 August 1971, in Kiltealy, County Wexford, Ireland) is an internationally acclaimed tenor, record producer, and a member of The Irish Tenors. Early life
<mask> is one of six children in a musical family; as a result, his interest in music came at a very early age. Kearns began singing traditional Irish songs with his family and won many singing competitions in his youth, generally in the Sean-nós tradition. He played the button (double row black dot) accordion and various other instruments common in Traditional music. He attended F.C.J. Secondary School Bunclody, singing at Mass and school shows. After leaving school, Kearns studied catering and hotel management, while singing in local musical productions and placing in various singing competitions around the country.<mask> achieved success in 1993 after entering a national radio competition, "Ireland's Search for a Tenor" on the Gay Byrne program, a competition to celebrate the issuing of a new ten pound note (called a "tenner".) The only competitor with no formal training, <mask> won the competition at the finals, held on a city street in Dublin, singing "The Impossible Dream" and "Danny Boy". One of his prizes was an appearance on Gay Byrne's Late Late Show on RTÉ television. After winning the competition, he began training with the renowned Irish opera singer and vocal coach, Veronica Dunne, who had been a judge for the competition. <mask> then began pursuing a full-time career in music. After three years at the Leinster School of Music with Dr. Dunne, he studied at the College of Music in Cardiff [Wales]. Career

1998: The Irish Tenors
Kearns' career took a leap in 1998 when Irish producer Bill Hughes and PBS joined forces to begin The Irish Tenors.<mask>, an original member of The Irish Tenors, collaborated with tenors Ronan Tynan, John McDermott, and Finbar Wright to net Gold, Platinum, and Double Platinum CD recognitions. Their first PBS Special before a live U.S. audience, "Live from Ellis Island," was a tribute to U.S. immigrants. The Irish Tenors are among the top three highest-grossing acts for PBS, raising over $10 million over the course of their collaboration. They continue to tour and produce CDs—and are considered to be one of the most successful singing groups from Ireland in history. In 2006, the trio starred in a nine-part television series, Irish Tenors & Friends, on RTÉ TV. Special guests included Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, Paul Carrick, Finbar Furey, Shayne Ward, Sharon Shannon, Peter Grant, and others. 2006–2012: Broadway and television performances
<mask> teamed up with Bill Hughes again for a PBS project called Hallelujah Broadway, filmed in Prague in February 2010.Hallelujah Broadway has since been broadcast on Irish and U.S. television stations, and Hallelujah Broadway concerts have been presented in various cities in the U.S. as well. <mask> made his debut appearance on the Fox News Network as a solo artist on Huckabee on 24 April 2010, where he shared his "deep passion for music" with former Gov. Mike Huckabee, the program's host. The interview included <mask>' insights about his meteoric career and rise to fame, and a performance by <mask> of "Danny Boy", and "The Lord's Prayer". Said Huckabee after the interview, "When [<mask>] sang 'Danny Boy' and 'The Lord's Prayer' on my show, he had one of the most positive responses of any guest I've had to date." <mask> returned to the show in 2011 to sing "Ave Maria" which he dedicated to U.S. troops. <mask> performed with the Air Force Band at a special Veteran's Day 2012 broadcast "America's Veterans: A Musical Tribute", on Maryland Public Television (a PBS affiliate).2012–2014: Performances for world leaders
Kearns performed at a pre-inaugural brunch, as a guest of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, in tribute to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society on 20 January 2013. Kearns also sang as the guest of Governor Martin O'Malley at the Maryland Democratic Party's Inaugural Ball to celebrate the Inauguration of U.S. President Barack Obama's second term in office. In March 2012, Kearns sang at a benefit honoring Gov. O'Malley and another prominent Irish-American, Governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia. Kearns sang at Gov. McDonnell's Inaugural Gala in 2010 and his bipartisan Prayer Breakfast (with outgoing Governor Tim Kaine) the next day in Richmond, VA. On 19 March 2013, Kearns performed at the 2013 Friends of Ireland Luncheon at the U.S. Capitol as the guest of Speaker of the House John Boehner. Special guests included President Barack Obama and Taoiseach (Prime Minister of Ireland) Enda Kenny, Members of Congress, and foreign dignitaries from Ireland and the United Kingdom.On 27 May 2013, <mask> opened the 2013 National Memorial Day Parade Program in Washington, D.C. with a stirring rendition of "America, the Beautiful," with a 260-member chorus from across the country in front of an estimated crowd of 300,000 people to mark the anniversaries of World War II (70th), the Korean War (60th), and the Vietnam War (50th). On 18 June 2013, <mask> performed at the official U.S. ceremony commemorating the 50th Anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's visit to Ireland on Arlington National Cemetery. This was the first time part of the Eternal Flame was allowed to be taken from the grave site. <mask> appeared on Huckabee to kick off the Christmas season on 1 December 2013, singing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing." That same week, Kearns headlined the 94th Annual Thanksgiving Day Parade (the oldest in the nation) in Philadelphia, PA singing "We Three Kings" before approximately one million parade-goers and 12 million TV viewers. On 14 March 2014, <mask> headlined the 113th Annual St. Patrick's Day Banquet hosted by the Irish Fellowship Club of Chicago.Special guests included Illinois Governor Pat Quinn, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, John McDonough, President and CEO of the Chicago Blackhawks, and others. 2014: National Memorial Day Concert and 9/11 Tribute
In early May 2014, it was announced that Kearns would join a distinguished line-up as a soloist in the 2014 Memorial Day Concert on PBS—a national tradition over the past 25 years. Co-hosted by Tony Award-winner Joe Mantegna and Emmy Award-winner Gary Sinise, the concert is a tribute to America's men and women in uniform, their families, and all those who have given their lives for our country. The event was broadcast live to 10 million viewers nationwide from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol on Sun., 25 May 2014. Before the concert, Jerry Colbert, executive producer and founder of Capital Concerts, said of Kearns, "We're pleased to have <mask> lend his powerful voice for what will be a historic and inspiring tribute to America's service men and women, their families, and all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country." On 12 June 2014, Kearns sang "God Bless America" during the 239th United States Army Birthday Gala held at the historic Union League Club in New York City. The event was emceed by Greg Kelly, co-host of Good Day New York (Fox 5 NY) and a former co-host of Fox and Friends, and featured General Raymond Odierno, U.S. Army Chief of Staff, as the Special Military Guest of Honor.On 9 September 2014, <mask> headlined the National 11 September Memorial & Museum in New York City—marking the first time that the museum was open to the public. <mask> sang "Isle of Hope, Isle of Tears," by songwriter Brendan Graham which he and The Irish Tenors recorded in 2001 on Ellis Island. The song became a huge hit for <mask> and his Irish Tenor colleagues. <mask> sang before an audience of 1,200 including former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who hosted the event as chairman. The event paid homage to those who died in the attacks, the heroes, and survivors. It also commemorated the rebuilding and resilience of New York and its bond with the American people. Other event participants included singer Ricky Martin, sex therapist, talk show host, and author Dr. Ruth Westheimer, and former NBA player Dikembe Mutombo.In 2014, <mask> became an International National Ambassador for Wells of Life, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2008 to provide Ugandan communities with access to clean and safe drinking water by drilling water wells. <mask> headlined the 2014 Wells of Life Annual Gala and recorded two Public Service Announcements in support of the organization. <mask> recently announced that he would donate a well honoring those who lost their lives on 11 September 2001. The "<mask>ns 9/11 Memorial Well" became operational in March 2015. <mask> highlighted his work for Wells of Life and his 9/11 Memorial Well in several media interviews, including with NPR-affiliate WHYY Philadelphia. 2015: Performances in U.S. and Europe, including for Pope Francis
<mask> had several high-profile concerts and engagements in Europe and the U.S. in 2015, including singing the tenor role in "The Irish Ring Concert"—a trilogy of Irish operas that includes Maritana, The Bohemian Girl and The Lily of Killarney—at Ireland's National Concert Hall. In February 2015, <mask> headlined the "Second Annual Musical Celebration of the Irish Season and Military Tribute" at Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, VA.The gala was co-chaired by former Virginia First Lady Susan Allen and Martha-Ann Alito, both daughters of U.S. military fathers, with the support of Kirsten Fedewa & Associates, L.L.C. Larry Michael, ten-time Emmy winner and "Voice of the Washington Redskins" on NBC4, served as the evening's Master of Ceremonies. The event supported local charities, Our Military Kids and Final Salute, Inc. Other special guests included Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito; former Governor of Virginia George Allen; Congresswoman Barbara Comstock; VADM Tony Less USN (Ret. ), first official squadron commander of the legendary Blue Angels; Colonel James B. Hickey (U.S. Army, Ret. ), Senior Military Advisor to Senator John McCain; Shannon Bream, Fox News' Supreme Court reporter and anchor of America's News Headquarters; Virginia State Delegate Tom Russ; and Bruce Allen, president of The Washington Redskins. On 16 March 2015, Kearns sang at the American Ireland Fund's 23rd National Gala held at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. The event honored Thomas J. Donohue, President & Chief Executive Officer of the United States Chamber of Commerce, Senator Richard Durbin, and Congressman Thomas J. Rooney.Other guests in attendance included Honorary Chairs Irish Ambassador to the United States, Anne Anderson; U.S. Ambassador to Ireland, Kevin O'Malley; British Ambassador to the United States, Sir Peter Westmacott; Senators Patrick Leahy and Patrick Toomey; and Congressmen Peter King and Richard Neal. The evening's keynote speaker was the Taoiseach Enda Kenny, TD, Prime Minister of Ireland and the gala's Honorary Patron. In May, he also performed at a Memorial Day Tribute to Veterans and Veterans Serving in Congress with special guest Brigadier General Steve Ritchie, USAF, Ret., who is the only Air Force Pilot Ace since the Korean War. <mask>, a sports fan, also sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Citi Field in August 2015 before the New York Mets game versus the Boston Red Sox. Previously, Kearns sang during the "Notre Dame: A Welcome Home Celebration" vs Navy Football game in Dublin, Ireland in 2012. He also sang during the Military Tribute at the 137th Preakness, and he performed "The Star Spangled Banner" as the guest of The Washington Redskins when they played against the Atlanta Falcons at FedExField in Landover, MD in October 2012.Most recently, <mask> performing "God Bless America" on Jim McKay Maryland Million Day on Saturday, 17 October 2015 at Laurel Park. During Pope Francis' first historic visit to the United States in September 2015, <mask> was the final performer during the pre-Mass concert at the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, PA. <mask> during a CNN interview with Don Lemon before the performance, "I feel very privileged to be a part of such an historic event in honor of His Holiness' visit to the United States. It will be an unforgettable experience." Kearns was accompanied by David George of Louisville, Kentucky. Said Kirsten Fedewa, Kearns' public relations consultant, "This is an exceptional honor for Mr. Kearns, and an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to share his inspiring voice with those convening in Philadelphia and around the world." In September 2015, Kearns sang a 9/11 Tribute at a benefit hosted by Tobias Harris of the Orlando Magic, in memory of the 9/11 victims and American military forces who defend liberty around the world. 2016: Ireland 100 at The Kennedy Center and other engagements

Kearns began 2016 with a performance at the launch of the commemorations of the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising by members of the Irish and American governments in New York City.This was one of more than two hundred cultural events taking place across the United States through 2016 and many others worldwide. Participants at the launch included Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ireland Charlie Flanagan, Irish Ambassador to the U.S. Anne Anderson, Irish Consul General Barbara Jones and New York Senator Chuck Schumer, actor Liam Neeson, and others. The launch took place at the Irish Consulate in New York on the morning of 7 January, followed by the evening reception at the

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 historic Pier A Harbor House in Battery Park, New York. <mask> was the featured performer during a special military tribute at the 141st Preakness Stakes on 21 May 2016. Kearns sang "America the Beautiful". The tribute is a part of the Preakness' celebration of Armed Forces Day which honors Americans serving in the five U.S. military

On 23 May 2016, Kearns performed as part of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts' 2016 major curated festival, "IRELAND 100: Celebrating a Century of Irish Arts & Culture." Kearns also performed in a solo appearance during Opening Night of "IRELAND 100: Celebrating a Century of Irish Arts & Culture" on 17 May 2016, an event directed and hosted by Olivier Award-winning actress Fiona Shaw with the National Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Irish conductor David Brophy.The event included remarks by Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Vice President Joseph Biden. <mask> opened the 2016 National Memorial Day Parade Program in Washington, D.C.—the nation's largest—on 30 May 2016. He performed "America the Beautiful" with a 250-member chorus at the top of the televised program. This year's theme was  "Saluting our Fallen Heroes from the American Revolution through Iraq and Afghanistan." Highlights included a tribute to the World War II generation, remembering the Gulf War, and honoring the fallen of 11 September 2001. <mask> performed at the Fifth Annual Memorial Day Kick-off and Tribute to Veterans on 24 May 2016 in Washington, D.C. The event drew a crowd of 150 guests, including bipartisan Members of Congress, senior military members, embassy officials, senior staff and media.Special guests included Master of Ceremonies Daniel Lippman of Politico, retired USMC Captain Jason Haag of the American Humane Association, and World War II veteran Arnold Taylor. Colonel James Tierney (U.S. Army-retired) of the famed 69th Infantry Regiment of New York was also recognized and offered a hallowed toast to our men and women in uniform. Kearns sang several patriotic and classic songs to conclude the program. Tenor <mask> headlined the spectacular Anam Cara Awards Gala at the Irish Cultural Center and McClelland Library in Phoenix, AZ on Saturday, 15 October. Kearns was the featured performer during a special Military Tribute at the 141st Preakness Stakes on 21 May 2016. Kearns sang "America the Beautiful." The Military Tribute is a part of the Preakness' celebration of Armed Forces Day which honors Americans serving in the five U.S. military.In the fall, <mask> made a return performance at the annual Maryland Million Gala and Auction in October 2016. In addition to the gala and auction, Kearns also performed at Laurel Park Racecourse during the Maryland Million Day races on 22 October. This was the second consecutive year that Kearns performed at the highly anticipated event celebrating the 31st running of Jim McKay Maryland Million Day – and he has become a favorite among the Thoroughbred Racing crowd. In November 2016, Kearns joined a star-studded musical cast in "America Salutes You", a multi-platform broadcast celebrating active duty military, veterans, and veterans' causes. The program aired nationally on Thanksgiving Day weekend in 2016. In addition to Mr. Kearns, concert performers include pop legend Cyndi Lauper, multi -platinum selling singer/songwriter Gavin DeGraw, country music legend Wanda Jackson, rapper Hoodie Allen, Gospel Grammy winner CeCe Winans, and bluegrass legend Ricky Skaggs. 2017–2018: Lismore Opera Festival, Miller Presidential Center, and U.S. Capitol performance

Kearns continues to lend his voice to some occasions, including a special holiday concert at the nonpartisan Miller Center for Public Affairs at the University of Virginia and the Friends of Ireland luncheon hosted by House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) on Thursday, 15 March 2018, at the United States Capitol.As announced by the Speaker's office, "President Donald Trump and Prime Minister (Taoiseach) of Ireland Leo Varadkar are scheduled to participate as an ode to St. Patrick's Day and strong U.S.-Ireland ties. This is the third year that Speaker Ryan will host this event." The annual event is a time-honored tradition started in 1983 by House Speaker Tip O'Neill and President Ronald Reagan, who rose above politics to unite in their shared heritage and desire for peace. "It is indeed a privilege to accept the invitation of Speaker Ryan to sing for the Friends of Ireland Luncheon which highlights the shared history and enduring affection between Ireland and America," said Mr. Kearns. "I hope to express that closeness through my music on this special occasion." Kearns' received several standing ovations for his performance, which included "O, America!," for the distinguished delegation, which also included Vice President Mike Pence, Irish Ambassador Daniel Mulhall, Cabinet members, and 100 bipartisan members of Congress. He received favorable coverage in "Hollywood on the Potomac" and other media outlets.<mask> also sang "O' America!" to a packed house at the Silver Dollar City Opera House in Branson, Mo as part of Governor Mike Huckabee's Fourth of July special on TBN. Said Governor Huckabee after <mask>' performance: "He nearly burned down Branson with his rendition of 'O, America' for the Fourth of July. The response before the live audience was absolutely overwhelming and authentic." <mask> ended the year with a string of appearances, singing the US national anthem at the 2018 Breeders' Cup in Louisville, Kentucky—one of the richest Thoroughbred races in the world. He also was one of a handful of entertainers to be invited to sing at the 2018 National Christmas Tree Lighting which took place on 28 November 2018, on the Ellipse at President's Park. Co-presented by the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation, this beloved American tradition celebrated its 96th year.<mask> also was a headliner in the nation's oldest parade – the 98th Annual 6abc Dunkin' Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade in Philadelphia, PA on Thursday, 22 November 2018. <mask> sang during the LIVE televised broadcast of the parade which was expected to attract up to one million parade-goers and televised in major U.S. television markets. He also was invited to open the "America Salute You: Guitar Legends II" concert. <mask> was also a part of a lineup of performers during the "America Salutes You – Guitar Legends II" concert at the Novo Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, 2 December 2018. The concert was the third in a series of nationally broadcast concerts benefiting brain and mental awareness charities. The concert was re-aired on 24 March 2019, on AXS TV, and was made available on streaming services the same day. In addition, Pacifica Records released a music CD of the concert, which includes <mask>' performance of "O' America!"<mask>, who performed during the America Salutes You inaugural concert in 2016 at the Rosemont Theater in Chicago, joined an array of musicians, including Billy Gibbons, Laurence Juber, Joe Bonamassa, Don Felder, Sammy Hagar, Robby Krieger, Dave Navarro, Orienthi, Emily Estefan, and others. Like his predecessor, Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, Kearns appreciates and supports other musical genres, including country, folk and rock 'n' roll. Kearns ended 2018 with a return guest appearance on Huckabee on TBN as a part of the Governor's Christmas and end-of-year television special. Kearns sang the Christmas classic "Silver Bells" before a live studio audience at the TBN studio in Hendersonville, Tennessee. Said Governor Huckabee: "I'm absolutely delighted to have <mask>arns on my show as a final prelude to Christmas. The crowd loved <mask> this time as well. He is indeed favorite America's tenor."This was Kearns' fifth television appearance with former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, and his second on Governor Huckabee's new highly acclaimed television show on TBN. Kearns' high-profile concerts, celebrity appearances and engagements are handled by Kirsten Fedewa & Associates, L.L.C. "<mask> began as the youngest member of the PBS super-stars, The Irish Tenors, with whom he has enjoyed an incredible collaboration. He has since expanded this role in his solo career. It was wonderful to bring him together with my good friend, Governor Huckabee, for this gorgeous Christmas special", Fedewa said. In January 2019, Kearns reunited with The Irish Tenors on a sold-out tour in Ireland in celebration of their 20th anniversary. On 3 March 2019, Kearns kicked off the spring social season with a performance at a concert event hosted by the ambassadors of Malta, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic at the Perry Belmont House in the heart of Washington, D.C.The soiree was co-emceed by Emmy-award-winning storyteller and former Fox5 anchor Will Thomas and internationally acclaimed interior designer Barry Dixon, and was featured in publications such as The Georgetowner, Washington Diplomat magazine, The Washington Examiner, and more. Professional recognition
Before his major break in 1993, Kearns entered many "All Ireland" singing competitions such as Ceol an Geimhridh, Feis Ceoils, Readoiri, Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann, often placing and winning. While studying with Dr. Dunne, Kearns continued competing in talent competitions, twice winning the prestigious Dermot Troy Trophy for oratorio, as well as Best Male Singer at the Waterford International Festival of Light Opera, and Best Irish Singer at the 1999 ESB Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition. The prize for Best Male Singer during all Veronica Dunne International Singing Competitions is now presented in Kearns' name. Kearns was recognized in 2010 by the Irish Music Association as the "Best Irish Tenor in the US, UK, and European Union." Recently Kearns was invited to become the Honorary President of Lanza Legend, a website dedicated to honoring the great tenor Mario Lanza, one of the most influential tenors of the 20th century. In that capacity, Kearns was asked by journalist Lindsay Perigo to write the foreword to his new book, "The One Tenor: A Salute to Mario Lanza," published in August 2013.Operatic roles
Kearns' opera reviews are listed at this footnote: His credits include: Fenton in an Italian production of Falstaff. In Irish productions, he sang Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi and the title role in Faust for Opera Ireland, Carmens Don José for Ireland's Glasthule Opera, Don Ottavio in a Lismore Music Festival production of Don Giovanni, and he sang with the Royal Dublin Society as the lead tenor in the first complete performance since the early 20th century of The Lily of Killarney (part of "The Irish Ring" trilogy). In 2017, Kearns returned to the Lismore Opera Festival in the leading tenor role of Nemorino in Gaetano Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore, at the Lismore Castle Gardens in Lismore, Ireland. It was his third appearance with the Lismore Opera Festival—Ireland's only summer opera festival set in the stunning Lismore Castle and Gardens, in St. Carthage's Cathedral, and in the beautiful and historic great homes along the Blackwater River. In the U.S., Kearns has performed the roles of Romeo in Romeo & Juliet: Then and Now, Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor; and reprised his role as Faust for Opera Naples, Florida. He also sang Alfred in Die Fledermaus for the Emerald City Opera Company in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Charitable causes
Kearns sings for many causes world-wide.This includes benefit concerts for autism awareness, and benefits to honor and assist U.S. military troops, veterans, and their families, such as the USO's Operation Enduring Care, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Stand Up for Heroes, the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, the World War II Memorial, Saratoga WarHorse, Boulder Crest Retreat for Military and Veteran Wellness, Coalition to Salute America's Heroes, American Humane, Leave No One Behind, and Thanks USA. With A Song in My Heart
In May 2013, Kearns announced his plan to release his solo album, With a Song in My Heart, on the National Defense Radio Show. The CD features 13 tracks of many genres, including the title song from Rodgers and Hart's musical, "Spring is Here" and other beloved standards such as "La Donne e Mobile," "Ave Maria," and "Granada;" "Salut Demeure Chaste et Pure," an aria from the opera, Faust (which Kearns has starred in); the American folk favorite, "Shenandoah," Broadway tunes ("Younger than Springtime" from Rodgers and Hammerstein), and a few Irish tunes – such as the famed ballads, "Boolavogue" and "Danny Boy," and more. The album was released in fall 2013. The album was arranged and orchestrated by Gavin Murphy and Eric Stern, with sound engineer Jonathan Allen of Abbey Road Studios. Musical accompaniment was provided by long-time accompanist Patrick Healy on piano and the Slovak Symphony Orchestra conducted by Allan Wilson. In November 2014, it was announced that Kearns' debut solo album, With a Song in My Heart, had been submitted for consideration for a 57th Annual GRAMMY Award nomination in four categories – including "Best Classical Solo Vocal Album."The news was released by Kearns' agent and publicist Kirsten Fedewa. References

External links

AnthonyKearnsTenor.com
 TheIrishTenorsMusic.com
 LanzaLegend.com
 AnthonyKearns.com
 AnthonyKearnsMusic.com

1971 births
Living people
Irish tenors
21st-century Irish male  singers
People from County

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