Rick Recht
UH Artist-in Residence
www.rickrecht.com
facebook.com/rickrechtworld
www.jewishrockradio.com
Rick Recht is the Artist in Residence at United Hebrew Congregation. Along with Cantor Eichaker he provides the music for Shabbat Alive! as well as special multi-generational and children’s services for the High Holidays and other programs throughout the year.
Rick Recht is one of the most celebrated Jewish artists of our time playing family concerts, Shabbat Alive! services, religious school concerts, teen concerts, camp concerts, and tot concerts throughout the United States and abroad. Recht is widely recognized as a pioneer of the Jewish rock music genre, elevating the medium of Jewish music as a powerful and effective tool for developing Jewish pride and identity among the masses. In addition to his role as an artist, Recht is regarded as a top Jewish educator and leader in the Jewish world. Recht is the national music spokesman for PJ Library and makes his synagogue home here at United Hebrew where he serves as Artist-in-Residence. Recht is the founder and executive director of Songleader Boot Camp, one of the top leadership training programs in the North America. Songleader Boot Camp provides intensive leadership training programs for clergy, Jewish educators, religious school teachers, veteran and new songleaders, and Jewish camping staff at national and regional conferences. Recht is also the founder and executive director of Jewish Rock Radio (JRR), the first high-caliber, 24/7, Jewish rock internet radio station found at jewishrockradio.com and iPhone and Android apps. Recht is known for regularly featuring local musicians, choirs, and vocal soloists on stage during his concerts and religious services.
Check out Rick Recht tour dates: www.rickrecht.com/tour. Recht has launched unprecedented tours playing at Jewish day and overnight camps from coast to coast including Ramah, URJ, JCC and private camps garnering a feverish following among the national Jewish youth movements unseen in previous years.
Recht has 10 top selling Jewish albums, including his latest hit album, Halleluyah, released Winter 2013. His two solo children’s CDs, Free to Be the Jew in Me and Look at Me, have been nationally distributed to tens of thousands of Jewish preschool-age children through PJ Library.
Born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Recht developed a strong Jewish identity attending Traditional Congregation, a conservative synagogue. In high school, Recht joined NFTY, where he was deeply influenced by Jewish music. After graduating USC (Los Angeles, CA) and Music Institute (Hollywood, CA), Recht hit the road touring nationwide from LA to New York playing at clubs, colleges, and amphitheaters. Recht has shared the stage with national acts such as the Guess Who, Chris Rock, America, Supertramp, Three Dog Night, the Samples, Vertical Horizon, Government Mule (Allman Brothers), and many more. After releasing two critically acclaimed secular albums, Good Thing and Reality, Recht returned to his Jewish roots with his debut Jewish album, Tov, in the summer of 1999. His shift to Jewish music marked the birth of a unique blend of pop, radio-friendly music with Hebrew, Jewish text, and social responsibility.
Recht loves spending time with his wife, Elisa, and sons, Kobi and Tal.