Wolf Shestapol

Wolf Shestapol (1832 – 1872), also known as Velvele Khersoner, was a chazzan and composer whose sweet, lyrical tunes became widely popular in the 19th century. He served as chazzan in Kherson and studied with both Nissan Blumenthal and Salomon Sulzer. His compositions circulated broadly but were never printed.

Early life and training​

Sources differ on his birthplace, placing it in either Odessa or Skver. He was the son of Samuel Shestapol, a chazzan in Odessa, and as a boy sang with his father and with Betzalel Shulsinger. As a teenager he already composed his own melodies and was noted for a clear lyric tenor voice.

He came under the influence of Nissan Blumenthal, who encouraged his development, involved him in the Broder Synagogue choir, and entrusted him with copying and cataloguing compositions. This apprenticeship shaped Shestapol’s musical style and gave him early experience leading services.

Kherson and Vienna​

Recommended by Blumenthal, Shestapol was appointed chazzan in Kherson. His community later sent him to Vienna to study with Salomon Sulzer for a year, where he learned modern cantorial technique and absorbed the Viennese choral approach. On his return, he organized a well‑trained choir and established a disciplined service style that was emulated by other communities.

Musical style and reception​

Contemporary descriptions emphasize Shestapol’s sweet, ingratiating melodies, many in minor mode, which achieved wide popularity. His harmony was considered modest and often instrumental in character. He drew heavily on Italian and French opera that he encountered in Odessa and Vienna, at times incorporating recognizable themes. One reported example is his borrowing of a motif from Verdi’s La Traviata for Adonai Z'charanu (Psalm 115), a tune later adapted by Abraham Goldfaden in his musical play Shulamith.

Despite criticism of limited originality, his music was beloved for its folk‑like appeal and singability. Blumenthal clearly thought these pieces had significant enough merit to have them performed in the Broder Synagogue. Works attributed to Shestapol include Omnam Kein, the Musaf Kaddish for Rosh Hashana/Yom Kippur, V'al Ham'dinot, and Adonai Z'charanu. His compositions circulated orally and were not printed.

Legacy​

Shestapol died in 1872, before reaching the age of forty. He is remembered as one of the early chazzanim who refined synagogue singing in the Russian Empire and helped introduce choral practice to provincial communities. His melodies continue to be sung long after his death.