MODfestivals e.V. mourns the death of Nikola David,
who tragically lost his life on 2 August 2024 at the age of 55.

Nikola David was closely associated with »Musica Sacra International«, most recently inspiring audiences with his expressive voice at this year's festival as a soloist with the »Hashira« choir from Novi Sad/Serbia.

He was born in Serbia in 1969 and had his first opera engagements in Novi Sad and Belgrade. After postgraduate studies in Germany, he sang at the Landestheater Thüringen, the Dessau Opera House and the Augsburg Theatre. Through Rabbi Henry Brandt, Nikola David discovered his Jewish religion and his vocation as a cantor. He began studying to become a cantor at the Abraham Geiger College in Berlin. As the first Jewish cantor in Germany after the Second World War, Nikola David was inaugurated on 10th April 2013. Since 2014, he has been an important part of community life as cantor of the liberal Jewish community Beth Schalom in Munich alongside the rabbi.

Members of the Association of Jewish Cantors wrote: »Nikola was not only a kind-hearted and loyal person, he was also an important voice in the world of European synagogue music.« A CD production (2023) with works by his Munich predecessor Emanuel Kirschner testifies to his desire to keep this special music alive. The CD was recorded in Offenbach and is a testimony to the close collaboration and friendship with the Protestant cantor Bettina Strübel.

Nikola David has also been involved in musical interfaith dialogue in a variety of contexts, including with »Musica Sacra International«. Here he presented Jewish synagogue music in 2016, in 2020 he took part in the coronavirus-related online edition and in 2021 in the »Path of Religion and at Whitsun this year we experienced his warm friendliness, his rousing temperament and his touching voice for the last time.

This voice fell silent on 2nd August. It is already missing and Nikola David's wonderful personality is also missing. We miss him and our thoughts are with his family.

Bettina Strübel for the Festival »Musica Sacra International«
Prof Dr Hans Jaskulsky for the board, the management
and the staff of the MODfestival e.V.