Joel Abraham Remmer

Joel Abraham Remmer, March 8, 1944-July 1, 2020, (13 Adar 5704-9 Tamuz 5780) passed away at the age of 76. The only child of Saul and Anna Remmer, he was born in Worcester, MA, He lived in many places, including Albany, Binghamton, Lambertville, Norfolk Virginia, Santa Barbara, Austin TX, Brookline, and, since 2002 in Boston. He studied economics and sociology at Clark University, SUNY Albany, Binghamton University, and University of Santa Barbara. He taught sociology at Norfolk State and Santa Barbara. He was a man of many interests. His religious heritage meant much to him, and he was deeply involved for many years with the Reconstructionist havurah, Shir Hadash, of Newton. He loved cooking, good food, and dining out. He loved his dogs, Cerberus and Babe, and his beloved cat, Fyo. He loved traveling and antiquing. His music tastes, which were eclectic, ranged from the chansons of the chanteuse, Barbara, to Glenn Gould’s Goldberg Variations (the 1955 recording) to the Quartet for the End of Time by Olivier Messiaen. He collected art and furniture of the Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods, of which he was very knowledgeable. He leaves his partner, Craig K. Thomas of Quincy, MA, to whom he was very devoted, and a cousin, Stanley Rem of Paxton, MA. Donations in his memory may be made to the classical music station, WQXR in New York, or to Greyhound Rescue of New England. He requests that friends play a piece of music of their own choosing while remembering him, or a piece from the following list he had typed up, entitled “For My End”

Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time

J S Bach Goldberg Variations, Glenn Gould, 1955 recording

Beethoven 4th Movement of his Ninth Symphony (Bernstein conducting)

23rd Psalm sung in Hebrew

Kol Nidre Moroccan Version, Eyal Bitton 

Kol Nidre in the Dohány Street Synagogue

Viddui Final Confession 

Handel’s Water Music