פירוש על ברכות 20:26

Hence in Babylon it was customary to have the reading desk, where the Precentor stood, at a lower level than the floor of the Synagogue. In modern Synagogues the Precentor's platform is raised ; see Oesterley and Box, p. 338. But according to Elbogen, the recommendation of the Talmud to pray in a lowly place is intended to apply to the individual, not the Precentor. Cf. J. Q. R. xix. p. 705 n.