Religious Jewish music
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This article describes the principal types of religious Jewish music from the days of the Temple to modern times.
History of religious Jewish music
The history of religious Jewish music is about the cantorial, synagogal, and the Temple music from Biblical to Modern times. The earliest synagogal music was based on the same system as that used in the Temple in Jerusalem. According to the Mishnah, the regular Temple orchestra consisted of twelve instruments, and the choir of twelve male singers. A number of additional instruments were known to the ancient Hebrews, though they were not included in the regular orchestra of the Temple: the uggav (small flute), the abbuv (a reed flute or oboe-like instrument).
After the destruction of the Temple and the subsequent
It was with the
Classical Jewish religious music
From the time of the Renaissance Jewish communities in western Europe have shown some interest in modernizing the service by introducing composed music on the European model. Salamone Rossi, a composer at the court of Mantua, published a volume of psalm settings in a Baroque style similar to Monteverdi, but this did not become widely popular in synagogue use until revived in the late 19th century. In the 18th century the Venice community commissioned a number of works from non-Jewish composers such as Carlo Grossi and Benedetto Marcello.
Already in 1603, the sources tell us that
In the Ashkenazi world, the main impetus towards composed Jewish music came in early 19th century Vienna, where Salomon Sulzer composed settings for a large part of the synagogue service, reflecting traditional Jewish music but set in a style reminiscent of Schubert, who was a friend and contemporary. Settings in a somewhat similar style were composed by Louis Lewandowski of Berlin, Samuel Naumbourg of Paris and Japhet of Frankfurt. From this period dates the widespread use of choirs and organs, though in Orthodox synagogues the organ is not played on Shabbat or festivals, and its use is often confined to celebrations such as weddings. 20th century Anglo-Jewish composers in the same taste are Samuel Alman, Mombach and Saqui.
Contemporary Jewish religious music
Religious Jewish Music in the 20th century has varied greatly. Religious Jewish Music in the 20th century has spanned the gamut from
Also, many Orthodox Jews often limit their children's exposure to music produced by those other than Orthodox Jews, so that they will not be influenced by what the parents see as harmful non-Orthodox ideas and fashions. A large body of music produced by Orthodox Jews for children is geared toward teaching religious and ethical traditions and laws. The lyrics of these songs are generally written in English with some Hebrew or Yiddish phrases.
Cantillation
Probably the oldest surviving tradition in Jewish music is the melodies used in chanting readings from the Scriptures. These melodies are denoted by special signs printed above or below each word in the Hebrew Bible, and differ greatly between Jewish communities, though some features found in many traditions suggest a common origin. They may also differ depending on the book or passage being read, or the time of year (e.g. there are special melodies for the scriptural readings on the High Holy Days, Tisha B'Av, Purim, and the three festival holidays, Sukkot, Pesach and Shavu'ot, as well as deviations from the typical melodies for the chanting of the 10 commandments, the song of the sea and some other smaller sections of text.)
Prayer chants
Many of the passages in the
The scales used may vary both with the particular prayer and with the season. For examples, there are often special modes for the
Certain passages in the prayers, such as Nishmat, the Kaddish preceding Barechu, and the Kedushah, lend themselves to more elaborate individual rendition or choral singing. In some traditions the tunes of popular hymns are borrowed for these, while in others there are special choral compositions.
Piyyut
A piyyut is a Jewish liturgical poem, usually designated to be sung, chanted, or recited during
Many piyyutim are familiar to regular attenders of synagogue services. For example, the best-known piyyut may be
Piyyutim have traditional tunes, but these vary greatly between communities, and a single community may have up to ten different tunes for well-known piyyutim such as Adon Olam and Yigdal. Modern Jewish composers such as Philip Glass often compose choral settings of piyyutim.
Zemirot
Zemirot are Jewish hymns, usually sung in the
The words to many zemirot are taken from poems written by various rabbis and sages during the
Nigun
Nigun refers to religious songs and tunes that are sung by groups. It is a form of
A revival of interest in Nigun was sparked as part of
Pizmonim
Pizmonim are traditional Jewish songs and melodies with the intentions of praising God as well as learning certain aspects of traditional religious teachings. They are sung throughout religious rituals and festivities such as prayers,
The texts of many pizmonim date back to the
Baqashot
The Baqashot are a collection of supplications, songs, and prayers that have been sung by the
The custom of singing Baqashot originated in Spain towards the time of the expulsion, but took on increased momentum in the Kabbalistic circle in Safed in the 16th century. Baqashot probably evolved out of the tradition of saying petitionary prayers before dawn and was spread from Safed by the followers of Isaac Luria (16th century). With the spread of Safed Kabbalistic doctrine, the singing of Baqashot reached countries all round the Mediterranean and became customary in the communities of Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Rhodes, Greece, Yugoslavia, Egypt, Turkey and Syria. It also influenced the Kabbalistically oriented confraternities in 18th-century Italy, and even became customary for a time in Sephardic communities in western Europe, such as Amsterdam and London, though in these communities it has since been dropped. By the turn of the 20th century Baqashot had become a widespread religious practice in several communities in Jerusalem as a communal form of prayer.
Bibliography
- Grove's Dictionary of Music, article on "Jewish Music"
References
- ^ Mishneh Torah, Hilkoth Ta'niyyoth, Chapter 5, Halakhah 14 (see Touger commentary, footnote 14); Responsa of Maimonides, siman 224 (ed. Blau [Jerusalem, 1960/2014]: vol. 2 p. 399 / vol. 4 [Rubin Mass and Makhon Moshe, Jerusalem, 2014] p. 137); Rabbi Yosef Qafih's commentary to Mishneh Torah, ibid., in note 27 following his citation of Maimonides' responsa, "לא דיים ששותים יין בכלי זמר שיש כבר שתי עברות כפי שמנה רבנו לעיל" (English: they drink wine with musical instruments, which alone involves two sins as our master enumerated above [prohibitions three and four of the five enumerated in responsum siman 224]). Rabbi Yosef Qafih's Collected Papers, volume 2, השירה והלחנים בתפילת יהודי תימן (Hebrew), page 959: "אין יהודי תימן מלווים שירתם בכלי ואפילו שירים הנאמרים בבתי משתאות בגלל האיסור שבדבר, קל וחומר תפילתם, כך שאין יהודי תימן מכירים שירה בכלי כלל (מה שמקצת כפרים מלווים את שירת משתיהם על פח איני יודע אם ימצא מי שהוא שיקרא לזה כלי שיר) לא כלי הקשה לא כלי פריטה ולא כלי נשיפה." English translation "Yemenite Jews do not accompany their song with instruments–even songs said in houses of feasting–due to the prohibition of the matter, all the more so their prayers. Thus Yemenite Jews do not at all recognize song with instruments (that which some villages accompany the songs of their feasts by tin, I don't know if there's anyone who would call this a musical instrument), neither percussion instruments, string instruments, nor wind instruments."
- ^ Spielberg Jewish Film Archive - Teiman: The Music of the Yemenite Jews: 4:32–4:48: "Drumming was used by all. Mourning the destruction of the second temple resulted in the prohibition of using musical instruments. The Yemenites, stringent in their observance, accepted this ban literally. Instead of developing the playing of musical instruments, they perfected singing and rhythm."
- ^ Marks, Yehudah. "Sing Only for Hashem's Honor". Hamodia Israel News, September 12, 2013, pp. A24–A25.
- ^ Muir, S. "Hasidism and Mitnagdism in the Russian Empire: the (mis)use of Jewish music in Polish-Lithuanian Russia" (PDF).
- ISBN 9781620328750.
- ISBN 9781442213296.
- ^ "Niggun, Meet Jam Session: Joey Weisenberg May be the Future of Jewish Music".
External links
- Jewish Music A large database of free religious Jewish sheet music for download. Including audio and video presentations.
- shulmusic.org A collection representing the Anglo-German choral tradition, in sheet music and sound files
- Music in Kabbalah.
- The Nigun from an Ethnomusicological Perspective
- Power of the Nigun nigun.info
- Sephardic Pizmonim Project