Song for Yom Hashoah

In honour of Yom HaShoah tonight, here is Yaakov Shwekey’s “Shema”.

The song retells the legend of HaRav Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman. After the Churban in Europe, Rav Kahaneman travelled throughout Europe trying to find Jewish orphans and bring them to Eretz Yisrael.

Legend has it that Rav Kaheneman heard rumours that a Jewish child was hidden in a convent orphanage, however the people who ran the orphanage denied that there were any Jewish children there, and invited the Rabbi in to see for himself that none of the children were Jewish.

When confronted with a room full of orphans the Rabbi stood up and loudly cried out Shema Yisrael. Sure enough, a small child started crying “Mama! Tate!”. And so Rav Kaheneman was able to leave with the child he came looking for.

SHEMA

He raised his hand to wave goodbye
Saw the pain in mother's eyes
Who left her little precious boy of four
In a citadel of ashen stone
That preached a faith unlike his own
Perhaps he may just yet survive this war
In the shadows stood a man in black
My child he said, you must not look back
Yet one image lingered, the tears on her face
And mother's words from their last embrace

CHORUS:
Shema, Shema Yisrael
Know that there is but one G-d above
When you feel pain, when you rejoice
Know how He longs to hear your voice
Hashem Elokeinu, Hashem Echad

Deep within the iron gate
Far from the stench of war and hate
He knew not of a world gone insane
You must believe us, he was told
Our faith alone can save your soul
Please let us heal your wounds and ease your pain
He tried not to forget his past, his home
But he was so very young and all alone
While visions of his shtetl, so vivid and clear
Began to fade, and all but disappeared

CHORUS:
Shema, Shema Yisrael
Know that there is but one G-d above
When you fel pain, when you rejoice
Know how He longs to hear you voice
Hashem Elokeinu, Hashem Echad

The winds of war had finally passed
One man took on a sacred task
To bring the scattered Jewish children home
He travelled far, from place to place
A quest to reignite the faith
Of those sent into hiding long ago
He entered the fortress grey and cold
Your kind is not among us, he was told
Hashem above, he whispered, please don't let me fail
As he began to sing Shema Yisrael

CHORUS:
Shema, Shema Yisrael
Know that there is but one G-d above
When you feel pain, when you rejoice
Know how He longs to hear your voice
Hashem Elokeinu, Hashem Echad
Shema, Shema Yisrael
Know that there is but one G-d above
When you feel pain, when you rejoice
Know how He longs to hear your voice
Hashem Elokeinu, Hashem Echad

Auditions in the Heavenly Choir

When I was kid, I was given a couple of tapes of Megama, a duo made up of Moshe Yes and Shalom Levine.

How I loved those tapes, I played them so many times that I must have driven my family crazy, but I loved the music, even if even back then I found the lyrics a little silly (“What page are we on the prayerbook”, “G-d is Alive and well in Jerusalem”, and "Throw away that Ham”) however I found the Dollar Bill, My Zaidy, and especially "Yosef My Son" very powerful.

It was with great sorrow that I heard that Moshe Yess, the star of Megama returned his soul to it’s Maker last Motzei Shabbat.

Interesting that this week another big name in Jewish Music also passed away. Of course I am referring to Debbie Friedman. I don’t know if Moshe ever met Debbie in this world, but I’d love to see their expression if the meet for the first time at an audition for the Heavenly Choir.

Debbie Friedman has been described as the Shlomo Charlebach of the Reform movement. When I worked with NFTY’s Summer Program in Israel, all the kids with a Reform background were very familiar with her music, both as liturgy and as campfire music. one of her most popular tunes was “Lechi Lach”, which was a feminine version of “lech lecha”. The corruption of a Hebrew Possuk made no sense to me, but the kids loved it.

Only later when I found out that in addition to being a driving force behind the modern-musical style of Reform services, she was also a radical feminist and a Lesbian, did the concept of re-writing a passuk in the feminine make sense (and drove me even more crazy).

So this week, the Jewish world lost 2 influential singers, although singers with radically different world views. Both were very well known, although I wonder how many people were familiar with both of them.

May their memory be blessed.

Yosef My Son

Moshe Yess

A child was born into this world, in 1933
a blessing for a Jewish home, in Frankfurt, Germany
his father taught him Aleph-Bais, he learned to read and write
each night he heard his mother say these words to him

Yosef my son, the Lord our G-d is one
G-d is very near, Yosef my dear
Yosef my son, we are the chosen ones
do not fear we'll always be together

Yosef was a boy of 9, in 1942
he had a secret hiding place, like all young children do
horrified, he saw them take his Mom and Dad away
alone, he heard his mother's final words to him

Yosef my son, take some food and run
G-d is very near, Yosef my dear
Yosef my son, we are the chosen ones
do not fear we'll always be together

To feel his hand on the Western Wall, was a life-long dream come true
he'd made it to Jerusalem, the city of the Jew
and he opened up his Siddur, as he had done each day
and he prayed to G-d for his mother and his father

and an old man stood there praying, for a son he thought long dead
that voice! thats my fathers voice! was all that Yosef said
and he looked into the old man's eyes, tears came down his face
and he fell into his father's embrace

Yosef my son, the Lord our G-d is one
Now come your mother's here, Yosef my dear
Yosef my son, a miracle has been done
from now on, we'll always be together

Yosef my son, the Lord our G-d is one
G-d is very near, Yosef my dear
Yosef my son, we are the chosen ones
from now on, we'll always be together
from now on, we'll always be together

אני יהודי – I am a Jew

Given that today is Lag B’Omer and one of the themes of the day is Rabbi Akiva and ואהבת לרעך כמוך it was nice to see a new remake of Lenny Solomon’s song אני יהודי.

A translation of the original lyrics is as follows:

When they ask me who am I (I will say)
I am not Ashkenazi, Sefaradi, Taimani or Tzarfati (French)
I am not Morrocan, American, or Russian

Chorus: I am a Jew

When they ask me what am I (I will say)
I am not religious or secular, left wing or right wing,
Not an optimist nor a pessimist, naive, Chorus…

All of Israel are connected to each other
All of Israel are brothers
We live here together, we live with hope
And more important than anything is love

We are citizens, we are soldiers, people, yes we are human beings,
We stride and move ahead, we believe, we hope, and we do not lose hope
We are Jews

The remake is much more Israeli, with a whole spectrum of Israeli singers, and they completely rewrote the lyrics as follows:

When I ask myself "Who am I"? I'm a little Sphardi, a little Ashkenazi A little Israeli, a tiny drop of galuti (exile mentality), maybe I’m religious, maybe secular But between me and myself, I am a Jew and that’s special. Not better than anyone else, not worse, Simply a Jew. Sometimes a soldier, sometimes a student, I have a lot of past and I see the future. Sometimes a Mitnaged, and sometimes a Chasid, Maybe materialistic, maybe spiritual, but always, always I am a Jew and that is special. Not worse, not better, a bit different, Simply a Jew Suddenly I came back from a afar, so that we can be here together. I will be secure, I’ll return to laugh, live comfortably without fear. I am a Jew and that is special. Not better than anyone else, not worse, Just a Jew. Nothing will break me my brother, My soul is a part of Eternal Light Above. To repair the world – that’s my motto, I was born this way. I am a Jew. Basically, Jews, just like other religions, I have have festivals, Shabbatot, customs and Mitzvot. Even though everyone says that they are right, In the end we are all Jews before the Heavenly Throne. I am very afraid of baseless hatred, Love my land and love my nation. I was here and there all over the world, I have two opinions on what to ask and a third opinion, Because I am a Jew and that is unique. Not worse, not better, a bit different, Simply a Jew

כששואל את עצמי "מי אני" ? אני קצת ספרדי, קצת אשכנזי, קצת ישראלי, טיפ טיפה גלותי, אני אולי דתי ואולי חילוני אבל ביני לביני, אני יהודי וזה ייחודי. לא טוב יותר מהאחר לא רע יותר פשוט יהודי. לפעמים חייל, לפעמים תלמיד, יש לי המון עבר וגם רואה עתיד. לפעמים מתנגד, ולפעמים חסיד, אולי גשמי, אולי רוחני, אבל תמיד תמיד אני יהודי וזה ייחודי. לא רע יותר, לא טוב יותר, טיפה אחר, פשוט יהודי. פתאום חזרתי מרחוק, שנוכל להיות כאן ביחד. שיהיה לי בטוח, שאחזור לצחוק, שאוכל לחיות בנחת ללא פחד. כי אני יהודי, וזה ייחודי. לא טוב יותר מהאחר, לא רע יותר פשוט יהודי. שום דבר לא יצליח לשבור אותי אחי, הנשמה שלי היא חלק מאור עליון נצחי. לתקן את העולם - זוהי מהותי, נולדתי ככה אני יהודי. פשוט יהודי כמו בשאר הדתות יש לי חגים, שבתות, מנהגים ומצוות. למרות שכל אחד בטוח בצדקתו בסוף כולנו יהודים, לפני כסא כבודו. אני מאוד פוחד משנאת חינם, אוהב את ארצי ואוהב את העם. הייתי פה ושם ובכל העולם, יש לי שתי דעות על מה שתשאל וגם דעה שלישית, כי אני יהודי, וזה ייחודי. לא רע יותר, לא טוב יותר, טיפה אחר, פשוט יהודי.

It’s a Great song…

Hat Tip: Life in Israel

Song for Yom Hazikaron - The Ballad for the Medic

In Honour of Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day) which begins tomorrow night, I'd like to share the following song which I believe is based on a true story (if anyone knows in which war the story occured or other details, please leave a comment).

BALLAD FOR THE MEDIC by Dan Almagor and Effi Netzer They slowly advanced. Everything was calm. Against the river, with the reeds rustling suddenly a lightning bolt roared, and one [person] yelled out: [I'm] wounded! I'm coming - the medic replied to him. We went over a mine! the wounded yelled, I'm here, by your side - the medic replied to him. A hail of fire is coming down, a heavy fragmentary hail, across the river, to the murmuring reeds Leave me here - the wounded requested, leave the non-sense - the medic then answered him. Save yourself - the wounded requested. I'm staying with you - the medic answered him. And the two remained alone, and the field was open. And the two remained alone, exposed to the fire. We are [about to] perish - the wounded then muttered, hold me well - the medic answered him. You were wounded too - the wounded them muttered never mind, it's not too bad - the medic answered him. The fire is very heavy! It's very hard to move. Just don't despair, just don't despair, I'll always remember you - the wounded then pledged. Just don't fall - the medic then muttered. I'm yours till the day you die - the wounded then pledged. Today's the day I die - the medic answered him. Suddenly a dust cloud, suddenly the wind rose, and a shaddow over the ground, it approached loudly. We're saved! They're coming! - the wounded then whimpered, but he did not hear a word out of the medic. My brother, my very brother! - the wounded then whimpered. Across the river, the reeds are rustling, my brother, my very brother my brother, my very brother my brother!!!

בלדה לחובש ביצוע: יהורם גאון מילים: דן אלמגור לחן: אפי נצר הם התקדמו לאט. הכל היה רגוע. מנגד הנהר וגומא מרשרש פתאום רעם ברק, אחד צעק: פצוע! אני כבר בא- ענה לו החובש. עלינו על מוקש! - צעק אז הפצוע, אני כאן, לצידך - ענה לו החובש. ברד של אש ניתך, ברד כבד קטוע, מעבר לנהר, לגומא הרוחש. הַשאירו אותי כאן - ביקש אז הפצוע, עזוב שטויות - ענה אז החובש. תציל את עצמך - ביקש אז הפצוע. אני נשאר איתך - ענה לו החובש. והם נותרו שניהם, והשדה פתוח. והם נותרו שניהם, והם גלויים לאש. אנחנו אבודים - מילמל אז הפצוע, אחוז בי טוב - ענה לו החובש. נפצעת גם אתה - מילמל אז הפצוע עזוב, זה לא נורא - ענה לו החובש. האש כבדה, כבדה! קשה, קשה לנוע. רק לא להתייאש, רק לא להתייאש, אזכור אותך תמיד - נשבע אז הפצוע. רק לא ליפול - מילמל אז החובש. שלך עד יום מותך - נשבע אז הפצוע. היום הוא יום מותי - ענה לו החובש. פתאום ענן אבק, פתאום עלתה הרוח, וצל על הקרקע, והוא קרב, רועש. ניצלנו! הם באים! - ייבב אז הפצוע, אך לא שמע מילה מן החובש. אחי, אחי שלי! - ייבב אז הפצוע. מעבר לנהר הגומא מרשרש, אחי, אחי שלי אחי, אחי שלי אחי!!!

Fiddler on the Roof

Rafi over at Life in Israel recently posted Fiddler in the Roof in Korean, worth taking a look.

There was also a Japanese version going round the Internet recently -just shows that Shalom Alechem's stories really have global appeal. Also worth taking a look.

But of course the ultimate interpretation of Fiddler on the Roof was Alister Cookie (Monster) in Monsterpiece Theatre - definitely worth clicking on the link.

And for those who like Tradition - here is Topol singing Tradition the way your bobby would have appreciated:

כי בא מועד- Ki Va Mo'ed

Well,

Just in time for slichot - here's a rendition of Rav Shlomo's "Ki Va Moed" as you've never heard it before.



If you aren't familiar with the words, hey are found in 'זכר רחמיך ה which is said at the end of Slichot each day (before Shema Koleinu)

I found it - song for the chuppah

Last week I posted some songs that I thought might help my sister find suitable music for her wedding next Shvat.

There was one song that I had in mind, but couldn't remember who sang it or what it was called. Well, with sone help from GalPaz in Ramat beit Shemesh I found the song that I was thinking of - it is להינשא הלילה by Yani Ben Mashiach on his disk For You Dear God.

If you want to download it in MP3, I found a link here.

You can listen to the song on YouTube. My apologies that some of the images are not exactly what I would have chosen to show a traditional wedding....

Here are the lyrics and my rough translation:

Lhinasei Halila - To marry tonight (Tune: Yaniv Ben Mashiach, Lyrics: Rami Lev) The stars above are shining And the Gates of Heaven are open And Prayer is hovering in the air To marry tonight They are standing under one chuppah The veil is like snow and the heart trembles Every moment takes an eternity and every glance/hope Is engraved in the heart of the night "To me you are betrothed" he says with emotion And the silence is broken with this heart of joy And the Angels in Heaven are singing As two worlds are intertwined Through a path of happiness they are coming To marry Tonight And the cup is broken in the celebration I never saw such a wonderful evening "He who makes happy the Chatan and Kala" (from Sheva Brachot) And betrothes in happiness Long was the path to this dream But the heart knows that in this day That she will be a "Ezer Knegdo" ("Helper opposite him", See Genesis 2:18) From now and for always "To me you are betrothed" he says with emotion And the silence is broken with this heart of joy And the Angels in Heaven are singing As two worlds are intertwined Through a path of happiness they are coming To marry Tonight

להינשא הלילה כוכבים למעלה זורחים כוכבים למעלה זורחים ושערי שמיים פתוחים ותפילה נישאת באוויר להינשא הלילה הם עומדים מיתחת חופה אחת ינומה כשלג ולב נירעד כול דקה היא נצח בכול מבט ניחרט בלב הלילה ולי את מקודשת הוא אומר ברגש ודימעה נישברת בליבה של השימחה מלאכי שמיים שרים שני עולמות ניקשרים בדרך אל האטושר באים להינשא הלילה ומלכאי שמיים שרים שני עולמות ניקשרים בדרך אל האושר באים להינשא הלילה והכוס נישברת בהילולה לא ראיתי לילה כזה נילפא אירוע משמח חתן כלה ומקדש באושר ארוכה הדרך אל החלום והלב יוודע בזה היום שהיא תיהיה לו עזר כנגדו מכאן ועד לנצח ולי את מקודשת הוא אומר ברגש ודימעה נישברת בליבה של השימחה מלאכיי שמיים שרים שני עולמות ניקשרים בדרך אל האושר באים להינשא הלילה ומלכאי שמיים שרים שני עולמות נקשרים בדרך אל הארושר באים להנשא הלילה.

The Man From Vilna

I feel like sharing a song, for no reason in particular other than sometimes a good cry makes you feel better, and this is certainly a good song to cry to.

The song is The Man From Vilna, from the disk Journeys 4.
Apparently it's based on a true story, lyrics are below.




I met a man last Sunday, who was on his way back home
From a wedding in Chicago, and was traveling alone
He said he came from Vilna, a survivor I could tell
And I helped him with his suitcase, he could not walk very well

A steward gave us coffee as we settled on the plane
And I asked him why he bothers, at his age there'd be no blame
He said "no simcha is a burden, though I miss my dear late wife"
And then he shared with me a story that has changed my view of life:

"We danced round and round in circles as if the world had done no wrong
From evening until morning, filling up the shul with song
Though we had no sifrei Torah to clutch close to our hearts
In their place we held the future of a past so torn apart

I remember liberation, joy and fear both intertwined
Where to go and what to do, and how to leave the pain behind?
My heart said 'go to vilna', dare I pray yet once again
For the chance to find a loved one, or perhaps a childhood friend?

It took many months to get there, from the late spring to the fall
And as I, many others, close to four hundred in all
And slowly there was healing, darkened souls now mixed with light
When someone proudly cried out, 'simchas Torah is tonight!'

We danced round and round in circles as if the world had done no wrong
From evening until morning, filling up the shul with song
Though we had no sifrei Torah to clutch close to our hearts
In their place we held the future of a past so torn apart

We ran as one towards the shul, our spirits in a trance
And we tore apart the barricade, in defiance we would dance
But the scene before our eyes shook us to the core
Scraps of siddur, bullet holes, bloodstains on the floor

Turning to the eastern wall, we looked on in despair
There'd be no scrolls to dance with, the holy ark was bare
Then we heard two children crying, a boy and girl whom no one knew
And we realized that no children were among us but those two

We danced round and round in circles as if the world had done no wrong
From evening until morning, filling up the shul with song
Though we had no sifrei Torah to gather in our arms
In their place we held those children, the Jewish people would live on

We danced round and round in circles as if the world had done no wrong
From evening until morning, filling up the shul with song
Though we had no sifrei Torah to clutch an hold up high
In their place we held those children, am yisrael chai"

We danced round and round in circles as if the world had done no wrong
From evening until morning, filling up the shul with song
Though we had no sifrei Torah to gather in our arms
In their place we held those children, the Jewish people would live on


Am yisrael chai
The Jewish people would live on

The Jewish people WILL live on

Kol Chatan V'Kol Simcha - Jewish Wedding Music

I just got off the phone from a lovely chat with my sister who lives in London, but אי"ה is getting married in February in New Zealand (a Summer wedding).

Among other things we talked about the fact that it looks like she'll be getting married under the same chuppah that our parents married under more than 40 years ago. She'll also be using our mother's veil.

We also talked about music for the wedding. She's trying to find great dance music as well as a nice song to which she can walk to the chuppah (of course she is looking for disks, not to fly performers out to New Zealand).

Well, below are a few suggestions, if anyone else has any ideas or recommendations, please fee free to leave a comment.

Arutz 7 has a Jukebox at:
http://www.inn.co.il/Radio/Jukebox.aspx
If you click on the "Chassidic" link, there are dozens of collections of chassidic songs.

For the Chuppah, "Shalom Alechem" from this mix is very nice:
(Shalom Alechem is Song 8 at 34:45 on this mix)

There are also nice wedding mixes here and here, and a Tu B'Av mix here (although the first few songs on that mix aren't so great)

For the dancing, I suggested that she definitly look for Yehuda Glantz.
You can see him doing a wedding on YouTube here or you can hear extracts from all of his albums at MostlyMusic or at Nachum Segal.com (You can also hear his songs here and here.)

One of my favorite singers right now is Lipa Schmeltzer, I even blogged about him a while ago, you can also find samples of his music at Mostly Music.

And of course don't forget the Piamenta. (Band's home page is here).

And Arutz 7 has a dance mix.

So - any other suggestions for music for a Jewish Wedding?

Abi Melbit - At least I'm alive

People who've been following various Jewish blogs and/or the Jewish music scene have probably heard that Lipa Shmeltzer was forced to cancel his appearance at a concert after criticism from various "Gedolim".

The controversy apparently was about his Yiddish song based on "Lion Sleeps Tonight" - he made a quite entertaining promotional video for HASC which you can see below (or here).

I tried to find a copy of the lyrics, but so far haven't been able to, so if anyone knows where could find them, or could translate the Yiddish, feel free to leave a comment.

Avraham Fried in today's Daf

Everyone seems to be talking about the snow in Jerusalem (and Chevron) or the Winograd Committee (which I have very little faith in, if Olmert had an ounce of dignity, he would have resigned 2 years ago, if he doesn't, he'll find a way to weasel out of this one)

However, before tomorrow's Daf, I wanted to share these words of wisdom from נדרים מ"א ע"א
The words were turned into a popular song by Yossi Green, sung by Avraham Fied on his disk Chazak! You can listen to the beginning of the song here, note that he rearranged the words slightly. The words, as they appear in the Gemara are here:

במערבא אמרי

דדא ביה כולא ביה

דלא דא ביה מה ביה

דא קני מה חסר

דא לא קני מה קני

Hebrew free translation (from Rabbi Shteinzaltz):

בארץ ישראל היו אומרים:

שזו הדעת, בו – הכל בו

שאין זה בו – מה יש בו

את זו קנה, וזה לא קנה – מה קנה?

And in English (from Kollel Iyun Hadaf):

In Eretz Yisrael they said:

If one has knowledge, he has everything.

If one lacks knowledge, what does he have?

If he acquires knowledge, he has everything.

If he does not acquire knowledge, he does acquire anything.

Memories

I still have a lot of memories and thoughts about the trip to Budapest to write up - I haven't forgotten, I just have been very busy at work lately.

In the mean time, I wanted to share this video that I just saw:



בלי נדר I'll write up about the amazing food ee ate and things we saw in Budapest in the next few days.