music rough cuts

Here are some of my original compositions. Click on the links below to hear audio recordings.

LITURGY:

Lecha Dodi as we greet Shabbat on Friday evening. This version is set to verses one, two, five and nine; the melody can be adapted for other verses. Click here for a nigun (wordless melody) on this tune.

Modah Ani-1 our first words upon waking are a blessing of gratitude: I am thankful to You Eternal Source of Life for restoring my soul to me and speedily; great is Your faith in me.

Here’s another version of the same blessing, this one is a call-and-response, in both Hebrew and English. I’ve taught this to Hebrew School students with choreography (contact me for a copy of the choreography) : Modah Ani-2.

As we enter the sanctuary, whether in synagogue or the sanctuary of prayer of our own home, we sing Ma Tovu, “how good are your dwelling-tents oh Jacob, your sanctuaries oh Israel…”

Still Whole is an alternative “Asher Yatzar”, a prayer of thanks for the body I have been given, while acknowledging the broken places.

Elohai Neshama, the blessing for the soul: this version begins with a musical meditation on the first word, followed by the rest of the blessing.

Proverbs 3:5: “Trust in God with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding”.

Shana Tova, Happy New Year! Click here for my Shana-na Tova song!

Thanksgiving Song of the Pardoned Turkey: In Hebrew, the word for “turkey” is “tarnegol hodu”, translated as “chicken from India”, for it was originally believed that turkeys came from the Indies. The word “hodu” in Hebrew, besides referring to India, is primarily a word of praise or thanks. Here then, my Song of the Pardoned Turkey.