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September 08, 2006

Shabbat Ellul 16: Lama tishon?

Teshuva contemplations every day until Yom Kippur here. You can also find the link on the sidebar under "Yamim Noraim." Rabbi Amy Scheinerman's guide to teshuvah using the text of Psalm 27 focuses this week on Rejection.

Richard Kaplan leads us in a Breslov niggun for the afternoon meal of Shabbat
- traditionally a time to sing dreamy mystical melodies, but this rollicking niggun is supposed to (spiritually) wake you up; driving it home with the text at the end: "Oy gevalt, mir shluft!" (Yiddish "Oy gevalt, we're asleep!") and then from Psalm 44: "Ura lama tishon?" ("Awaken! Why do you sleep?") The makers of this niggun probably knew this teaching:

The Rambam in Hilchot Tshuva III:4 says: Even though the sounding of shofar is a Divine decree, there lies within a spiritual hint. As if it is announcing: Awake sleepers from our sleep and unconscious ones end your slumber! The Rambam is clearly stating that the shofar is a wake up call.

I recorded this at an amazing song class at the 1999 Aleph Kallah, with Richard Kaplan and Robert Esformes, both good teachers in their own right, and they played off each other wonderfully: Short barrel-like Robert, stately and measured with his classical guitar and formal Sephardic repertoire, long and gangly Richard at the piano, jazzing up his loose adaptations of Hasidic and Mizrachi folktunes. You can buy Richard's CDs here and Robert's CD here.

(Beware! it's hard to stop singing this catchy tune; the third part doesn't resolve at the end, so you are compelled to go back to part one and start again. You just might wake up permanently . . . .)

Judith | 09/08/06 at 07:11 PM | Categories: - Yamim Noraim

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