I. S'vivon/Al Hanism
S'vivon means dreidel, and the first section of the piece evokes the celebratory nature of Hanukkah, imploring sov, sov, sov,, or spin, spin, spin, as a reminder that Chanukah hu chag tov (Hanukkah is indeed a good holiday). S'vivon, sov, sov, sov,Chanukah, hu chag tov. Chanukah, hu chag tov, S'vivon, sov, sov, sov. Chag sim cha, hu la am, Nesgadol ha yasham, Nesgadol ha yasham, Chag sim cha, hu la am. Al hanisim is a paragraph from the Jewish prayer service (Amidah) added during the post-Biblical Festivals of Chanukah and Purim in which they thank God for Miracles.
A dreidel is a four-sided spinning top, played with during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. The dreidel is a Jewish variant on the teetotum, a gambling toy found in many European cultures.
Hanukkah is a Jewish festival commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire. It is also known as the Festival of Lights.
The Amidah, also called the Shemoneh Esreh, is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy. This prayer, among others, is found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book. Due to its importance, it is simply called hatefila in rabbinic literature.
Jewish holidays, also known as Jewish festivals or Yamim Tovim, are holidays observed in Judaism and by Jews throughout the Hebrew calendar. They include religious, cultural and national elements, derived from three sources: Biblical mitzvot ("commandments"); rabbinic mandates; Jewish history and the history of the State of Israel.
Rabbi Dov Baer ben Avraham of Mezeritch, also known as the Maggid of Mezritch, was a disciple of Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidic Judaism, and was chosen as his successor to lead the early movement. Rabbi Dov Baer is regarded as the first systematic exponent of the mystical philosophy underlying the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov, and through his teaching and leadership, the main architect of the movement. He established his base in Mezhirichi, which moved the centre of Hasidism from the Baal Shem Tov's Medzhybizh, where he focused his attention on raising a close circle of great disciples to spread the movement. After his death, avoiding the unified leadership of the first two generations, this third generation of leadership took their different interpretations and disseminated across appointed regions of Eastern Europe. Under the inspiration of their teacher, this rapidly spread Hasidism beyond Ukraine, to Poland, Galicia and Russia.
Shema Yisrael is a prayer. It is also the first two words of a section of the Torah, and is the title of a prayer that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewish prayer services. The first verse encapsulates the monotheistic essence of Judaism: "Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God, the LORD is one", found in Deuteronomy 6:4. Observant Jews consider the Shema to be the most important part of the prayer service in Judaism, and its twice-daily recitation as a mitzvah. Also, it is traditional for Jews to say the Shema as their last words, and for parents to teach their children to say it before they go to sleep at night.
Shalom is a Hebrew word meaning peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness, prosperity, welfare and tranquility and can be used idiomatically to mean both hello and goodbye.
Avraham Shabsi Hakohen Friedman better known by his stage name, Avraham Fried, is a popular musical entertainer in the Orthodox Jewish community.
"Ma'oz Tzur" is a Jewish liturgical poem or piyyut. It is written in Hebrew, and is sung on the holiday of Hanukkah, after lighting the festival lights. The name is a reference to the Hasmonean stronghold of Beth-zur. This Hebrew song is thought to have been written sometime in the 13th century. It was originally sung only in the home, but has been used in the synagogue since the nineteenth century or earlier. In more recent years, of its six stanzas sometimes only the first stanza is sung.
Craig Reid Taubman is an American singer/songwriter and music producer based in Los Angeles, California. Through his independent label/production office, Craig 'N Company, he has produced 11 albums. He is also the executive producer of the Celebrate Series, 12 Jewish-themed compilation albums with titles like Celebrate Hip Hop and Celebrate Passover.
Hanukkah music contains several songs associated with the festival of Hanukkah.
Megillat Antiochus recounts the story of Hanukkah and the history of the victory of the Maccabees over the Seleucid Empire.
Maurice Goldman (1910–1984) was an internationally known composer and conductor. Goldman’s compositions and arrangements are largely in the areas of Yiddish and Hebraic music. However, like his mentors, Ernest Bloch and Aaron Copland, Goldman’s music breaks the boundaries of traditional Jewish melodies, employing chordal and harmonic elements found in classical, jazz, and American folk music.
Oh Chanukah is an English version of the Yiddish Oy Chanukah. The English words, while not a translation, are roughly based on the Yiddish. "Oy Chanukah" is a traditional Yiddish Chanukah song. "Oh Chanukah" is a very popular modern English Chanukah song. This upbeat playful children's song has lines about dancing the Horah, Spinning Dreidels, or Shining Tops. eating latkes, lighting the candles and singing happy songs.
Daniel Nichols is an American Jewish rock musician and founder of the band, E18hteen.
The White House Hanukkah Party is an annual reception held at the White House and hosted by the U.S. President and First Lady to recognize and celebrate the Jewish festival of Hanukkah. The tradition was established in 2001, during the administration of George W. Bush. The guest list includes hundreds of American Jewish politicians, organization heads, and school and yeshiva deans.
Levin Kipnis was an Israeli children's author and poet who wrote mainly in Hebrew and Yiddish. He won the Israel prize in 1978.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Judaism:
Cantor Yitzchak Meir Helfgot is an Israeli-born Hasidic Orthodox Jewish cantor. He is widely regarded as the greatest living practitioner of Jewish cantorial arts on account of his great vocal dexterity and range. Like the famous operatic tenors he is capable of sustaining long passages in the difficult uppermost tessitura, while also possessing overt technical facility in executing ornate melismas.
Gerald Cohen is an American composer and cantor. He is currently the cantor at Shaarei Tikvah in Scarsdale, New York and is based in Yonkers. Cohen serves on the faculties of Jewish Theological Seminary and Hebrew Union College. Cohen’s compositions are published by Oxford University Press, G. Schirmer/AMP, and Transcontinental Music Publications.
Israel ben Eliezer, known as the Baal Shem Tov or as the Besht, was a Jewish mystical rabbi from Poland, who is regarded as the founder of Hasidic Judaism. "Besht" is the acronym for Baal Shem Tov, which means "Master of the Good Name" or "one with a good reputation".
