  Israeli music |
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| Religious |
| Secular |
| Israel |
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| Music for holidays |
Passover songs are songs from the seder, the festive meal associated with the Jewish festival of Passover.
| Israeli music |
|---|
| Religious |
| Secular |
| Israel |
| Dance |
| Music for holidays |
Passover songs are songs from the seder, the festive meal associated with the Jewish festival of Passover.
Songs before the meal include:
"Ma Nishtanah" (the "Four Questions") is the four questions sung at the Passover seder by the youngest child at the table who is able. The questions are asked as part of the haggadah, after the Yachatz (יחץ), as part of the Maggid (מגיד).
"Dayenu" is a Hebrew song, traditionally sung during the celebration of Passover. The word itself essentially means "It would have been enough for us." "Day" is the Hebrew word for "enough" and the suffix "enu" means "our".
The song goes through a series of gifts believed granted by God to the Israelites (such as Torah or Shabbat), proclaiming that any of them alone would have been sufficient, to express greater appreciation for them as a whole.
It is 15 verses long, sequentially recounting each divine intervention in the story of the Exodus. After each divine act, the chorus "(if God had done only this) it would have been enough for us" is sung.
"Eliyahu HaNavi" (Elijah the Prophet) entreats the prophet Elijah, an invited guest at the Passover meal, to return soon with the messiah. Of unknown authorship, the refrain is based on First Kings 17:1. This is often sung at the opening of the door for Elijah, upon pouring the fourth cup. This song is also part of the traditional Saturday night Havdalah service. The refrain is:
| Transliteration | English Translation |
|---|---|
Eliyahu haNavi Bim'hera v'yameinu yavoh eleinu, | Elijah the prophet In haste and in our days may he come to us |
The full song has nine verses recounting the courageous and saintly deeds of Elijah, each beginning with אִישׁ (ish) – "The man (who)". followed by a word in an alphabetic acrostic; then the quotation of Malachi 3:23–24,and then concluding with "Happy is he who has seen his [Elijah's] face in a dream". [1]
The following are traditionally sung in the Nirtzah, the last of the 15 sections of the seder, devoted almost exclusively to singing.
"L'Shana haba'ah bi'Yerushalayim": The whole line means "Next year in Jerusalem!" In Israel, many have started to recite "L'Shana haba'ah bi'Yerurshalayim habenuyah" ("Next year in rebuilt Jerusalem"). This line is used both as the conclusion of the Passover Seder and after the Ne'ila (Concluding) service on Yom Kippur. [2]
Ki Lo Naeh (also known as Adir Bimlukha): This song makes no mention of Passover but recites, in each stanza, two majestic descriptions of God, followed by the designation of a multitude (scholars, the faithful, the angels, etc.) who praise Him, the three lines being in a continuing alphabet acrostic, with the refrain, "Thine and thine, thine yes thine, thine only thine. Thine, Lord, is the kingship." And the stanza concludes with כִּי לוֹ נָאֶה, כִּי לוֹ יָאֶה׃ – (ki lo no'eh, ki lo yo'eh) – "For Him praise is due, for Him praise is fitting." The song apparently is inspired by Psalm 74:16 ("Yours is the day, Yours is the night") and by a Midrashic passage (Genesis Rabbah 6:2) which enlarges on those words. The authorship and date of composition are unknown, it was originally sung year-round at meals, it was not part of the Seder in the 11th century but came to be part of the Seder by the time of Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg in the 13th century. [3]
"Adir Hu" (Mighty is He): a hymn naming the virtues of God in order of the Hebrew alphabet, expressing hope that God will rebuild the Holy Temple speedily. Most of the virtues of God are adjectives (for instance, Holy (Kadosh) is he); however, a few are nouns (for instance, Lord is he). The traditional melody is a bouncy, major one. [4] Other melodies, however, have been composed for the alphabetical song. [5] There is also a feminist variant of the song by Rabbi Jill Hammer which calls God "She" and, quoting Rabbi Hammer, "emphasizes God’s sharing in human joys and griefs, and God’s ability to renew life through the strength of the earth." [6]
"Echad Mi Yodea" (Who Knows One?): Starting at one and going up to thirteen, each verse describes a different religious or worldly concept associated with its number. For example, the fifth verse is about the five books of the Torah whereas the ninth verse describes the nine months of pregnancy. After singing each new verse, all the preceding verses are repeated in decreasing order back down to one.
"Chad Gadya" ("One Kid" 'i.e., baby goat]) is an Aramaic song describing the consuming of each entity by the next, from a goat, through a cat, dog, a stick, fire, water, an ox, a butcher, and the angel of death, all the way up to God. Many think it metaphorically tells the history of the Jews from their beginning to the future Messianic time.
Passover, also called Pesach, is a major Jewish holiday, one of the three pilgrimage festivals, that celebrates the Biblical story of the Israelites' escape from slavery in Egypt. The Passover ritual is thought by modern scholars to have its origins in an apotropaic rite, unrelated to the Exodus, to ensure the protection of a family home.
The Passover Seder is a ritual feast at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted throughout the world on the eve of the 15th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar. The day falls in late March or in April of the Gregorian calendar; Passover lasts for seven days in Israel and eight days outside Israel. Jews traditionally observe one seder if in Israel and two if in the Jewish diaspora. The Seder is a ritual involving a retelling of the story of the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in ancient Egypt, taken from the Book of Exodus in the Torah. The Seder itself is based on the Biblical verse commanding Jews to retell the story of the Exodus from Egypt: "You shall tell your child on that day, saying, 'It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.'" At the seder, Jews read the text of the Haggadah, an ancient Tannaitic work. The Haggadah contains the narrative of the Israelite exodus from Egypt, special blessings and rituals, Talmudic commentaries, and Passover songs.
Aleinu or Aleinu leshabei'ach, meaning "it is upon us" or "it is our obligation or duty" to "praise God," is a Jewish prayer found in the siddur, the classical Jewish prayerbook. It is recited in most communities at the end of each of the three daily Jewish services and in the middle of the Rosh Hashanah mussaf. It is also recited in many communities following Kiddush levana and after a circumcision is performed. It is second only to the Kaddish as the most frequently recited prayer in current synagogue liturgy.
The Haggadah is a Jewish text that sets forth the order of the Passover Seder. According to Jewish practice, reading the Haggadah at the Seder table is a fulfillment of the mitzvah to each Jew to tell their children the story from the Book of Exodus about God bringing the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, with a strong hand and an outstretched arm.
Kiddush, literally, "sanctification", is a blessing recited over wine or grape juice to sanctify the Shabbat and Jewish holidays. Additionally, the word refers to a small repast held on Shabbat or festival mornings after the prayer services and before the meal.
Hallel is a Jewish prayer, a verbatim recitation from Psalms 113–118 which is recited by observant Jews on Jewish holidays as an act of praise and thanksgiving.
Dayenu is a song that is part of the Jewish holiday of Passover. The word "dayenu" means approximately "it would have been enough", "it would have been sufficient", or "it would have sufficed". This traditional up-beat Passover song is over one thousand years old. The earliest full text of the song occurs in the first medieval haggadah, which is part of the ninth-century Seder Rav Amram. The song is about being grateful to God for all of the gifts given to the Jewish people, such as taking them out of slavery, giving them the Torah and Shabbat, and had God only given one of the gifts, it would have still been enough. This is to show much greater appreciation for all of them as a whole. The song appears in the haggadah after the telling of the story of the exodus and just before the explanation of Passover, matzah, and the maror.
The Passover Seder plate is a special plate containing symbolic foods eaten or displayed at the Passover Seder. The purpose of the Passover Seder plate is to show all the foods that perpetuate and emphasize the ideas of the people of Israel, and are designed to express the uniqueness of the Seder. Another idea is to keep the foods close and ready for Seder night.
Ein Keloheinu is a well known Jewish hymn. Orthodox Jews pronounce it as Ein Kelokeinu when referring to it outside of prayer, in order to avoid taking the name of God in vain or otherwise violating the sanctity of reverence to the Almighty.
The Priestly Blessing or priestly benediction, also known in rabbinic literature as raising of the hands, rising to the platform, dukhenen, or duchening, is a Hebrew prayer recited by Kohanim. The text of the blessing is found in Numbers 6:23–27.
Pesachim, also spelled Pesahim, is the third tractate of Seder Moed of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. The tractate discusses the topics related to the Jewish holiday of Passover, and the Passover sacrifice, both called "Pesach" in Hebrew. The tractate deals with the laws of matza and maror, the prohibitions against owning or consuming chametz (leaven) on the festival, the details of the Paschal lamb that used to be offered at the Temple in Jerusalem, the order of the feast on the first evening of the holiday known as the Passover seder, and the laws of the supplemental "Second Pesach".
Adir Hu is a hymn sung by Ashkenazi Jews worldwide at the Passover Seder. It switches rapidly between saying the virtues of God in an alphabet format, and expressing hope that God will "rebuild the Holy Temple speedily." Most of the virtues of God are adjectives ; however, a few are nouns..
Akdamut, or Akdamus or Akdamut Milin, or Akdomus Milin, is a prominent piyyut written in Aramaic recited annually on the Jewish holiday of Shavuot by Ashkenazi Jews. It was penned by Rabbi Meir bar Yitzchak of Orléans, who was a cantor in Worms, Germany,. Akdamut consists of praise for God, His Torah, and His people.
Chad GadyaorHad Gadya is a playful cumulative song in Aramaic and Hebrew. It is sung at the end of the Passover Seder, the Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. The melody may have its roots in Medieval German folk music. It first appeared in a Haggadah printed in Prague in 1590, which makes it the most recent inclusion in the traditional Passover seder liturgy.
Ma Nishtana are the first two words in a phrase meaning "Why is this night different from all other nights?" The phrase appears at the beginning of each line of The Four Questions, traditionally asked via song by the youngest capable child attending Passover Seder.
In Judaism, when the Eve of Passover falls on Shabbat, special laws regarding the preparation for Passover are observed.
Avinu Malkeinu is a Jewish prayer recited during Jewish services during the Ten Days of Repentance, from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur inclusive. Since the 17th century, most Eastern Ashkenazic communities recite it also on all fast days; in the Sephardic and Western Ashkenazic tradition it is recited only during the Ten Days of Repentance.
Perek Shira is an ancient Jewish text. There are a number of versions extant, some associated with the Ashkenazic tradition, some with the Sephardic, and some with the Mizrahi Jews tradition. It was first printed, with a commentary, in Moses ben Joseph de Trani's Bet Elohim (1576), but it is mentioned as early as the 10th century. It contains 85 sections, in each of which elements of creation, beginning with the celestial and ending with dogs, use biblical and rabbinic verses in order to sing God's praises. Use of Perek Shira used to be prevalent in the daily liturgy and medieval philosopher Joseph Albo wrote that whoever recites Perek Shira is guaranteed a place in the World to Come.
Jewish ceremonial art, also known as Judaica, refers to an array of objects used by Jews for ritual purposes. Because enhancing a mitzvah by performing it with an especially beautiful object is considered a praiseworthy way of honoring God's commandments, Judaism has a long tradition of commissioning ritual objects from craftsmen and artists.
L'Shana Haba'ah B'Yerushalayim, lit. "Next year in Jerusalem", is a phrase that is often sung at the end of the Passover Seder and at the end of the Ne'ila service on Yom Kippur. Its use during Passover was first recorded by Isaac Tyrnau in his 15th century CE book cataloging the Minhaggim of various Ashkenazi communities.