An Overview of Jewish Music

The origins of Jewish music rest in the Middle-East, in the land of Israel, which is situated on the east of the Mediterranean Sea. However, the heritage of this music cannot be attributed to one place alone. North African, Western and Eastern European, and North American regions are all responsible for partially influencing Jewish music. To put it simply, wherever the religion of Judaism spread to, is another place that influenced the music. Jewish people reside in many corners of the globe, and hence the various cultures that they have lived amongst began to be incorporated into their foreign music. It is for this reason that Jewish music is a cultural phenomenon, as it has continuously absorbed its surroundings and evolved whilst still maintaining its essence. (Photo:https://jeswinfemina.wordpress.com/tag/rebirth-of-israel/)

The term “Jewish Music” is a very broad term as it encompasses music of the synagogue and other religious purposes to the secular music of festivals and celebrations. Jewish music is thus very diverse and deeply fundamental to the culture and religion of its people.

Before analyzing the music, it is important to have an understanding of the role of music in the Jewish community.

First of all, music is used for religious purposes in the mosque/synagogue and for other mystic rituals. As will be discussed later, the modes of Jewish music are named after the prayers and readings from which they are used in. The following video is a recording of a hymn is sung in Jewish Prayer services to give praise to God and is lead by chief cantor, Chazzan Chian Adler: 

Music is also used outside of worship, and plays a vital role in the celebrations and festivals of Jewish people. A celebration in the Jewish community is any moment of time that is deemed a major life passage event; this includes weddings, Bar-Mitzvas, Bat-Mitzvas and anniversaries. Music is used as a means of setting the tone and atmosphere of the event, as seen in the following video, in which the members of the wedding reception and the bride groom themselves dance to traditional Klezmer music: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5h8erZ22Uik

Furthermore, music is used for many other purposes including traditional belly dancing and folk dancing. Music plays a fundamental role in the Jewish community and its heritage is exceedingly diverse. For this reason alone, it is difficult to provide an in depth analysis of all Jewish music, and instead, just a few focus areas will be studied.

A Deconstruction of Jewish Music

To help deconstruct Jewish music, it can be separated into three main streams. These include: Ashkenazi, Mizrahi and Sephardi. These categories are geographically influenced and thus the music of each are founded upon the same roots, however, are distinctly contrasting. 

(https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/music.html)

Ashkenazi Music

Ashkenazi music is commonly recognized as the “Western stream” of Jewish Music and includes the well-known Klezmer repertoire. Ashkenazi music originates from Eastern Europe in the Balkans, Romania and surrounding regions. It then travelled westward and reached as far as North America.

This music belongs to the Ashkenazi tradition and once referred to the Jews of the 9^th century who inhabited the regions surrounding the Rhine. Today, however, it is associated with the Jewish people of Western cultures.

Ashkenazi Music uses two main languages, these include: Hebrew, the language of the bible; and Yiddish, a hybrid language of mediaeval Germany stemming from approximately the 10^th century, and combines influences from Hebrew, German, Slavic and Polish languages. In addition to these two languages, English is used today as well.

Ashkenazi music is considered the most identifiable form of Jewish music as it includes the highly recognised Klezmer music. Klezmer stems from the Hebrew words “Klei zemer” meaning “instruments of song”. This repertoire will be studied further on.

Mizrahi

Mizrahi translates to mean “eastern” and refers to the music that was performed by Jews who resided in Arabic cultures. This branch of Jewish music stretches from Eastern Europe to Western Asia. Therefore, the music of this genre was heavily influenced by the cultures of Israel, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq and India.  

To this day, there are many similarities between Mizrahi music and the folk music of these countries, with a recognizable resemblance of cantillation and the use of quartertones.

There are two main languages used in this genre, Hebrew and Arabic.

Sephardi:

Sephardi means “Spanish” and the music is derived from the cultures of the Mediterranean. This includes Spain, North Africa, Greece, Turkey and Portugal.

In 1492, Jewish people settled in countries such as Morocco, Egypt and Turkey when they were expelled from Spain due to their non-Christians practices. Until this time, a healthy Jewish culture once existed in Spain. The displaced Jews continued to speak their language of Landino, which was a variant of Spanish in the 15^th century. For this reason, a large portion of Sephardi music is sung in Landino.

The Similarities Between Mizrahi and Sephardi

The terms Mizrahi and Sephardi can be used to refer to the same people and music despite their differences. This is because the members of Sephardi and Mizrahi communities included non-Ashkenazim people. The history of Sephardi and Mizrahi communities together exhibit more intimate relations than experienced with the communities of Ashkenazi people.

A simple way of thinking about this is to consider Sephardi musical traditions as a platform connecting Mizrahi and Ashkenazi music.  Mizrahi music strictly refers to Eastern music and hence uses non-Western modes and instruments, and utilises musical expressions that demonstrate no resemblance to Western realm, whereas the Ashkenazi genre is specifically defined as the Western stream of Jewish music. Sephardi links the two genres as it is influenced by both Western and Eastern cultures. 

Klezmer Music: Tonality

Before launching into an analysis of Klezmer music, it is vital to gain an understanding of the tonality of this style and hence discover why it is so recognizable.

A true appreciation of the modes of Klezmer music can only be obtained by attempting to disregard the typical Western diatonic scale. These modes are not just scales that are reshaped and sculpted according to the melody much like the diatonic scale; instead, each mode has a specific motif and mood that is associated with it. The modes are comprised of more than seven notes, making comparisons between diatonic scales and Klezmer modes fairly meaningless, except for when attempting to gain an understanding of how they function. (For the purpose of gaining an understanding by comparison, the additional notes will not be included in the scales that are notated below.)

The motifs used in each mode are highly similar to each other; however, the sound varies as a result of the different intervals of each scale. The use of these motifs and intervals provide a basis for the structure and tonality of Klezmer music and Cantillation. This can be understood by outlining that the scale influences the style as opposed to the style influencing the use of the scale. There are five main modes and each posses three forms: scalar form, motif form and cadence form. The Klezmer modes are the prayer modes used in synagogue, and therefore, they are named according to the religious text that is matched with the mode.

Ahava Rabboh or Freygish:

Ahava Rabboh means “Abounding Love” and is commonly referred to as the mode of supplication. This mode possesses a scalic form that is comparable to the heptatonic Phrygian mode as a result of the lowered third degree. It is believed that this mode was adopted from the Tartars, an ethnic group that lived in regions of Asia and Europe. 

Mi Sheberach

Mi Sheberach means “He who blessed” and is also referred to as Misheberach, Mi Sheberyekh and Av Horachamin. The scalar form of this mode can be described as an altered Dorian mode with a raised 4^th. For added interest, contrasting sections of Klezmer music utilise a natural fourth instead. This mode is the basis of Doina, which is a Romanian musical style that was adopted into Klezmer tunes. 

Mogon Ovos

Mogon Ovos means “Our forebears’ shield” and is one of the oldest modes used in Jewish prayer. This mode is referred to as the didactic mode of prayer. Additionally, the scalar form of this mode is exactly the same as the Aeolian mode or the natural minor of a diatonic scale of the same tonic. However, the seventh is occasionally raised for modal transitioning and for added interest/dissonance. The additional raised seventh of the Mogon Ovos mode is identical to the Western harmonic minor scale of the same tonic; and if the 6^th degree is lowered then the mode is identical to the melodic minor of the same tonic. 

Yishtabach

Yishtabach means “It shall become superb” and is very similar to the Mogon Ovos mode. In its scalar form, it is comparable with the Western Aeolian mode of the same tonic with an additional lowered 5^th. This mode can be performed with a lowered second degree as well.

Adonoy Moloch

Adonoy Moloch, meaning “The Lord reigns,” is a principal mode of Jewish prayer and is sung as the opening prayer on Friday night Shabbat services. This mode is used as the first sub-mode in the modal transition into Ahava Rabboh and Yishtabach Klezmer pieces. Cantors of other classifications, including the Sephardic order, call it Tefillah meaning “the mode of prayer”. The scalar form of this mode resembles the mixolydian scale of the same tonic, however, it often features a raised seventh.

Klezmer Music: Instrumentation and Tone Colour

Without any formal education, one can most likely recognise and identify the typical Eastern-European Klezmer music as Jewish music. The word Klezmer stems from the Hebrew words “Klei Zemer” meaning “vessel of song” and has since evolved to define the entire genre and musician as being influenced from a higher power. Klezmer music is essentially a folk genre and the music is believed to be in direct contact with the soul of the performer. It is versatile as it is used to accompany a wide variety of religious and secular festivals and celebrations. Through popular demand, the genre has evolved into a language that is accessible to everyone yet is still grounded in its Jewish roots.

Instrumentation

Klezmer bands generally consist of four to eight musicians known as Klezmorim. To be a Klezmorim was not a lucrative profession, and these Ashkenazi Jews were generally considered to live the gypsy life. Two Klezmorim generally lead the band on two fiddles. The accompanying ensemble consisted of two second fiddles that played chordal lines; flute, double bass and a hammered dulcimer, which is stringed instrument played with mallets as seen adjacent (photo: http://people.delphiforums.com/SIGN 543/Dulcimer.html).

Over the centuries, the ensemble expanded to include various other instruments including brass, woodwind and percussion. These additional instruments include the French Cornet, the German Trumpet, the snare drum, the bass drum, the accordion, woodblocks, guitar, cymbal and baraban. Today, a main instrument featured in Klezmer music includes the Clarinet. The violin and clarinet dominate Klezmer music because the instruments possess the tone and capacity to emulate the human voice. It is believed that through the musician’s aptitude to manipulate the intonation of the instrument, a sound of the intimate sobs and cries can be expressed through Yiddish folksong and so the instrument speaks to its listeners. This is one of the reasons that Klezmer music is believed to stem from the soul of the performer.

The typical structure of a Klezmer ensemble does not include a vocal line, however, at major events such as weddings, Bar-Mitzvas, Bat-Mitzvas and Communal Celebrations, vocalists feature as the lead.

Since the 20^th century, many secular Klezmer bands have evolved to include the saxophone, trombone and other instruments that are typically featured in jazz and Dixieland orchestration. This jazz inspired revival commenced in the 1970s in America and as it grew increasingly more popular, it gave Klezmorim a new identity as professional musicians.

Giora Feidman is a beautiful example of a musician using his instrument to imitate the human voice. Born in 1936, Feidman is an Israeli clarinetist known for his contribution and performance of Klezmer repertoire. His famous words include “I pickup the clarinet to share a message with mankind,” and that he “sings through (his) clarinet,” as “…it is the human voice.” The following audio example is a recording of Feidman’s. Feidman successfully combines the typical warm and sonorous sound of the clarinet with his own embellishments. He screams through his instrument, he overblows to generate a rough and unrefined tone. He produces a piercing sound soon followed by wavering tone that is once again, followed by a bright tone of resonate quality. All of these transitions are completed with such ease and natural ability. Feidman uses his clarinet as his voice as it speaks more universally than his own; which is one of the main objectives of Klezmer music.