synagogue music

Why Music is Fundamental to Jewish Prayer

Jewish tradition teaches that music unlocks the door to divine connection.

Psalm 150: Praising God, Loudly

The final chapter of the Book of Psalms calls for a symphony of horns, drums, lyres and more.

American Jewish Women as Cantors

How Jewish women worked their way into the field of synagogue music.

Cantorial Music

Learning to appreciate hazzanut (cantorial music)

Yossele Rosenblatt’s Later Career

The talented cantor Yossele Rosenblatt (1882-1933) becomes an international star.

Yossele Rosenblatt

The cantor whose religious observance led him to reject some offers of fame and fortune.

Nusah: The Music of Prayer

Traditional musical motifs, called nusah, give each service of Jewish prayer a distinct sound.

Cantillation: Chanting, or Leyning, the Bible

Today the Bible is chanted in synagogues with an intricate musical system, but the practice began with one man projecting in a marketplace.

Synagogue Music

The music of the synagogue celebrates both the diversity and unity of the Jewish people.

Synagogue & Religious Music

An overview of synagogue and religious music, including cantillation, nusah, the nigun, cantors and cantorial music, and the influence of prayer in the synagogue.