Jewish Music

Apply for a Blog

Moshe-Mordechai van Zuiden

May 22, 2025, 3:59 PM

In Memoriam: Michael Brand

Reb Shlomo Carlebach had a left-wing and a right-wing side. A friend of mine once asked him what he would vote for in the upcoming elections in Israel, he said, 'I'm like the Almighty, "Who elects songs and laudations",'...

May 9, 2025, 8:57 PM

The Yiddishe Momme

A story is told about the mother of the first Jewish President who receives a call inviting her to fly on Air Force One. She hangs up the phone, and her friend asks, “Who was that?” She replies, “You...

Sheldon Kirshner

May 4, 2025, 6:10 PM

Al Jolson And The Jazz Singer

Al Jolson was in a class all by himself. From about 1912 until 1934, he was the most highly paid entertainer in the United States. What Enrico Caruso was to opera, Jolson was to popular song. Jolson's friend, the comedian George...

Gedalya Sloshay

May 2, 2025, 7:38 PM

The Jewish Johnny Cash

The Jewish Johnny Cash? Embracing My Musical Identity and Connecting with Inmates As I stood in front of a room full of inmates, guitar in hand, I couldn't help but feel the weight of their expectations. Here I was, an Orthodox...

Mar 22, 2025, 9:12 AM

Louis Armstrong & The Jewish Family: Antisemitism & Antimemetism

Internet memes and viral posts often replace serious scholarship and research, leading to exaggerated or inaccurate narratives. However, attempts to correct these inaccuracies can sometimes result in what I call "antimemetism"—the correction of minor details that distort or discredit...

Mar 19, 2025, 9:07 AM

Music in the Mishkan – Searching for the key

Amid the artistic and architectural magnificence of the mishkan (portable desert sanctuary), the dazzling variety of materials, fabrics and precious metals employed in its construction, the olfactory sweetness of the ketoret (incense), the tantalizing aroma and abiding freshness of...

Daniel R. Weiss

Feb 21, 2025, 9:15 AM

‘HaYom Kamti… Todah Elohim’

On Wednesday night, February 5th, my wife and I arrived in Israel and attended the Hanan Ben Ari concert at the Menora Arena in Tel Aviv. For most of the past 17 months, since October 7, the songs of...

Lisa M. Pollack

Feb 21, 2025, 5:38 AM

Neve Hanna: We Will Dance Again!

Following the October 7th Nova Music Festival, a concert for peace that was cut short by the horrific terrorist attack, there was a need for all of Israel to dance again. The Jewish people love to dance, foster and...

Feb 7, 2025, 1:40 AM

On Shabbat Shira, Recalling Cantor Benzion Miller

Earlier this week, the Jewish world learned of the passing of Cantor Benzion Miller, one of the greatest voices of his generation. This loss is felt even more deeply, perhaps, as it follows the passing of Cantor Naftali Hershtik...

Dec 27, 2024, 7:58 AM

A Simple Guide to Being the Most Hated People on Earth

It takes some serious mental gymnastics to understand why Jews are the most hated people on the planet. Because we’re pretty awesome. And good. Why, then, are so many people trying their darnedest to get rid of us? And why...

Load more