The Sound of Ecstasy
The Sound of Ecstasy
The inaugural Embodied Judaism symposium and exhibit,ÌýThe Sound of Ecstasy, highlighted the life and work of Rabbi Zalman M. Schachter-Shalomi and his role in shaping Jewish Renewal, examining it as a religious and,Ìýsocial movementÌýand a philosophy of spiritual transformation in America from the late 1940s to the present.
The symposiumÌýbrought together scholars, musicians, and religious practitioners to highlight the importance of music in Judaism. Eve Ilsen opened the symposiumÌýwith aÌýsong, andÌýRabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi introduced the event and the importance of music to Jewish life.ÌýThe program featured , Professor of Music atÌýTufts University,Ìýand , Associate Professor of Music Theory and Jewish Studies at the University of Colorado,Ìýwho presented scholarly work on Jewish music, focusing in particular on the musical attributesÌýofÌýniggunim –Ìýwordless songs –Ìýand the role of music in Jewish practice.Ìý, musician andÌýInstructor in Jewish Studies at CU Boulder,ÌýCantor Michelle Wolf, and musician Joe Lukasik, accompanied presenters by performing musical selections that illustrated the sounds of ecstasy.
The exhibit, which was on display in Norlin Library through 2015, was based on photographs, papers, audio recordings, and artifacts from the Zalman M. Schachter-Shalomi Papers. ItÌýfeatured an historical depiction of Schachter-Shalomi's life and accomplishments, including his role in the establishment of Jewish Renewal, the spiritual eldering movement, and his contributions to engaged interfaith dialogue.
°µÍø½ûÇø Niggunim:
One of Schachter-Shalomi's contributions to contemporary JudaismÌýwas the preservation of a style ofÌýmusic that dates back to medieval times in Eastern Europe and the adaptation of these melodies for the modern Western ear. Known as niggunim, these melodies were wordless andÌýoften composed spontaneously and recalled asÌýoral memory. They wereÌýintended to commemorate Jewish identity for generations.
The Innovations in Jewish Life CollectionsÌýholds many of Schachter-Shalomi's audio recordings, which include both his thoughts on and performance of niggunim. Explore a selection of these recordings below.
Links redirect to the University of ColoradoÌýLibraries'Ìýonline repository.
In 1978, Schachter-Shalomi visited the Jewish Renewal group Aquarian Minyan in Berkeley, CaliforniaÌýfor a week of davvening (a form of meditation)Ìýand learning. In this audio clip, he both demonstrates and explains how Niggunim function as an encoding of timeless wisdom that assist in bringing groups to a shared entrainment and pave the path to an awakening of consciousness.
These two niggunim,ÌýÌý²¹²Ô»åÌý,Ìýare recordings from "At the Rebbe's Table: Rabbi Zalman Schachter Shalomi's Legacy of Song and Music: Volume II." They areÌýexamples ofÌýtraditional niggunim from theÌýHasidim of Belz,Ìýa town in Western Ukraine near the Polish border. Belz has existed since the 10thÌýcentury, has had a Jewish community since the 14th century, and became home to Hasidic Jewry in the 19th century. Schachter-ShalomiÌýwas born into a distinguished family of Belzer Hasidim.
These niggunim are traditional Hasidic melodies, from some of the most prominent rabbis in the tradition.
- Ìýwas recorded by Schachter-ShalomiÌýin Boulder, Colorado in 2007.
- Ìýwas composed by Reb Nachman of Breslov, the great-grandson of the founder of Hasidism, the Ba'al Shem Tov ("master of the good name"). This version is an adaptation by Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach. It is the morning blessing to celebrate the renewed 'clean slate' that a soul is given each day upon awakening.
- : The Ba'al Shem TovÌýspoke of niggunim as 'songs that transcend syllables and sound'. Yedid NefeshÌýis a kabbalat Shabbat song to greet the Sabbath. The poem's words are usually attributed to the 16th century kabbalist Rabbi Elazer ben Moshe Azikri (1522 - 1600).
- Ìýis a four-part round composed by Schachter-Shalomi at a gathering in Minneapolis, Minnesota ca 1969. The chant is an attempt to give language to an experience of the "FourÌýWorlds."
- Ìýis the result of Schachter-Shalomi davvening at home, reciting the K'gavna -- a non-duality statement -- during a Friday morning teaching (shiur) at his home in Philadelphia in 1982.
- Ìýis one of three traditional niggunim for which Schachter-Shalomi composed English lyrics for conscious understanding. This was composed by a ChaBaD Lubavitcher HasidÌýand is a preparatory song.
- ,Ìý"one uniquely simple unity," was composed by Schachter-Shalomi in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1968. The phrase comes from Italian kabbalist Luzatto, and Schachter-Shalomi considers this to be a d'veikut (clinging to the divine) zikr.
- Ìýis a comfort melody composed spontaneously at a Shabbaton in Berkeley, California.
The inaugural Embodied Judaism Symposium: The Sound of Ecstasy was presented by the °µÍø½ûÇø’sÌýÌý²¹²Ô»åÌý. This event was generously cosponsored by CU Boulder'sÌýand the .Ìý
Click here to watchÌý
the 2013Ìýsymposium.