Search - Richard Kaplan :: Life of the Worlds: Journeys in Jewish Sacred Music

A remarkable collection of vocal performances of Jewish sacred music from the Middle East, Andalusia, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia - songs of exultation, longing, love, and Divine immanence - accompanied by an ensemble of masterful musicians. Instruments include: oud, ney, kanun, Egyptian accordian, violin, mandolin, dumbek, doira, riqq, Yemenite can, tar, saz, clarinet, mey (Turkish duduk), tilinca (Rumanian shepherd's flute), piano, string bass, balaban (Klezmer drum set), cimbalom, and a chorus of voices. Among many special songs, the CD features an 'eco-lament' (ecological lament) based on lament melodies for the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem. It is called "Lament on the Destruction of the Garden of Eden" (Kinah Lekhurban Gan Eden), and updates the use of these tunes to mourn the wounding of our larger temple, Gaia - Mother Earth. LIFE OF THE WORLDS contains 18 songs, 77 minutes of music, and contains a 32-page booklet which includes informative song descriptions; all texts are provided in transliteration, English translation, and in Hebrew or Yiddish. This CD was three years in the making, and presents the first recordings in North America of several songs from the treasure-chest of Jewish sacred music.