V’hi Sheamdah – Hope in Every Generation
Song of the Week
•
2m 44s
In 2022, Cantor Jacqueline Rafii was commissioned by Cantor Schwartz to compose a new melody for “V'hi Sheamdah.” It took the form of a lullaby for her infant daughter, a promise of strength, hope, and resilience. Since October 7, it has become an anthem dedicated to all the hostages, a reminder that the Jewish people can and will overcome the darkest moments. Earlier this year, Cantor Schwartz and Cantor Rafii reunited at Valley Beth Shalom in California to perform this duet.
You can find the 2022 recording on our Haggadah for Young Families album at pasyn.org/2022haggadah.
Featuring Cantors Jacqueline Rafii and Azi Schwartz
Music by Cantor Jacqueline Rafii, commissioned by PAS Music Center
Arranged by Jason Weisinger
Music Director: David Enlow
Audio: Oli Jung
Video: Steve Pearlman
Up Next in Song of the Week
-
The Voice of My Beloved – Kol Dodi fr...
This setting for springtime by David Nowakowsky (1848–1921), part of the Song of Songs, is all about arrivals, expectation, and allegories of love. This passage is read during Passover, which we will celebrate during the upcoming month of Nisan. Nowakowsky flourished with other Jewish musical gre...
-
Somewhere (There’s a Place for Us), f...
West Side Story brought two geniuses to bear on a tale as old as humanity: lovers from warring tribes. Stephen Sondheim, z”l, whose 95th birthday would be this week, penned some immortal lines about people whose place is not here, whose time is not now, but who long for the place and time that is...
-
Carpool Karaoke for Cantor and Kids!
There is a rich treasury of music that’s been written for Israeli children. Here are some whimsical and beautiful children’s songs in Hebrew. Enjoy solos by Cantor Schwartz’s children and let your heart be light! Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom and a Happy Purim.