Unlike the past 3 years of my time at HUC, this year seems to have a recurring theme that, no matter how hard I try, I cannot seem to escape. I don’t know if it’s the many weddings I’ve attended this year, or the wedding music I’ve been learning, or the fact that Passover has just ended, but the musical and poetic themes of one certain book of the Jewish bible have been popping up everywhere. The Song of Songs, or in Hebrew, Shir HaShirim is one of the most widely known and loved books of the Jewish Bible. It tells of two lovers, who describe each other’s physical beauty in romantic and even (tastefully) erotic ways. While this book may seem like a strange inclusion to the Hebrew Bible, Jewish tradition claims that there is more to the story than meets the eye. According to H.L. Ginsberg, “[Jewish tradition] understands it as an account of the relations between God and the Congregation of Israel. Of how God delivered her from Egypt and chose her to be God’s very own people and bestowed upon her the precious gift of the Torah…” It is for this reason, along with the fact that the text beautifully illustrates springtime in Israel, that Shir HaShirim is read in some congregations on the Shabbat of Passover. Given its romantic themes and messages of love and devotion, many pieces of the text are used as additions to Jewish wedding liturgy. Many of you have heard the phrase, “Ani l’dodi, v’dodi li -- I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine.” This phrase, often monogrammed into wedding bands or invitations, comes straight from chapter 6 of Shir HaShirim. You are probably familiar with other verses of this text as well, as many of them have made their way into mainstream American wedding culture.
With its incredible text, which is just as beautiful in English as it is in Hebrew, it’s no surprise that composers of Jewish music have set these words in thousands of different ways. Many of these compositions are soft and romantic, while others emphasize the drama, excitement, and passion that all occur with falling in love. Some of these compositions are (dare I say it?) considered to be sexy, evoking feelings that are less than appropriate to be experienced in synagogue. Regardless, the text of Shir HaShirim is best understood and appreciated through its many musical settings, which I hope to share with you at some point in the near future.
Cantor Tracy Fishbein
