Piyyut: Hebrew Poetry and World Music

Piyyut: Hebrew Poetry and World Music: Robert Alter, Yair Harel, and the Tafillalt Ensemble
Thursday November 13, 2014, 7pm
The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life, 2121 Allston Way, Berkeley
Hebrew poems (piyyutim), chanted for centuries across the Diaspora, have been adapted to different melodies, evolving into a form of “Jewish world music” with roots in Europe, the Mediterranean, North Africa, and the Middle East. This singing tradition, a core component of synagogue practice, has also entered secular life in Israel through public performances, workshops, and performing arts festivals, and is now spreading to North America. The program will include words by Professor Robert Alter, and a performance of traditional and contemporary musical interpretations by Schusterman Visiting Artist Yair Harel and the Ensemble Tafillalt (Jerusalem).
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The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life
The Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley
www.magnes.org