[HANASHIR:15272] Re: Opening Songs

[Marsha Fensin <mfsings...>]

Since Gates of Prayer ( the reform siddur) has ten different Shabbat 
Evening Services and five different Shabbat morning services, there are 
a lot of choices within the liturgy itself.  We do a different service 
ecah week, so I can choose ( and I do) from various versions of L'Cha 
Dodi, ( Service #1,3) ( I use Taubman, Lewandowski, Kol Haneshama 
Israeli and oneor two others) Hiney Mah Tov ( Service #2) and of course 
we all k now many versions of that,  Yedid Nefesh ( Service #3), Shalom 
Aleichem ( Service 4) , The Sun on the Treetops ( Service 5) and When 
God Made the World ( Service #9)  That gives us a nice variety to work 
from.  For Shabbat Morning services, the options are various Psalms plus 
Mah Tovu, which gives us lots to choose from.  As far as closings--we 
don't have as much of a variety--we do various Adon Olams, Ein 
Keloheinu, Ein Adir, Yigdal, HIney Mah Tov.  When I introduce a new 
opener or closer I use it for a while to get the congegation familiar 
with it and then I encourage them to sing along.  Sometimes I will 
intersperse my choir members throughout the congregation and ask them to 
sing very loudly.  That often encourages the rest of the Kahal to sing 
along, or not, as the case may be.  But, I try to always be encouraging 
of singing along.
Marsha

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