Re: Yismekhu or Yismechu

[r l reid <ro...>]

The question "how many versions of Yishmechu" has to be placed in context.

It is a song setting of a part of the liturgy.  Therefore, while there may be 
just a few well known ones, there are an unknown and potentially limitless
number of them.

For example when I am honored to do the concluding section of Schacharis
on the weekday - an informal enough situation where an amateur is welcome
as the leader - tho I try my best to stick to an approriate nusach for the
most part, when we come to the final Tehilah (Psalm) I usually improvise
a tune that fits both the meaning AND my mood toward the meaning on that
morning.

Now, that's just personal and local, but my point in Jews have been 
doing this "for THOUSANDS of years" as the cliche goes.  How many tunes
for Lecha Doidi?  I've collected about 50, I know there are many more.

My point (and I *think* I have one) is that asking how many melodies there
are for a bit of liturgy is a doomed question.  Even if you could answer 
it, by tomoorow the answer would have changed.

roger "i daven it like I feel it" reid

-- 
r l reid        ro (at) rreid(dot)net


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