Welcoming Shabbat with Ein Keloheinu Sung by Hazzan Daniel Halfon to a Melody by Beethoven

Daniel Halfon is the Emeritus Hazzan of the Yad Harav Nissim synagogue in Jerusalem and a leading authority of the cantorial style of the western Sephardim. A classically trained baritone, Halfon was born in England and grew up in London's ancient Spanish and Portuguese community under the tutelage of Rabbi Dr Abraham Levy. 

He studied Hazzanut with three of the outstanding cantors of the Western Sephardi tradition: Eliezer Abinun z"l, Abraham Beniso z"l and Abraham Lopes Cardozo z"l. As a young man he received the call from Congregation Shearith Israel in New York to serve as Hazzan, and over the past 30 years he has been invited to sing in Sephardi synagogues across the world. 

In this video Hazzan Halfon sings a multitracked rendition of Ein Keloheinu, a song sung toward the conclusion of the Shabbat Shacharit service. The melody is based on the second (allegretto) movement of Beethoven's seventh symphony.

Scroll down to watch and listen to Zubin Mehta conducting the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra as they play the full second movement.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom! 

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