Welcoming Shabbat with Lecha Dodi Sung by Harvard Hillel's "ApiChorus" a Cappella

Today we welcome Shabbat with another version of Lecha Dodi set to Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah in an arrangement by the Maccabeats. It's sung by ApiChorus, Harvard Hillel's Jewish a Cappella Group. 

Founded in 2023, ApiChorus is a coed group comprised of current students at Harvard University. They sing a diverse repertoire of Hebrew and English classics, represent a broad range of Jewish backgrounds, and perform at venues locally in Cambridge as well as in concerts across the country.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!

Welcoming Shabbat with a Cappella Lecha Dodi by Pittsburgh Hillelujah

Hillelujah is a relatively new a cappella group established in 2015. The group is comprised of students from Carnegie Mellon University, University of Pittsburgh and Point Park.

Hillel Jewish University Center is currently conducting auditions for the Hillelujah a cappella group. All Jewish students from Pittsburgh colleges and universities are welcome to try out for the group. 

In this video, Hillelujah sings one of the traditional melodies for Lecha Dodi, a hymn sung to welcome Shabbat every Friday night. The music is Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah and the arrangement is based on a Pentatonix video.

Sing along and Enjoy. Shabbat shalom!


A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.  

Remembering Pete Seeger For More Than His Folk Music

Many of us grew up with the folksongs of Pete Seeger and The Weavers, including Where Have All the Flowers Gone, If I Had a Hammer, Michael Row the Boat Ashore, and Tzena, Tzena. In those days, we didn't pay attention to his politics, only his singing.

In addition to performing Tzena, Tzena, Tzena, Seeger also recorded a version of Dayenu, from the Passover Haggadah, in the 1959 album Folk Songs for Young People. Seeger also performed Hineh Ma Tov with the Weavers in their 1963 Reunion at Carnegie Hall.

Seeger, who died last week at the age of 94, was an activist for many leftist causes, but although pressured to join the anti-Israel BDS movement, he declined to join it.

As Ben Harris wrote in The Times of Israel,

Seeger first visited Israel in 1964 and spent time on Israeli kibbutzim — just the sort of collective communal enterprises he loved. He performed Israeli folk tunes with the Weavers in the 1950s as part of the larger folk revival he was helping to champion. And just two years ago, he recorded a video for the Jewish retreat center Isabella Freedman that recalls the three questions posed by the Jewish sage Hillel.

Seeger was fascinated with Hillel and the three questions attributed to him in Pirke Avot (Ethics of the Fathers). In the video below he reflects on the questions and suggests that they be taught in all schools. 

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)