Rabbi adds microtones to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah

Rabbi adds microtones to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah

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norman lebrecht

November 09, 2019

In a performance at the Israel National Library, Shlomi Shaban and Rabbi David Menahem took a Hebrew translation of the Cohen classic down to Middle Eastern roots and maqamot.

See what you think.

h/t Abigail Wood

 

Comments

  • Karl says:

    Schmaltzy.

  • Robert von Bahr says:

    Mesmerisingly beautiful.
    That song is part of our morning ritual (in Cohen’s original rendition).

  • Mr. Knowitall says:

    It’s beautiful, but calling it microtonal is a stretch. The piano is tuned conventionally and the singers are singing as much in even temperament as singers ever do. The ney is attempting to stay in tune with the piano, but that’s not how neys are built, resulting in quite a few unintended microtones.

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