Songs

I wanted to pick a song this week with a message to honor Black History Month in February. This special song by my friend Beth Schafer who is a songleader, singer-songwriter and cantorial soloist in Atlanta who writes powerful social justice anthems. Her song asks us to think long and hard about whether we are […]

This latest wave of COVID has been really tough on young families, and it reminded me of this really moving and hopeful song released earlier in the pandemic by the sweet and talented Karina Zilberman. “Painting Our World in Healing and Hope” quotes the words in the Torah when Moses asks God to heal his […]

One thing that has always been important to me is using music to create bridges between people of different backgrounds. In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I wanted to share this amazing collaboration between Laurie Akers, Cantor Rachel Goldman and Cantor Rachel Brook (a.k.a. Shul Sisters) and Tyrell Belle, Zuumah Gayeman and Ian […]

Tu B’Shvat is a GREAT holiday for families! What a special opportunity to teach our children about nature, caring for the world, and all that trees give to us. This grooving song from Latin GRAMMY-winner Mister G is a fun way to think about this special celebration of nature – “The Birthday of the Trees.” […]

Tu B’Shvat is coming up, and as a total nature-lover, I love any chance to appreciate the great outdoors! Nature is also full of powerful metaphors that help us understand our place in the world and our tradition. I love the idea of the Torah, the core of our tradition, being a “Tree of Life,” […]

It’s time to say “goodbye” to 2021 and “hello” to 2022, which got me thinking about this rocking song from my dear friend, Sheldon Low! “Shalom” famously can be used to say “hello,” “goodbye” and “peace,” and I can think of no sweeter way to mark this transition and wish you and your family peace […]

It was this time last year when Eric Hunker released this song “Our Year” — I was blown away by both the song and its hopeful message that 2021 would be brighter and better. And it was! In ways big and small. I wanted to share this inspiring song and message again with you this […]

Our physical, mental and emotional health is ALWAYS important, and it’s been a big focus of this past year. Now that the winter’s here, I thought this would be a great time to share with you a new Jewish song (and one of the only Jewish songs) specifically about health from my friend Jay Rapoport. […]

December is always a month of reflection, and looking back on 2021, this has been a year of healing in both hard and really positive ways for SO many people. Jaffa Road is an incredible ensemble based in Toronto that bridges divides through their cross-genre music. Their song “Ana El Na,” recalling healing words from […]

Chanukah is a GREAT time of year for Jewish music, and “Ocho Kandelikas” is an all-time classic! Written in Ladino by the late, great Flory Jagoda, the song has been given a unique spin by many talented artists over the years, with my sweet friend Josh Nelson among the latest. This version is SUPER fun […]