Unataneh Tokef

Directed by Yehuda Yaniv

This film follows the premier of Yair Rosenblum's version of Unateh Tokef, the Yom Kippur piyyut, at the 1990 Yom Kippur war memorial service at Kibbutz Beith Hashita. The film leads up to the first performance of the song, sung by Hanoch Albalak, by interviewing members of the kibbutz about the meaning of Yom Kippur for them. Many see it as a secular day of remembrance, especially in light of the Yom Kippur war which took the lives of 11 members of the Kibbutz.

These interviews are interspersed with interviews with Rosenblum and scenes of him rehearsing with Albalak and explaining to him different aspects of the song to take into consideration when he performs it. One example is that the song's melody has both Ashkenazi and Sephardic influences and that Albalak should imagine himself in a synagogue when performing it.

The Film also includes the performances of other Yom Kippur piyyutim such as Sasha Argov's 'Ptach Lanu Sha'ar.'


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