11- 12. Yashqef elohim mime'on qodsho (God will look down from His holy dwelling)

With Songs They Respond: The Diwan of the Jews from Central Yemen
With Songs They Respond: The Diwan of the Jews from Central Yemen
11. Yashqef elohim mime'on qodsho

Zadok Zubeiri

With Songs They Respond: The Diwan of the Jews from Central Yemen
With Songs They Respond: The Diwan of the Jews from Central Yemen
12. Yashqef elohim mime'on qodsho

Menachem Arussi and the Kiryat Ono men's


Nashid by Yosef ben Israel signed Yehosef. The poem calls for the Lord to take vengeance on the enemies of His people. The opening and closing hemistiches rhyme in all the five verses of the poem. In each of the two performances a different melody is sung, illustrating the age difference between the singers. The first singer, who is younger and was aducated in Israel, sings in family tradition, but has also absorbed different traditions and been influenced by what he has heard in Israel. He sings the nashid as a independent song, whereas the second singer performs it as an introduction to the shira that follow it.

11. Zadok Zubeiri sings all the five verses of the song to a single melody, accompanying himself on the drum. The melody consists of two motifs, one to each hemistich: the opening hemistich has an ascending, and the closing hemistich a descending motif. This parallels the subject matter of the song: the opening hemistich describes the wonders of God's works, while the closing hemistich speaks of His enemies and their punishment.

12. Menachem Arussi and the Kiryat Ono men's and children's ensemble sing in a responsorial manner: the soloist sings the opening hemistiches, and the ensemble responds with the closing hemistiches. Drumming on tin pan and drum accompany the rhythmical singing. Tempos are set by the beat of the tin pan. All the stanzas are sung to the same melodic formula, in which the tawshih has its own melody. (Bahat, 1995: 263). The performance ends with the blessing Vekulkhem berukhim.

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