National Sound Archive (NSA), Music Center, National Library of Israel
Orbis Musicae
This is the online version of Orbis Musicae, an international musicological journal published by the Department of Musicology of Tel Aviv University since the 1970s until 2007. While the journal publishes articles and book reviews (mostly in English, but with occasional contributions in German and French) dealing with all aspects of musicology, the editors have attempted in the past to emphasize the music of the Middle East and of the Mediterranean basin.
Rabbins et Hazanim d'Alsace
This link provides information on the cantors and rabbis of Alsace and Lorraine from the beginning of the 20th century to the present. It is part of a larger site, Judaisme d'Alsace et de Lorraine. In French.
Renanot - Jewish Music Institute
The Renanot Institute deals with the documentation, research and promotion of Jewish music of the various ethnic Jewish communities, as well as with the promotion of religious Jewish singing and cantorial music in every possible way.
Robert and Molly Freedman Jewish Music Archive Catalogue
This catalogue contains over 28,000 Yiddish and other Jewish songs and albums from the Freedman collection at the University of Pennsylvania Library.
Sephardic Hazzanut Project
The Sephardic Hazzanut Project, a website collecting information and recordings concerning Sephardic Hazzanut, was started by Faraj Samra in 2009, beginning with 20 recordings, and now containing more than 1,500 recordings. In addition to the many recordings available through the website, supplementary information regarding Sephardic pizmonim, maqamot, holidays, and daily tefillah, among an array of other subjects, can be found on this website.
Shalshelet
The Foundation for New Jewish Liturgical Music seeks to foster new music for Jewish congregational use and expose wider audiences to innovations in Jewish religious music. Shalshelet promotes the creation and spread of new Jewish liturgical music by looking for the answers to these questions: Which congregations are singing different tunes? Who is writing and leading these new compositions? How can these compositions be found, collected, and shared?
Srul Irving Glick
This site includes biographical notes about Glick, his works and repertory, as well as some sound examples.
Tara Publications (jewishmusic.com)
Tara Publications was founded in Cedarhurst, LI in 1971 by musicologist Velvel Pasternak. The goal of the company was “the publication, preservation and dissemination of the heritage of Jewish music.” The earliest publications were collections of Hasidic songs based on recordings arranged and conducted by Pasternak. These were followed by Israeli, Yiddish, Klezmer, Choral, Cantorial and Instrumental music collections. Digital formats can be accessed from around the globe at jewishmusic.com.
Terezin Music Foundation
This website is dedicated to the preservation, performance, and research of the music written by composers who perished during the Holocaust, with a special emphasis on those in Theresienstadt. Includes information about the foundation's research activities, archives, and educational programs, as well as a calendar of upcoming musical performances. (Description found on US Holocaust Memorial Website; Music, Web Resources)
The Klezmer Shack
An informative site which focuses on Klezmer music and the Klezmer revival. It provides an up-to-date calendar of events all over the world. It also contains links to articles, instrument shops, organizations, bands, sources of sheet music, and recordings.
Yiddish Book Center
The Yiddish Book Center defines itself as “a nonprofit organization working to tell the whole Jewish story by rescuing, translating, and disseminating Yiddish books and presenting innovative educational programs that broaden understanding of modern Jewish identity.” The majority of the center’s resources are literary in nature, however ample archival recordings can be found on their website, including a wealth of interviews (video and audio) with Jewish musicians and educators discussing the topic of Jewish music.
Yiddish Book Center
The Yiddish Book Center defines itself as “a nonprofit organization working to tell the whole Jewish story by rescuing, translating, and disseminating Yiddish books and presenting innovative educational programs that broaden understanding of modern Jewish identity.” The majority of the center’s resources are literary in nature, however ample archival recordings can be found on their website, including a wealth of interviews (video and audio) with Jewish musicians and educators discussing the topic of Jewish music.
Yiddish Music
The site contains a comprehensive collection of recordings, lyrics, and biographies of Yiddish musicians. The site is in Russian, English, and Hebrew. The majority of the website is in Russian, however some biographies are available in English. The sound recordings and information regarding these recordings are readily accessible in English throughout the site.
Yiddish song: an A-Z of Research
This bibliography outlines a range of published works concerning various aspects of Yiddish song, particularly folk song. (This selection has been distilled from a larger bibliography compiled as part of Abbi Wood's PhD research.)
Zemereshet
Zemereshet (primarily in Hebrew) defines itself as a website run by advocates of the early Hebrew folksong. Their goal is to save from extinction songs written in Hebrew, from the early stages of Zionism up until the establishment of Israel, and to make these songs openly accessible to the public through the website. Zemereshet provides a wealth of collected recordings, including lyrics, archival materials, and contextual background.
Zemerl
This is a comprehensive database of information, lyrics, and sounds of Jewish, Yiddish, Hebrew, and Judeo-Spanish songs.
- A Polka Mazurka
- Niggun of the Meggid of Mezerich From the album, "The Hasidic Niggun as Sung by the Hasidim." This dance niggun is the seventh and last in a series of niggunim sung by Bratslav Hasidim as they dance after the Shabbat evening service on Friday night. Some have attributed the niggun to R. Dov Ber, the meggid of Mezerich.
- Kol B'ru'ei (Padua, Italy) From the album, "Italian Jewish Musical Traditions from the Leo Levi Collection (1954-1961)." The poem depicts "all creatures" singing and praising the unity of God, and was recited in the Italian rite during the daily morning prayer. This melody was sung only on Rosh Hashanah (New Year) in the Italian tradition of Padua.
- Yigdal From the album, "Judeo-Carribean Currents, Music of the Mikve Israel-Emanuel Synagogue in Curaçao," performed by Gideon Zelermyer. The Yigdal is part of the ceremonial section of the liturgical order of Shabbat and the Holy Days in the Curaçao synagogue. It is one of the ending hymns of the service.
- Eres Chiquita y Bonita From the album, "Judeo-Spanish Moroccan Songs for the Life Cycle," sung by Alicia Bendayan from Tetuan. This is a song about courtship, related to the Jewish rituals that mark the events of the life cycle.
- Sweet Shalt Be My Chant From the album, "Kulmus Hanefesh," performed by Yair Harel on voice and tar, and Matti Kovler on voice and piano. A sacred hymn attributed to Rabbi Yehuda ha-Chasid, this is a Chabad tune with a near-Eastern arrangement.
- Lyr II From the album, "The Music of the Mountain Jews." Lyr is a genre found among all Turkish peoples, consisting of long, complex compositions usually comprised of three parts.
- Gilu ha-Galilim (Rejoice Galileans) From the album, "Nights in Canaan, Early Songs of the Land of Israel (1882-1946)." This is a Second Aliyah (1904-1914) song which became an integral part of the historical repertoire of Hebrew song. Both native-born and newly arrived pioneers sang this song in all circumstances.
- Saperi Tama From the album, "With Songs They Respond: The Diwan of the Jews from Central Yemen." This is a girdle poem by Se'adia ben Amram. Saperi Tama is sung to many melodies and is one of Yemenite Jewry's most common poems.