It’s A Cappella Time!
Up there in the top five least favorite Jewish traditions is the custom of avoiding live instrumental music between the end of Passover and Lag B’aomer. Being a people of hairsplitting legalists, this custom has engendered a whole new genre, called “s’fira music” — albums upon albums of permissible a cappella tunes (from all male choirs since the adherence to this tradition usually comes with a healthy fear of kol isha and consequent rejection of female-sung vocals).
S’fira music is certainly an “a-choired” taste, but many Jews out there will be delighted with this thorough compilation.
To me, this music is reminiscent of Passover cakes, baked out of potato starch — trying a little too hard to be something they are not and not quite rising to the occasion. However, this year the style had some wonderful developments, capitalizing on the current beatboxing trend.
The new releases include Matisyahu’s “One Day” and rapper Y-Love/Yuri Lane collaboration “The Sefira Album.”
One can only dream of a Jewish Reggie Watts or his magical precursor Bobby McFerrin surfacing out there, one day.
If they do surface, odds are that it will be during the seven weeks between Passover and Shavuot.
Watch the non-Jewish Reggie Watts out of control in Hymietown!
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
