Learn How To Play Ancient Lyres - Lesson #11 !
5This is my 11th lesson on how to play the Kinnor...the ancient Jewish Lyre, once played by King David, & by my very own, very ancient, VERY cool, Levite ancestors, over 2000 years ago - IN THE TEMPLE OF JERUSALEM!
In this lesson, I will show all you lovely "Levite Wannabes" out there, how to play the haunting melody to "Yigdal"; one of the the closing hymns traditionally sung at the end of the Shabbat Service.
"Yigdal" is in the Melodic Minor Mode - so common to all ancient Jewish melodies. The 10 strings of the Kinnor are tuned, lowest string to highest:
DEbFG(tonic)ABbCDEbF
The notes of the melody are:
low D GABbC highD, G
C high D EbC high D, C
Bb C highD EbF, Eb high D CBb,Bb
high D high D high D high D C,
ABb high D CBbA, low D
GABbC high D Eb high D CBbAG
The Hebrew text & English translation of this timeless Hymn are as follows:
Hebrew text
.יִגְדַּל אֱלֹהִים חַי וְיִשְׁתַּבַּח
:נִמְצָא וְאֵין עֵת אֶל מְצִיאוּתוֹ
.אֶחָד וְאֵין יָחִיד כְּיִחוּדוֹ
:נֶעְלָם וְגַם אֵין סוֹף לְאַחְדּוּתוֹ
.אֵין לוֹ דְּמוּת הַגּוּף וְאֵינוֹ גוּף
:לֹא נַעֲרוֹךְ אֵלָיו קְדֻשָּתוֹ
.קַדְמוֹן לְכָל דָּבָר אֲשֶׁר נִבְרָא
רִאשׁוֹן :וְאֵין רֵאשִׁית לְרֵאשִׁיתוֹ
.הִנּוֹ אֲדוֹן עוֹלָם לְכָל(וְכָל) נוֹצָר
:יוֹרֶה גְּדֻלָּתוֹ וּמַלְכוּתוֹ
.שֶׁפַע נְבוּאָתוֹ נְתָנוֹ
:אֶל אַנְשֵׁי סְגֻלָּתוֹ וְתִפְאַרְתּוֹ
.לֹא קָם בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל כְּמשֶׁה עוֹד
:נָבִיא וּמַבִּיט אֶת תְּמוּנָתוֹ
.תּוֹרַת אֱמֶת נָתַן לְעַמּוֹ אֵל
:עַל יַד נְבִיאוֹ נֶאֱמַן בֵּיתוֹ
.לֹא יַחֲלִיף הָאֵל וְלֹא יָמִיר דָּתוֹ
:לְעוֹלָמִים לְזוּלָתוֹ
.צוֹפֶה וְיוֹדֵעַ סְתָרֵינוּ
:מַבִּיט לְסוֹף דָּבָר בְּקַדְמָתוֹ
.גּוֹמֵל לְאִישׁ חֶסֶד כְּמִפְעָלוֹ
:יִתֵּן לְרָשָׁע רָע כְּרִשְׁעָתוֹ
.יִשְׁלַח לְקֵץ יָמִין מְשִׁיחֵנוּ
:לִפְדּוֹת מְחַכֵּי קֵץ יְשׁוּעָתוֹ
.מֵתִים יְחַיֶּה אֵל בְּרֹב חַסְדּוֹ
:בָּרוּךְ עֲדֵי עַד שֵׁם תְּהִלָּתוֹ
Exalted be the Living God and praised, He exists - unbounded by time is His existence;
He is One - and there is no unity like His Oneness - Inscrutable and infinite is His Oneness;
He has no semblance of a body nor is He corporeal - nor has His holiness any comparison;
He preceded every being that was created - the First, and nothing precedes His precedence;
Behold! He is Master of the universe to every creature - He demonstrates His greatness and His sovereignty;
He granted His flow of prophecy - to His treasured, splendid people;
In Israel, none like Moses arose again - a prophet who perceived His vision clearly;
God gave His people a Torah of truth - by means of His prophet, the most trusted of His household;
God will never amend nor exchange His law - for any other one, for all eternity;
He scrutinizes and knows our hiddenmost secrets - He perceives a matter's outcome at its inception;
He recompenses man with kindness according to his deed - He places evil on the wicked according to his wickedness;
By the End of Days He will send our Messiah - to redeem those longing for His final salvation;
God will revive the dead in His abundant kindness - Blessed forever is His praised Name.
All of my 9 albums of mystical, ancient lyre music are now available from iTunes...
1)"An Ancient Lyre": http://bit.ly/dhCozi
2)"King David's Lyre; Echoes of Ancient Israel":
http://bit.ly/9PCIua
3)"The Ancient Biblical Lyre": http://bit.ly/9hTDje
4)"Lyre of the Levites": http://bit.ly/9baWuM
5)"Apollo's Lyre": http://bit.ly/dhCozi
6)"Ancient Times -- Music of The Ancient World":
http://bit.ly/aRF5PD
7)"The Ancient Greek Modes": http://bit.ly/cZks0o
8)"The Ancient Greek Lyre": http://bit.ly/bxO7Ra
9)"Ancient Visions -- New Compositions for an Ancient Lyre": http://bit.ly/dCPmRN
Physical CDs are also available anywhere in the world from CD Baby, for 3 of my best selling albums:
"An Ancient Lyre": http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mlevy4
"King David's Lyre; Echoes of Ancient Israel":
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mlevy
"Lyre of the Levites": http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/mlevy2
For full details about my albums of lyre music, and the fascinating ancient historical background, please visit my official website:
http://www.ancientlyre.com