Under the full moon of Nisan, deep in the Mojave desert, a liberation of limbs and hearts. 
We dance because it is the expression of freedom, because it has no economic utility, because it is a pure prayer, because it is a language of exodus. We dance in community because our liberation is social & must be witnessed + supported. 
Hineinu, here we are. 

Recorded live at Passover in the Desert (slight post-recording edits made, as sometimes what is live cannot be captured on file).

Live @ Passover in the Desert 2023

An Elul teaching on sound and silence, song and imagination, return and recharge. Class handout: http://issuu.com/shiryaakov/docs/jcc-teshuva-songsheet

Rebbe Naftali Tzvi of Ropshitz proclaimed that the Heichal HaNegina (the heavenly Mansion of Melody) was next to the Heichal HaTeshuva (the heavenly Mansion of Return or “Repentance”), and the person who did not jump from the former into the latter was an absolute fool because the doors were interconnected. Regarding this statement, the Divrei Yisrael [of Modzitz] added: “Everybody says that the Heichal HaNegina is next to the Heichal HaTeshuva. But I say that the Heichal HaNegina itself is the Heichal HaTeshuva.”
Sefer Imrei Shaul, p. 309


The Palace of Return is Music Itself

This set includes Nu & Be Svendsen, Nico Stojan & David Keno, Mochakk & Fernanda Ouro, Missy Elliot & Skrillex, Sam Smith, Todrick Hall, Eddie Kendricks, and others.

After Havdallah and Concert at the Let My People Sing retreat 2024.

Hold On My People @ Let My People Sing 7/13/24

In this installment of Sound Advice, German composer/producer Ben Böhmer joins us for an in-depth conversation detailing his artist journey, which has evolved from playing piano and trumpet in his youth to honing his craft as an electronic artist and performing on some of the biggest stages in the world. Best known for lush and melodic progressive house tracks, Ben takes us through the making of his new record, ‘Bloom,’ which doubles as his debut on Ninja Tune and showcases a more introspective side of his personality. Elsewhere throughout our conversation, we dive into how he approaches preparing for live performances, how he’s adapted his sound to different settings and how he uses SoundCloud to keep it all organized.

Episode Show Notes: https://soundcloud.com/stories/post/sound-advice-ben-bohmer
Follow SoundCloud Stories: @soundcloud-stories
Follow Ben Böhmer: @ben-bohmer
Get Started With Artist and Artist Pro: https://artists.soundcloud.com

Sound Advice: Ben Böhmer

enchanted space

crossing a futuristic street in japan

Wander

Gevurah ~ Strength
“Your loving kindness sustains the living, your great mercies give life to the dead*.” 

You wake us up
From our sleep
To fight for all humanity
‘Till everyone is free

Guided by our biggest light
Love is part of how we fight
Mechai meitim*

And I pray, pray, pray,
For our strength, strength, strength
And I pray, pray, pray,
For our strength

-- Molly Bajgot

[Other verse options:   Possibility    Our Community    Solidarity]

*to give life to the dead here is being specifically interpreted to mean:

to give life “to carry on the memory”
to the dead “people who died due to unjust systems":

583 people shot and killed by police in 2019
7,216 people have died crossing the US-Mexico border between 1998 and 2017
Israeli security forces killed 290 Palestinians, including 55 minors, in 2018
28 trans women killed in 2018
And many more deaths rooted in racism, sexism, class-based oppression, addiction, mental health, gender-based oppression, homophobia -- and more otherwise consequences of an oppressive society

we remember them & fight for them with love

for our strength | גבורה

Vocal accompaniment and production by Baci Weiler

I will carry you through these changes
V'ad seva ani esbol
(When you turn grey, I'll still carry you/be patient with you/bear you) 
- Isaiah 46:4

(((It's odd to do this as a duet because to me, it's about learning to hold myself and have my own back, and sometimes feeling like the universe is holding me too.)))

I Will Carry You/V'ad Seva — Inspired by Isaiah 46:4

I wrote this song in the midst of shock and grief at the murder and loss of Gabrielle Gottlieb from the Romemu community and the world. She was a fan of my music and was kind whenever I saw her, asking my family about me, and watching. 

Gabrielle was a healer, an energy worker, a woman deeply aware of the power that lies in the body. She wasn’t just gentle, just kind— she was a warrior. Gabrielle was running in the last moments of her life, trusting her guts, trusting her body, and trying with all she had to find safety and freedom. Her loss remains a gaping hole in the world, and justice has still not been served. 

In this song, I keep in mind those in abusive relationships, those in unsafe homes, those parenting themselves in treacherous environments, and those whose traumas of abuse and sexual assault are bubbling to the surface in this time. I commit to working to create systems to address harm and create circles of love and care wherever I dwell. 

A word about trusting the body— as someone with a chronic disability, trusting my body completely is no simple task. My body needs a lot of help to keep working! If you’re singing this song and find that these words don’t sit right in the moment, I hope they might serve in other moments. And if not, I love you and see that pain. I wrote these words in deep gratitude to that thing that sits deep, deep within my body, under even the parts of my body that need help to function— that gut instinct that keeps me safe with all its might. 

Thank you to my partner Noam Lerman for joining me in song and strength!

Lyrics:

Days when I don’t trust my family
Days when I don’t trust my friends
I trust my body, deep down in my core 

Days when I don’t trust my leaders
Days when I don’t trust my teachers 
I trust my body, deep down in my core 

Days when I don’t trust my lover
Days when I don’t trust my God
I trust my body, deep down in my core

Oh my body, oy oy oy oy 
Oh my body oy oy oy oy
I trust my body, my shaking body
I trust my body, deep down in my core

Oh my body, oy oy oy oy 
Oh my body oy oy oy oy
I trust my body, my brilliant body 
I trust my body, deep down in my core 

Oh my body, oy oy oy oy 
Oh my body oy oy oy oy
I trust my body, down in my kishkes 
I trust my body, deep down in my core

I Trust My Body

Rabbi Shir Meira Feit is an intuitive, gifted, and accomplished guide with decades of experience in meeting others at the dynamic edge of spiritual emergence.
Wherever you may be on your journey, Shir can join you with compassion, kindness, humor, and curiosity.

Shir is a circle-maker, song carrier, award-winning composer*, ritualist, and designer at the vanguard of Jewish Renewal, a trans-denominational, ecumenical, mystical approach to Judaism.

The Palace of Return is Music Itself

shir meira feit