We are thrilled to welcome Joey Weisenberg to NVHC! Joey is the Founder and Director of Hadar’s Rising Song Institute which cultivates grassroots musical-spiritual creativity in Jewish community. He is also the author of Building Singing Communities and The Torah of Music, winner of a 2017 National Jewish Book Award.
But maybe the best way to get to know Joey is to hear his music – click the links to the right to check him out on Spotify and see him working with a congregation much like ours.
We will spend an afternoon with him in the workshops described below. You can attend one, two, or all three workshops!
You won’t want to miss this amazing opportunity to learn about and experience communal singing that is embedded in our tradition. There is magic that happens when human voices come together to make music, and Joey is an expert at teasing out that magic, encouraging creativity, and creating spiritual and transformative singing experiences.
No musical experience required; you don’t even have to like to sing! Just come with a heart open to learning, exploring, and maybe even transforming.
The Art of the Nigun (12:45 – 2:15pm)
Drawing on Joey’s extensive experience with nigunim (wordless melodies), nusah (prayer chant), and other musical styles, this workshop will guide the participants in an exploration of the soul of any melody. Focusing on beautiful old melodies that may have been lost by history as well as Joey’s own compositions, we will collectively bring the music to life.
The Torah of Music (2:30 – 4pm)
Drawing from Joey’s 2017 National Jewish Book Award–winning book The Torah of Music, participants will explore the spiritual teachings of music by studying various Jewish musical-spiritual texts and stories. We will sing, too.
Where there is song there is prayer.
במקום רנה שם תהא תפלה
—Talmud Brachot 6a
Building Singing Communities (4:30 – 6pm)
Leading by example, and using concepts, actions, and visions from his book Building Singing Communities, Joey will teach us strategies for bringing people together to make music a lasting and joy-filled force in our shul and in Jewish life. We will learn techniques for facilitating closeness, setting up singing spaces, encouraging harmony, finding the groove, cultivating silence, and more. This workshop is designed for leaders, visionaries, and laypeople who want to transform the soundscape of our community. Participants will have the chance to sing deeply, learn musical Torah, and ask questions.
To support this and future musical events at NVHC, please consider a donation to the Shirah (Music) Fund!
Attend one, two, or all three workshops!
12-12:45 pm – Lunch
12:45-2:15 pm – Workshop: The Art of the Nigun
2:15-2:30 pm – Break
2:30-4 pm – Workshop: The Torah of Music
4-4:30 pm – Break and Snack
4:30-6 pm – Workshop: Building Singing Communities
