Connections in Middle Eastern Music and Religion Research Paper

Connections in Middle Eastern Music and Religion - Research Paper Example The use of music in the Jewish theory made profound success as a means of attracting youths into the synagogues. This led to creation of folk, jazz and rock forms of music. Jewish women participated in music either as composers or cantors and brought new dimension on ancient view points of the Jewish religion. The role of sacred music led to greater flowering of the music theory, which had been initially thought to be immoral .Middle eastern Jewish folks majorly used the maqam system, which was Arabic classical music (Randel, 550). (Isaacson, 185) notes that when individuals think about Jewish music, what comes into their minds are hymns, holiday songs, and prayer settings that are associated with synagogues. Modern cantors acquire their nusach in sacred music schools from 19th and 20th century cantor educators such as Katchko and Baer. Word painting was carried out by cantor, who learned different modulates, one after another. Two cantors chanting similar prayers using the same nusa ch created contrasting emotional responses in formation of the song. They also employed the use of Scarbova or Misinai, that meant anonymous; unattributed folk melodies. These melodies were well versed by the members of the congregation and in fact believed to descend from Moses in Mount Sinai. Scarbova Is Latin for Sacred. Songs were the essence of tradition and culture and comfort of hearing them had strong ties to the Jewish religion. Traditionally Yiddish music was played by use of string instruments.