Ani L'Dodi V'Dodi Li

The Hebrew month of Elul ushers in a period of reflection during which Jews prepare themselves for the High Holy Day season.  The most outstanding sounds of this season are the daily blasts of the shofar that are heard as part of the morning service each weekday in the month that precedes Rosh HaShanah.  Later in the month we will add the selichot, prayers for forgiveness, that begin at midnight services on the Sunday evening preceding Rosh HaShanah, and continue at morning services through Yom Kippur.  It is at this midnight service that we begin to hear the traditional liturgical melodies that will be sung throughout the High Holy Day period.

Apart from these traditional musical and liturgical additions to the service, the entire month of Elul is considered by tradition to be one in which Jews begin to draw closer to God (This is an attempt at "reconciliation" between God and the Jewish people following the difficult weeks leading up to Tisha B'Av, the date on which the First and Second Temples were destroyed.) Indeed, the sages of old noted that the initial letters in the name of this month may be read as "Ani L'Dodi V'Dodi Li" - I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine.  This is a quotation from the Song of Songs, a series of allegorical poems which are said to represent the everlasting love between God and the Jewish people.  These verses are well known, and figure prominently in contemporary wedding celebrations.  They have also been excerpted from the Song of Songs, and set to music by many musicians from a wide range of Jewish communities.

Ani L'Dodi V'Dodi Li: Contemporary version

Rabbi Achiya Delouya's contemporary setting of these verses was arranged for mixed chorus and piano by Madeline List Hershenson.  The performance featured here was recorded by the 200+ members of HaZamir: The International Jewish High School Choir at their annual Winter Festival Concert inFebruary, 2002.  Included among the performers were members of HaZamir Philadelphia, the local HaZamir ensemble which is affiliated with the Jewish Community High School of Gratz College.  HaZamir is a project of the Zamir Choral Foundation, for which our own Dr. Marsha Bryan Edelman serves as Administrator. Dr. Edelman also conducts the HaZamir Philadelphia ensemble.

Ani L'Dodi V'Dodi Li: Yemenite version

"Ani L'Dodi V'Dodi Li" is also the opening text of an anonymous Yemenite poem, which borrows additional text from the Song of Songs before continuing with its own original verses.  The folk melody comes from the Yemenite tradition.  Fittingly, it is sung here in unison by an ensemble of women.  The performance was recorded on Thursday, July 14, 2005 at the concluding concert of the 16th annual North American Jewish Choral Festival. The ensemble was conducted by Matthew Lazar, founder and director of the Festival and of the Zamir Choral Foundation which sponsors it.  Dr. Marsha Bryan Edelman, Professor of Music and Education at Gratz College serves on the Festival Steering Committee, and Gratz College has been an affiliated sponsor of that event since its inception.