A unique Israeli national culture—indeed, the very nature of "Israeliness"—remains a matter of debate, a struggle to blend vying memories and backgrounds, ideologies and wills. Identifying popular music as an important site in this wider cultural endeavor, this book focuses on the three major popular music cultures that are proving instrumental in attempts to invent Israeliness: the invented folk song repertoire known as Shirei Eretz Israel; the contemporary, global-cosmopolitan Israeli rock; and the ethnic-oriental musica mizrahit. The result is the first ever comprehensive study of popular music in Israel. Motti Regev, a sociologist, and Edwin Seroussi, an ethnomusicologist, approach their subject from alternative perspectives, producing a truly interdisciplinary, sociocultural account of music as a feature and a force in the shaping of Israeliness. A major ethnographic undertaking, describing and analyzing the particular history, characteristics, and practices of each music culture, Popular Music and National Culture in Israel maps not only the complex field of Israeli popular music but also Israeli culture in general.

This book contains the first study of the musical culture of ancient Israel/Palestine based primarily on the archaeological record. Noted musicologist Joachim Braun explores the music of the Holy Land region of the Middle East, tracing its form and development from its beginning in the Stone Age to the fourth century A.D. This is not a study of music in the Bible or music in biblical times but a unique, in-depth investigation of the historical periods and cultures that influenced the music of the region and its people. Braun combines significant archaeological findings -- musical instruments, terra cotta and metal figures, etched stone illustrations, mosaics -- with evidence drawn from written (mainly biblical) texts and anthropological, sociological, and linguistic sources. The portrait Braun assembles of this past musical world is both fascinating and innovative, suggesting a reconsideration of many views long accepted by tradition. Enhanced with numerous illustrations and photographs that bring the archaeological evidence to life, this exceptional work will be a valued resource for scholars, students, and general readers interested in the history of music, biblical studies, Jewish studies, and the cultures of the ancient Near East.

Music was integral to the daily life of ancient Israel. It accompanied activities as diverse as manual labor and royal processionals. At key junctures and in core institutions, musical tones were used to deliver messages, convey emotions, strengthen communal bonds and establish human-divine contact. This book explores the intricate and multifaceted nature of biblical music through a detailed look into four major episodes and genres: the Song of the Sea (Exod. 15), King Saul and David's harp (1 Sam. 16), the use of music in prophecy, and the Book of Psalms. This investigation demonstrates how music helped shape and define the self-identity of ancient Israel.

A unique Israeli national culture—indeed, the very nature of "Israeliness"—remains a matter of debate, a struggle to blend vying memories and backgrounds, ideologies and wills. Identifying popular music as an important site in this wider cultural endeavor, this book focuses on the three major popular music cultures that are proving instrumental in attempts to invent Israeliness: the invented folk song repertoire known as Shirei Eretz Israel; the contemporary, global-cosmopolitan Israeli rock; and the ethnic-oriental musica mizrahit. The result is the first ever comprehensive study of popular music in Israel. Motti Regev, a sociologist, and Edwin Seroussi, an ethnomusicologist, approach their subject from alternative perspectives, producing a truly interdisciplinary, sociocultural account of music as a feature and a force in the shaping of Israeliness. A major ethnographic undertaking, describing and analyzing the particular history, characteristics, and practices of each music culture, Popular Music and National Culture in Israel maps not only the complex field of Israeli popular music but also Israeli culture in general.

In this landmark of musical scholarship, the leading 20th-century authority on Jewish music describes and analyzes its elements and characteristics, and chronicles its development from the earliest appearance of Semitic song 2000 years ago to the early 20th century. Liberally illustrating every type of music discussed, the book examines the music as a tonal expression of Judaism, Jewish life and the spiritual aspects of Jewish culture.

Incorporating the most recent historical discoveries and research of both Israeli and international scholars, Gradenwitz traces the rise and growth of Hebrew and Jewish music from its earliest beginnings to the present and examines the background and state of musical life in Israel today. As in the previous volume, the author explores all historical and musical aspects of ancient, medieval, and modern Hebrew liturgical and Jewish secular music, pointing out Jewish contributions to world music and examining musical cross-relations between the Jews of the Holy Land and those of the Diaspora.

A global history of Jewish music from the biblical era to the present day, with chapters by leading international scholars.