[Video below.] In recent years, we have seen musical hits come out of proverbial left field. More albums come out today than ever before, yet good, long-lasting niggunim are harder to come by – or so it seems.
Several years ago, Matzav.com conducted a vote for song of the year. The responses were varied, but, ultimately, Vehi Sheamda won easily.
The last few years have seen hits such as Hentalach from Lipa and Amar Rabi Akiva from Mordechai ben David.
Yalili from 8th Day was a hit, but its staying power has waned, and it isn’t your typical, singable song. It’s fun to listen to, perhaps fun to jump to, but its endurance is limited. We have since seen Ki Hirbeisa and Ki Chol Peh, among others. Those songs have greater substance and staying power, and wider appeal.
The song of the year among the frum world, hands down, seems to be the Chabadsker Niggun featured numerous times over the last year here on Matzav.com in various videos. The lively, catchy song has taken on a life of its own, and while other songs are trying to break into the mix, this niggun has shown its strength and “durability,” being played by virtually every wedding, bar mitzvah and tish.
The niggun was recorded earlier this year by Berry Weber, making it familiar to some who hadn’t heard it before.
Interestingly, the hit songs in our day and age, the songs that catch on with the masses, are not the up-tempo, rocky, poor-excuse-for-a-melody tunes being released by some in the music field, but rather the more substantive tunes, often originating from one of the Chassidic courts. Years ago, the songs with staying power emerged from composers like Rav Shmuel Brazil of Regesh, Reb Shlomo Carelbach and others, whose niggunim were more filled with heart than with beat. The same seems to apply today.
Share your musical feelings below, and click below to listen to several of the dozens of versions and videos of the aforementioned Chabadsker niggun which has exploded in popularity:
Video of the niggun as sung in Lelov:
[media id=1545 width=400 height=300]
Click here for an audio of the song from the recently released Project X with Arele Samet.
Click here for audio of the song as recorded by Berry Weber.
{Noam Amdurski-Matzav.com Newscenter, with musical analysis by Aharon Davidi}
i love this heliga nigun!! nigguni chabad are the best, even for non-chabadskers
It is an ancient niggun from the Tzemach Tzedek’s era that was recently revived.
Avraham Fried must be kicking himself for overlooking this one!
i love chabad niggunim their very nice
nice article but missing the million dollar question.
Who composed the song and when????????
I like the Bobover tune.
I think it would be worthwhile for someone who has access to it, to post a link to a recording with the original style and speed of this wonderful nigun.
yesterday i went onto the egged bus number 52 and it was BOOMING! only ba’aretz can you get on the city bus and be greeted by such a wholesome niggun!!
see comment #2
Maybe one of the chabad historians can find out. They have the biggest jewish Library in the USA.
Beautiful song. Where has it been hiding all of these years?
what about the London Siyum HaShas where they put words to this niggun
Kudshoh Brich Hu, V’Oiraisoh, v’Yisroel Chad Hu.
Amazing!
Now it’s time for Lechatchila Ariber to explode!!
It would be worthwhile for someone to post a link to a recording of this great nigun in it’s original style and speed.
actually the Tolna Rebbe in Israel said in a shuir that this NIGGUN was written for his great grandfathers wedding. It is not a chabad niggun
actually the Tolna Rebbe in Israel said in a shuir that this NIGGUN was written for his great grandfathers wedding. It is not a chabad niggun
The video is gevaldig. When is it from? Purim of what year? And what location?
I don’t understand the big fuss. This niggun is rather boring and uninspiring. It does not hold a candle to any of the classic Modzhitzer niggunim. It lacks the excitement of Carlebach niggunim. Most of all this niggun does not take
you any where except if you had too much to drink or smoke.
its a niggun from the students of the rebbe the tzemach tzedek, the third lubavitcher rebbe. its found in sefer haniggunim (niggun #42) but its orginally sung much slower.
I believe this niggun was composed by Reb Sholom Brochstat around 30 years ago that went with the words from tehillim perek 84 pasuk 10. Chabad Chassidim compose niggunim with words from the Rebbe’s perek of tehillim every year for his birthday on 11 nissan.
Seems like there are conflicting reports of where it originates!
I personally think the song is ok, but would not vote for it as song of the year.
I have NEVER heard this niggun sung in Lubavitch. My family considers themselves well-versed in nigunnim- this one never came up.
to hear the way the niggun is sung from sefer hanigunim http://www.770live.com/en770/nigunim/nigunPlay.asp?nigunId=Dovid_Hurwitz/042.rm&gif=042
Holy Yidden singing a holy niggun!
It could be that others have adopted this beautiful niggun. But yes (to those who are unsure) it is in fact a Lubavitcher niggun. Chabad has documented (nearly) all it’s negunim in Sefer Hanigunim.
http://store.kehotonline.com/index.php?stocknumber=HO-HANI.S&deptid=&parentid=&page=2&itemsperpage=10
This Sefer has all the musical notes and words, and BH, was published a long time ago, so no one can claim that Chabad claimed the niggun only after Berry Weber popularized it.
It’s Niggun #42. It is played slower, and the ending is slightly different.
@comment #19
Based on the excerpt below, I don’t think it was this niggun:
http://www.chabad.org/therebbe/livingtorah/player_cdo/aid/796410/jewish/Niggun-Yeilchu-Mechayil.htm
It’s possible, though, that Reb Sholom Brochstat did compose it, just not to Tehillim perek 84.