Thursday, August 7, 2025

Slabodka Niggun - Joey Newcomb & Naftali Kempeh

Slabodka Niggun - Joey Newcomb & Naftali Kempeh 
 יסוד החסידות ושורש העבודה התמימה שיתברר ויתאמת אצל האדם מה חובתו בעולמו (ש)האדם לא נברא אלא להתענג על ה’ (מסילת ישרים א׳)   
Joey: I was in Europe with the heiligeh Bais Medrash Ohr Gedalia chevra, visiting and learning about the various places of our people’s past. We were in the streets of Slabodka after having toured the famous Slabodka Yeshiva building, speaking over the inyanim of mussar for which the Yeshiva was most well-known. Standing there with the talented Yaakov Beer, he and I began learning the first words of the Mesilas Yesharim - יסוד החסידות ושורש העבודה התמימה - It didn’t take long we took out our guitars, and right outside the great yeshiva with all the chevra, this deep niggun was born.

6 comments:

  1. Why does kempeh go with a Nazi style haircut??

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  2. The niggun skips some important words and implies a message very different from what the ramchal is saying.

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  3. Singing is not part of the litvish messorah.
    Next thing you know, they'll have musical Hallel and chazzanus
    Followed by a kumzitz every motzei shabbat.
    Maybe even Thursday nite together with chulent.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's clear that you're being facetious and a לץ. Nonetheless, a couple of points:

      1) For a period of time, Rav Boruch Ber Leibowitz זכר צדיק לברכה, was the Rosh Yeshiva in the Knesses Beis Yitzchok Yeshiva in Slabodka.

      2) Rav Boruch Ber composed many niggunim, presumably at least some were composed in Slabodka.

      I'm neither endorsing or opposing the above song, which I haven't even heard yet.

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    2. Knesset Bet Yitzchak was a separate yeshiva from the Alter's Yeshiva that was not part of the Lakewood messorah. Rav Aaron z"l did not attend there
      Eventually, Bet Yitzchak was finally thrown out of Slabodka.

      Yes, I'm being facetious, cause commenters here criticize what they claim is not their messorah. Like rebbes visiting their chasidim here from Brooklyn, like separate seating which the yeshivot took from chasidim, and musical Hallel which not singing is specifically against halacha.

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    3. like separate seating which the yeshivot took from chasidim

      How wrong you are.

      Sefer Haprdas of Rashi (איסור והיתר סי' כט-ל) explicitly says that men and women may not eat a meal together, or otherwise mingle.

      Birkei Yosef quotes the Sefer Chasidim of Rav Yehuda Hachasid says a wedding which had mixed seating cannot say
      שהשמחה במעונו
      at Birchas Hamazon.

      The Bach and Beis Shmuel quote a different Rishon and have the same conclusion.

      All this is from 18th century chasidim??

      Delete