Olve Utne

Buenas semanas!Just started translating my "fortified birkón" from Norwegian/English to Spanish/English tonight after supper. Anyone want to join in? Here are some sample pages where most (but not all) of the Norwegian has been replaced with Spanish. To increase the tempo, I use Google translate for esp. long phrases and then go over the text afterwards to ensure the best possible accuracy.The tho...

My "fortified birkón" is finally out on the market. Here's a lower-resolution PDF if anyone wants to have a look. If you want to buy it, follow the link in the comments. Longer-term possibilities include making a version with Spanish+English instructions instead of the current English+Norwegian instructions.

Regarding **tying of ṣiṣiyyot**, I have always just autopilotted the winding direction, and when I took a picture of three different ways of tying (my Molcho tying to the left, a Judaica shop's 7-8-11-13 in the middle, my fudging Ashkenazi 7-8-11-13 on the right), I noticed that I wind the opposite way from people in Judaica shops. Double-checking things, I then scoured Google for information, onl...

Here is the PDF of the "fortified" birkón I made for my children's bené missvá last Shabbat. A modified version will be printed for purchase in some weeks or months. The contents are mostly Sephardi with an emphasis on the Western Sephardi tradition, but there are also elements from Balkan/Ottoman Sephardi and Maghrebi Sephardi. Additionally, there are extra/parallel versions for Ashkenazi Birkat ...

Here's an ad-hoc recording I made today of the beginning of Parashat Bereshit based on the Hamburg Portuguese 1837 notated tengamim. (There are no notes for sof parashá, so the very ending is a generic one based on the modal feel of the rest.) Any thoughts on what traditions this may be close to, derived from, and/or influenced by?

Here's a recording I made today of the beginning of Parashat Bereshit as notated by the Gothenburg-based Abraham Baer in his work Baal t'fillah. Are these just the standard Amsterdam tengamim? Or could it possibly be a local Scandinavian variant?

Hanucá alegre!

Does anyone know what happened to the Menasseh Ben Israel collection that used to be located here?

Bené misvá on a Monday/Thursday: What, if any, is (are) the most appropriate song(s) to end a weekday service with bené misvá -- that is after the `Alenu? Feel free to add alternatives and to explain your reasoning in the comments.

Just arrived in the mail from India -- reprint fresh off the press:

**Massekhet pesahhím 10:4:**In our Haggadá we read *metabbelín-massá-marór-mesubbín*; in the Mechon-Mamre text, it says *metabbelín-massá-sselí*, We do know that the mishná changed here over the centuries. BUT: In the mishnayyót printed in Amsterdam, seemingly all editions (MBI 1633 unvocalised; MBI 1643 unvocalised; JBI 1646 vocalised) have the Ashkenazi order of *massá-matbilin-maror-mesubbin*. ...

In working on mapping documentable Sephardi presence in Norway before 1851, I came across "Moses Levi" and "Bernt Levi" and their "knekt" "Joseph", who came to Norway the summer of 1734 (and were arrested for being Jewish); and Moses Levi also in 1737 and 1739. It is claimed that at least Moses Levi came from Alkmaar, and they claimed to be Portuguese Jews. (Names given in the form they appear in ...

While getting ready for Pesah and deciding what to do better in the future...:Does anyone know if the **Union of Sephardic Congregations' *Haggadah of Passover*** (1983, or other edition with same layout) is possible to buy a few copies of anywhere?The Hebrew setup is quite nice, including the Tehillim being mostly divided in half-verses, which makes the singing more effortless. Alternatively: Is ...

A question about nosaḥ:**How many different intonations** are there for the berakhot before and after Kiryat Shemang shel Ngarbit (**Mangarib ngarabim, Ahabat ngolam, Emet veemuná**, (Hashkibenu is of course a special case))? Or -- which ones have the same melodies for these berakhot of the following:Ḥol, minor fasts, Shabbat, Pesaḥ, Shabungot, Sukkot, Sheminí aṣeret / Simḥat Torá, Tishngá beAb, R...

Buenas semanas! :-) Does anyone have sheet music and/or recording(s) of a Western Sephardi, or otherwise at least a Moroccan, Italki, Romaniote or Ottoman Sephardi, melody of **"Yedid nefesh"**?

My harmonisation and arrangement of Yodukha rangyonay that I made some years ago:

Here's an arrangement I made some years ago of "Col a nesama" (anon.), loosely based on Israel Adler's harmonisation and arrangement for voice and piano:

What type/s of **shofar** is/are traditional in the various WS communities + Italy and Maghreb? (Details are welcome.)

About the shofar in the Hamburg Portuguese community in the 1830s:"Übrigens fangen die Portugiesen schon am 2. Elul an, täglich Morgens früh und Abends spät Selichot zu lesen, um bis zum Kipur-Tage, die vierzig Tage Mosis voll zu machen. Das Schofarblasen im Elul ist unbekannt, dafür wird aber an den 10 Bußtagen geblasen. Am Neujahrstage die ersten 30 Tekiot wie bei uns, nur wird Schebarim Terunga...

Wrapping of tefillin again:Found this picture of tefillín etc. from a work about Jews in Germany. Note the wrapping shel yad....[https://www.imj.org.il/sites/default/files/collections/184_81.jpg](https://www.imj.org.il/sites/default/files/collections/184_81.jpg)

A question about reza books:For those who have the pocket size edition of weekdays and Shabbat from Shearith Israel:* How do you like it?* Is the print of the pocket version easily legible?* How compatible is it with the London vs. Amsterdam versions?

Birkat hammazón according to the shorter Spanish and Portuguese version from Amsterdam/Hamburg. Feel free to print out for your own use. :-)

<3

While it is still Hanukká....Here is a transcription of the berakhot for lighting the hanuquilla -- after a recording of Simon David Duque (1897-1945) :

Jødekaker / joodse boterkoeken -- my maternal grandmother's recipe. <3