Soul Music - Jewish Style

(19) Lamech took to himself two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other was Zillah. (20) Adah bore Jabal; he was the ancestor of those who dwell in tents and amidst herds. (21) And the name of his brother was Jubal; he was the ancestor of all who play the lyre/harp and the lute.

(16) On the third day, as morning dawned, there was thunder, and lightning, and a dense cloud upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the horn; and all the people who were in the camp trembled.

(23) The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: (24) Speak to the Israelite people thus: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe complete rest, a sacred occasion commemorated with loud blasts. (25) You shall not work at your occupations; and you shall bring an offering by fire to the LORD.

(8) You shall count off seven weeks of years—seven times seven years—so that the period of seven weeks of years gives you a total of forty-nine years. (9) Then you shall sound the horn loud; in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month—the Day of Atonement—you shall have the Shofar sounded throughout your land (10) and you shall hallow the fiftieth year. You shall proclaim release throughout the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you: each of you shall return to his holding and each of you shall return to his family. (11) That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you: you shall not sow, neither shall you reap the aftergrowth or harvest the untrimmed vines, (12) for it is a jubilee. It shall be holy to you: you may only eat the growth direct from the field.

(1) The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: (2) Have two silver trumpets made; make them of hammered work. They shall serve you to summon the community and to set the divisions in motion. (3) When both are blown in long blasts, the whole community shall assemble before you at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting; (4) and if only one is blown, the chieftains, heads of Israel’s contingents, shall assemble before you. (5) But when you sound short blasts, the divisions encamped on the east shall move forward; (6) and when you sound short blasts a second time, those encamped on the south shall move forward. Thus short blasts shall be blown for setting them in motion, (7) while to convoke the congregation you shall blow long blasts, not short ones. (8) The trumpets shall be blown by Aaron’s sons, the priests; they shall be for you an institution for all time throughout the ages. (9) When you are at war in your land against an aggressor who attacks you, you shall sound short blasts on the trumpets, that you may be remembered before the LORD your God and be delivered from your enemies. (10) And on your joyous occasions—your fixed festivals and new moon days—you shall sound the trumpets over your burnt offerings and your sacrifices of well-being. They shall be a reminder of you before your God: I, the LORD, am your God. (11) In the second year, on the twentieth day of the second month, the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle of the Pact

(20) Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women went out after her in dance with timbrels/tambourines. (21) And Miriam chanted for them: Sing to the LORD, for He has triumphed gloriously; Horse and driver He has hurled into the sea.

(5) (Samuel's instructions to Saul as part of his being chosen to be king)

After that, you are to go on to the Hill of God, where the Philistine prefects reside. There, as you enter the town, you will encounter a band of prophets coming down from the shrine, preceded by lyres, timbrels, reed-pipe (flute?), and harps, and they will be speaking in ecstasy.

(15) Saul’s courtiers said to him, “An evil spirit of God is terrifying you. (16) Let our lord give the order [and] the courtiers in attendance on you will look for someone who is skilled at playing the lyre; whenever the evil spirit of God comes over you, he will play it and you will feel better.” (17) So Saul said to his courtiers, “Find me someone who can play well and bring him to me.” (18) One of the attendants spoke up, “I have observed a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is skilled in music; he is a stalwart fellow and a warrior, sensible in speech, and handsome in appearance, and the LORD is with him.”

(23) Whenever the [evil] spirit of God came upon Saul, David would take the lyre/ small harp and play it; Saul would find relief and feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.

(12) It was reported to King David: “The LORD has blessed Obed-edom’s house and all that belongs to him because of the Ark of God.” Thereupon David went and brought up the Ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to the City of David, amid rejoicing. (13) When the bearers of the Ark of the LORD had moved forward six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. (14) David whirled with all his might before the LORD; David was girt with a linen ephod. (15) Thus David and all the House of Israel brought up the Ark of the LORD with shouts and with blasts of the horn.

(16) David ordered the officers of the Levites to install their kinsmen, the singers, with musical instruments, harps, lyres, and cymbals, joyfully making their voices heard.

(1) -For the leader/conductor; with instrumental music on the sheminith

(an eight-stringed instrument covering an octave)). A psalm of David.

(1) For the leader. Of the Korahites; on alamoth. A song.

(1) For the leader; on shoshannim (either lilies, a tune or an instrument). Of the Korahites. A maskil. A love song.

(1) For the leader; on shushan eduth either a musical instrument so named from its shape, or a particular melody, A michtam/inscription of David (to be taught),

(1) For the leader; on the gittith now generally held to denote a zither. Rashi, following the Targum, derives the name from "Gath"; it would then mean "fabricated by the people of Gath.". Of Asaph.

(1) Hallelujah. Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in the sky, His stronghold. (2) Praise Him for His mighty acts; praise Him for His exceeding greatness. (3) Praise Him with blasts of the shofar; praise Him with harp and lyre. (4) Praise Him with timbrel/tambourine and dance; praise Him with lute and pipe. (5) Praise Him with resounding cymbals; praise Him with loud-clashing cymbals. (6) Let all that breathes praise the LORD. Hallelujah.

note: The “clashing cymbals were of a larger diameter than the “resounding” cymbals, and were two-handed cymbals.

The resounding cymbals were much smaller and were played by one hand—the cymbals being attached to the thumb and the middle finger.

The Cymbals - The only permanent percussive instrument in the temple

(13) The trumpeters and the singers joined in unison to praise and extol the LORD; and as the sound of the trumpets, cymbals, and other musical instruments, and the praise of the LORD, “For He is good, for His steadfast love is eternal,” grew louder, the House, the House of the LORD, was filled with a cloud.

(10) When the builders had laid the foundation of the Temple of the LORD, priests in their vestments with trumpets, and Levites sons of Asaph with cymbals were stationed to give praise to the LORD, as King David of Israel had ordained.

(27) At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, the Levites, wherever they lived, were sought out and brought to Jerusalem to celebrate a joyful dedication with thanksgiving and with song, accompanied by cymbals, harps, and lyres.