It’s time to reinvigorate your Jewishness, reconnect to your spirit, raise up your tradition, and reignite the Jewish spark in your soul. This album is an important first step that will help me reach out to so many communities who are looking to bring that kind of connection to their people.
Who am I to want to help you do this? Well…
Who am I?
My name is Noah Diamondstein, and I want to record my album of 10 new Jewish songs for prayer, engaging the Jewish spirit, and learning. I am entitling it: “Ashira L’Adonai,” which means “Let me sing to God!” after one of my favorite verses from Psalm 13.
I’m studying to become a rabbi at Hebrew Union College’s Los Angeles campus. I’ve been making Jewish music for the entire second half of my life. My love for this art was developed first in USY singing guitar-free with my friends as Shabbat came to an end, and grew 10 fold when I started to songlead at Jewish summer camps (See video below for the apex of my joy in that work a few years ago).
Why do this?
I’ve been playing and singing music my whole life and I play a whole bunch of instruments, so it was only natural that my two greatest passions, Judaism and music, would come together in this project. I have songlead at URJ Camp Harlam, URJ Kutz Camp, at Congregation Birkat Shalom in Kibbutz Gezer in Israel, several synagogues in Pittsburgh and the greater Los Angeles area, and I hope to come sing with your community one day! My mission is to help Jews and Jewish communities engage more wholly and spiritually with their tradition, whether that be through prayer, study or just the pure singing of song. This album is an important first step on my journey toward that end, and will help me to reach out to a wider base of communities. I hope to one day meet with you in your community, and help you connect and lift up Judaism to the highest heights we can reach!
R. Ken Chasen, R. Noam Katz, cantorial student Danielle Rodnizki and I after leading Shabbat services with R. Miri Gold at Kibbutz Gezer!
What will I create?
The music that I’ve written for this album comes from liturgy, is inspired by texts from TaNaKh, and is interpretation on classical rabbinic midrashim. The songs are designed to make one think, help one pray, and connect to the texts in ways that one hasn’t before. Think of an Ahavat Olam that dances like a waltz, think of Yedid Nefesh played as a funky serenade, think of Jacob’s ladder read through the lens of what it means to live in Diaspora, think of Mi Chamocha with a niggun that reminds one of the waves on the sea!!! Check out the song below to hear what I did with a Talmudic midrash on the 10 strong things in the world!!!
Who’s producing?
The production for the album will be handled by well known and well traveled Jewish artist Dan Nichols and his partner in music–Grammy nominated sound engineer Mark Niemec! They have begun a new phase in their careers helping artists like myself start their Jewish musical careers on the right foot! I’ll be traveling to Dan’s studio in Raleigh to track everything, and other fine tuning and mastering will be handled by Mark in Nashville! The song above was recorded with a cool app on my phone… IMAGINE WHAT IT COULD BECOME IN THE STUDIO WITH DAN AND MARK!
What will it cost?
I have around 10 songs that I’m really proud of and want to include in this album, plus a couple of bonus tracks that we’ll record if I can reach my full goal… which I know is high. $15,000 dollars is a lot of money. If you can help me reach it, though, I will be able to put 10, maybe even 12 tracks of beautifully produced new Jewish music into the world, and help folks connect in all sorts of new ways. Below is a breakdown of costs:
Production:
$11,200 (production, recording, mixing, mastering) broken up in the following manner:
$5600 – Dan (pre-pro, record vocals, record guitars, record any other instrument tracks)
$5600 – Mark (record drums and percussion, background vocals, edit, mix and master)
Other essentials:
Flights to recording locations
Artwork
Graphic Design
Necessary instruments
CD release
Copyright costs
Video
All totaling around $3,000 minimum
Any extra money left assuming we reach the goal will be poured back into production value and ensuring the highest quality material your money can support!
Help me get to this goal and even surpass it, and help yourself reignite the Jewish spark in your soul! Pray with me, think with me, learn with me! Maybe one day I can even come and sing with your community!
!ברוך אתה ה׳, מלך מהלל בתשבחות
Blessed are You God, Sovereign who is sung to in praises!
!ברוך אתה ה׳, הבוחר בשירי זמרה
Blessed are You God who chooses the singing of songs!
