12

I am very familiar with a particular Ashkenazi yeshivish tune for Talmud learning. This is well-described in the linked question as:

[T]he kind of singing rhythm that people use when contrasting two different points. Usually it starts on a high note and continues monotonically until the end of the sentence, and then dips slightly. Then, the same thing happens in the second sentence, but with a bigger dip at the end. Usually the first word is "if" and is emphasized heavily. This tune is also often accompanied by a hand gesture where the speaker makes a dipping motion with his thumb.

"IF we're holding with some random position in this debate, then we have a CONsequence. BUT IIIIIFFF we hold this other position, then the consequence is dif-erent."

One answer there says that the concept of a tune for Mishnah study is mentioned in the Talmud, so it predates Ashkenazim. On further research, it seems that there was once an actual trope system used for the Mishnah.1

Is the same tune used in traditional non-Ashkenazi yeshivahs yeshivot? If not, what tune(s) do Sephardim use? What tune(s) do Mizrachim use? Is there another Ashkenazic tune tradition?

1 Not sure how applicable this ogg file of "Amar Rabbi Elazar" is, but it exists.


Inspired by: Where did the sing-song chant that Jews often use while contrasting points come from?

0

2 Answers 2

5

Some of the traditional Mishna recitation tunes of the Edot HaMizrach can be found on the website of Mishna Sedura at http://www.mishnasdura.org.il/

For example:

http://www.mishnasdura.org.il/files/megillaA.mp3 by Rabbi Yitzchak Sharvit according to his original adaptation of modern punctuation to Sephardic tradition.

http://www.mishnasdura.org.il/files/berajot_perek1.mp3 by Reb Mordechai Sayed, according to the Syrian Halabi tradition.

3
  • This is great! Brachot sounds like it uses the Mishnah trope mentioned in the question. Is that true? Do mizrachis use a similar trope setting for Talmud or is this exclusively mishna? Commented Jul 2, 2013 at 14:50
  • 1
    Btw, any mishna tune that includes a harmonica is fantastic as far as I'm concerned :) Commented Jul 2, 2013 at 14:56
  • I'm 99% sure that Berachot Perek Alef file is a recording of Hagaon Harav Meir Mazuz. Commented Jul 15, 2013 at 13:53
3

The Italian tradition for reciting the Mishnah is now almost lost but it survives in the tunes of the rabbinical parts of the Pessach seder. In this multimedial haggadah you can hear it by clicking on the musical note symbol. An example is this.

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .