Dare to Daven

General Introductory Notes

The nussach (specific musical chant for different sections of the davening) that I have recorded is a basic nussach with the aim that it is easy to follow and is not too challenging to learn. Nussach can be embellished in various ways and can be adapted and improvised upon, provided it stays true to the musical mode & flavour. Each specific note, and where I go up, or down, is not set in stone and indeed if I were to record it again, there would be multiple differences. However, I would highly recommend learning it as close to this version as you can in the first instance, and then once you know this basic version, you can play around with the musical interpretation and embellish accordingly if you feel comfortable. You will notice that seasoned daveners all have their own style, whilst remaining true to the overall nussach and musical flavour of each section.

I have kept my talking to a minimum, not just in the hope that the congregation will do the same, but in order to focus on the text and nussach of the tefilah. Explanations and specific directions for the prayers, as well as when certain prayers are and aren’t recited are clearly marked in the siddur.

I hope these recordings are helpful.

Please do not hesitate to get in touch with me should you have any questions or require further assistance.

Chazan Jonny

Note: The pronunciation I have used is modern Hebrew, which is the overriding pronunciation used in United Synagogue. *Of particular note is the Kamatz Katan, which is pronounced ‘o’ as in ‘hot’ and is marked in the Daily Authorised Prayer Book using a longer ‘T’ vowel in bold under the letter. It is important that this is pronounced correctly e.g. l’dor vador nagid ‘godlecha’ not ‘gadlecha’. Where it is not elongated and emboldened, the kamatz vowel under the letter is always pronounced u, as in ‘hut’.