December 8 -- Hanukkah Day Three: Music

For each holiday we are celebrating this December, I tried to find at least one song on Spotify to add to a playlist. Surprisingly, even the weirder holidays have songs about them, including Festivus, Humbug Day, and Decemberween.

(My favorite for Krampusnacht was "Stille Nacht" by Krankheit, although "Krampus Carol" by Jon Lajoie was a close second.)

A link to our holidays playlist:
https://open.spotify.com/user/1237104361/playlist/0cB7s367ecyPPlL4uZ6H9h

Hanukkah is in a league all it's own when it comes to holiday songs. I think everyone knows Adam Sandler's "Chanukah Song" and it's updates throughout the years. I was excited that he had a brand new one for 2015. But there is so much more tradition to the music of Hanukkah. Sandler is a funny guy, but he doesn't touch on the spirit and feeling behind this holiday music.

Often the traditional music includes minor chords played with accordions and piano. At times lamenting, almost mournful music, it sometimes sounds like Saint Louis blues. These songs typically tell the story of Maccabees or the history of Jewish heritage. Other more festive songs, upbeat and cheerful, are popular among children and sung while playing games or cooking.

Check our our holidays playlist on Spotify.

The Blessings 
As we light the menorah, we sing the blessings. See our first Hanukkah post for the words to the blessings. The singing the blessings is a very old tradition. Afterward, we chant or sing Hanerot Halalu.

Maoz Tzur (Rock of Ages)
Written in the 13th century, Maoz Tzur has been translated into the widely known English version "Rock of Ages". A Jewish liturgical poem written in Hebrew, it pertains to five events of Jewish history and the hope for the future, but only the first and fifth stanza directly pertain to Hanukkah.

Chanukah, Oh Chanukah
This will be the one forever stuck in your head during the eight nights of Hanukkah once you've learned it. I personally favor the Barenaked Ladies version. All of their Hanukkah songs are great. In fact, their whole holiday album is worth the purchase. This one sings about all the traditions of the holiday, from lighting the menorah, to dancing the horah and from playing dreidel, to eating latkes.

I Have a Little Dreidel
A fun song to teach the children, this basic little rhyme is a festive companion to the holiday game. Hear it featured briefly in the wonderful a capella group Straight No Chaser's song "The 12 Days of Christmas" from their album Christmas Cheers (though comically dismissed -- "Twelve Days of Christmas, not Eight Days of Hanukkah, it's a Christmas medley" one of them says before they segue into a Christmas version of Toto's "Africa"). Their song is easily one of the best of the season. If you can't stand the original 12 days song, learn their version because you will never hear it the same again.

Light One Candle
By Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul, & Mary, this non-traditional but beautiful song celebrates the story of Maccabees and the oil lamp, the reason we light the menorah each night, and encourages the Jewish people to remember their heritage.

Candlelight
The Maccabeats are an all-male a capella group from Yeshiva University. In 2010, they introduced the world to their Hanukkah parody of Taio Cruz's "Dynamite". Their newest one for 2015, called "Latke Recipe", is sung to the tune of "Shut Up and Dance" by Walk the Moon.

One thing I will definitely take away from this holiday is that the Jews have a terrific sense of humor. Many songs are fun and festive and sometimes even poke fun at themselves. But I also enjoy the more contemplative songs, such as those from The New York City Chanukah Ensemble, which seem to highlight the more somber tone of the history and fight of the Jewish people.