Basya Schechter Sings

The Poems / Songs of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel:  Who knew that Rabbi Heschel, of blessed memory, was a Yiddish poet in his younger days?  Basya Schechter did.  Tablet Magazine's Vox Tablet, in the intro to its podcast "Wonderstruck", reports:

Several years ago a fan of the multi-instrumentalist Basya Schechter approached her with a copy of a book of Yiddish poems. The verses were by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who arrived in the United States from Europe in 1940, when he was 33 years old. Heschel was born in Poland and gained renown for his theological works and for his role as a Civil Rights activist. He was far less known for his poetry, written when he was in his early 20s, about intimate relationships—both with God and with people. Schechter’s fan asked her to set Heschel’s poems to music. It took some time for Schechter, who was raised in the Orthodox Brooklyn neighborhood of Borough Park and who heads the band Pharoah’s Daughter, to take up that challenge. Yet take it up she did, and the result—a melodic mix of Middle Eastern, African, and lesser-known Hasidic influences—can be heard on Songs of Wonder, a new album out from Tzadik.

Here is a preview of the song / poem "My Song":

The YouTube uploader says:

Recorded at the Riverdale Y in NYC. Basya Schechter and her wonderful band (Megan Weeder, violin; Yoed Nir, cello; Uri Sharlin, piano; Rich Stein, percussion) perform a song cycle based on the great religious thinker and human rights activist Abraham Joshua Heschel's early Yiddish poetry.

Cinematography by Steve Brand for his documentary work-in-progress on Heschel, "Praying With My Legs."

For more info, please see the film's website: http://www.prayingwithmylegs.com, where you can sign up for the film's mailing list for updates.

You can also become a fan of the film's Facebook Page. Just go to: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Praying-With-My-Legs/75351991280 and click on "Like."

And please show your support for the film and even make a donation on the film's Facebook Cause page at: http://www.causes.com/causes/219535-support-praying-with-my-legs-the-heschel-documentary-film-project.