Composer and arranger Sharon Thormahlen has this to say about her new book: This book has been a really great project! The inspiration came from going to a workshop given by Sunita Stanislaw last Spring (2005). It brought me back to my Jewish roots and the tunes I grew up with. As I decided which tunes to include, the melodies just poured out of my memory and through my fingers. Originally I was going to make easy and intermediate arrangements of each song, but then decided to combine them by using the intermediate arrangement as variations to the easy arrangement. The easy arrangements are generally the first time through the tune. I included a separate easy arrangement for Tumbalalaika. There are a couple of rounds, which would be fun to use for Harp Circles and with friends. They are Hava Nashira with three parts and Hinei Mah Tov with two parts. I included a tune I wrote which, to me, sounds like a Jewish melody. I named it The Promise, (in Hebrew: Havtacha). This is not the kind of promise that you feel guilty about not keeping. It is an unspoken promise that just happens, like giving your puppy a treat when she sits. I also included Rikud Began Eden which is a tune I wrote and is found in my book called A Rose In Winter. It means Dancing in Heaven in Hebrew.
Table of Contents: Erev Shel Shoshanim (Evening of Roses), Rikud Began Eden (Dancing in Heaven), Hava Nashira (Let Us Sing), Hinei Mah Tov (How Good it is), Shalom Medley (Peace), Havtacha (The Promise), Ma Navu (How Pleasant), Rozinkes Mit Mandlen (Raisins and Almonds), Hatikvah/Zum Gali Gali (Hope and Peace), Tumbalalaika (Play the Balalaika), Hatikvah/Tumbalalaika, The Borucha (Blessing of the Candles)
