Ethnic Music

Ma’ani Center is home to a rich archive of the ethnic and cultural music that, for generations, has characterized the various communities of Hidden Jews that Shavei Israel works with. Enjoy learning about the different communities through songs and music, and help us share the inspiration to others!

Blog Posts

We recently shared a beautiful rendition of the traditional prayer for the IDF soldiers by Bnei Menashe children from the Khovevei Tzion community in Aizawl, Mizoram. Here are some behind the scenes images including of the siddur (prayer book) used by the Bnei Menashe from Mizoram with......

Bnei Menashe girls from Nof Hagalil learn the traditional bamboo dance of Mizoram in advance of Aliyah Day.  Their teacher, Dena Relte, made aliyah herself from Mizoram in 2014. In fact, it would probably hard to find a qualified teacher of this complex dance who......

Shavei Israel works very hard to facilitate the aliyah and integration of the Bnei Menashe from India. But also important is the facilitation and preservation of the deep traditions that the community holds dear. As such, one of the many activities Shavei focuses on is......

Recently, some 550 new Bnei Menashe immigrants to Israel visited the Kotel or Western Wall for the first time, together with the Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel Rabbi David Lau. Shmuel Manlun, 40, said “it was like a dream come true. I couldn’t hold back......

Like any community with many generations of roots in a particular region, the Bnei Menashe have many cultural traditions that evolved during their many years in northeast India.  This includes special garments and jewelry, foods, songs & music, and dance.  Enjoy this brief clip of......

As part of the cutural preservation of lost and hidden Jewish communities at Ma’ani Center (Mercaz Ma’ani), we have multiple exhibits at our Jerusalem center. Currently, we are exhibiting beautiful photos and artifacts of the Bnei Menashe, from northeast India. The objects include musical instruments,......