We sing nigunim (primarily wordless spiritual melodies) as a collective healing practice for LGBTQIA+ community, for queer BIJOCSM community, and for incarcerated people in the Jewish community.
1) organize singing gatherings for queer community and for queer BIJOCSM community, on Zoom and in-person—sign up for our email list here to hear about upcoming events
2) facilitate nigun singing at Jewish services in jails; send recordings to incarcerated folks with limited tablet access
3) compile a Soundcloud of melodies recorded and/or composed by queer people—more like a living room with candles than an archive of perfect execution. It’s here for you when you need it!
What are nigunim and why do we sing them?
Nigunim are primarily wordless spiritual melodies passed down as an oral tradition, originating in the 18th century Hasidic world (more history below). Nigunim are outpourings of heartache and revelry that have carried generations through exile.
Today, many queer Jews feel exiled from the Jewish tradition itself, experiencing that exile in different ways based on race, class, gender, politics, and other facets of identity. Meanwhile, incarcerated folks are surviving violent separation from community.
While a nigun may first emerge as a lonely cry from the chasm between our inner and outer experience—e.g., between our yearnings for wholeness and the fragmented world as it is—when we sing a nigun together, we may experience a powerful integration between our inner and outer experience, between what is moving through us and what is resonating all around us, holding us. This can be a taste of the world to come.
FAQs
How did this project get started?
The founder of A Queer Nigun Project, Rena Branson (a white queer Ashkenazi Jew), has a Hasidic father and a deep love for nigunim from their family’s tradition. A Queer Nigun Project shares these melodies beyond the Hasidic/Orthodox Jewish world, and also creates a platform for queer people to share contemporary nigunim, including their own compositions. Learn more about our story here!
Why create nigun singing circles by and for queer folks?
Many queer people find solace, sweetness, healing, and meaning through singing nigunim together, and may feel more comfortable doing so in a space that explicitly centers our voices. Also, due to homophobia and gender oppression, there are very few recordings of traditional nigunim sung by openly queer people (or even straight cis women). This project hopes to expand the archive for more people to witness themselves reflected in this sacred music.
Why lead nigun singing in jails?
While we dream of and fight for a world free from prisons, we currently live in a carceral state that both physically and spiritually harms people, including Jews, through racialized mass incarceration. We see nigun singing as a healing modality to help cope with the realities of incarceration, and volunteering as one way to show up in support of our most marginalized community members. At the somatic level, singing and breathing together activates the parasympathetic nervous system to help heal trauma and anxiety. Nigunim are an ancestral tool for resilience. To learn more, see our volunteer FAQs.
Where do nigunim come from?
One of many Jewish music traditions from around the world, nigunim are rooted in Ashkenazi Hasidic spiritual practice. The Hasidic movement began in the 18th century, when a great mystic and healer known as the Baal Shem Tov z”l inspired a populist uprising of Jews to break from the norms of the scholarly elite and revel in direct connection with the Divine. Nigunim became a fixture of ecstatic prayer and a mode of spiritual strength-training for the daily work of teshuva (return) and tikkun (repair).
Why focus on nigunim?
Nigunim hold a special power in their wordless accessibility, especially for those of us who come from a variety of ancestral languages. There is a power in reclamation here, accessing this old spiritual tool that has mostly been passed down through cis white men and building our own beautiful network of queer and multiracial Jews passing melodies on to more queer Jews. And still, “reclamation work” can be emotionally laborious for Jews of marginalized identity, and we hope to hold space – in our Queer BIJOCSM circles and beyond – for all of the complexities of healing and belonging in a religion that has not always centered us.
Nigunim, rooted in Ashkenazi Hasidic practice, represent a small slice of the abundance of rich Jewish musical traditions across the multicultural diaspora. May we continue to know that we can and should access these powerful practices in our religion, and may we continue to recognize and uplift the power of so many more that have been pushed to the margins.
Isn’t “queer” a derogatory term? Why organize with that name?
Many people have fought to reclaim the term “queer” over the past few decades, and it is now frequently used as an umbrella term for folks whose sexuality or gender identity is beyond the straight and cisgender norms of our society. Identifying as queer can be a way to affirm, “Yes, we are outside the box—that’s magnificent, because out here we can work to build a world that holds everyone!” We believe a crucial step in building a world that holds everyone is to create healing spaces (like queer nigun circles) that center folks who have been historically marginalized. If that sounds contradictory to you, please check out this explanation of affinity spaces!
Why “A” Queer Nigun Project?
This is just one iteration of what a queer nigun project can look like. May there be many more! This is a small precious labor of love—while we hope to receive feedback and grow, queer Jewish people and project visions are as expansive and diverse and alive as nigunim. This is not “The” project embodying them all!
How can allies participate in A Queer Nigun Project?
Allies are encouraged to send recordings to share with incarcerated folks, volunteer with us to lead nigun singing in jails, enjoy our recordings on Soundcloud, and donate funds!
We’d love to hear from you!
We check our email account once per week and generally reply within 7-10 days.