Kabbalah Blues/Quantum Funk, by Peter Saltzman and The Revolution Ensemble

Kabbalah Blues/Quantum Funk

by Peter Saltzman and The Revolution Ensemble

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1.	Prologue 03:42	lyrics	buy track
(Transliteration from Aramaic Prayer "Oseh Shalom") Oseh shalom bi-mo'romav, hu ya'aseh shalom alienu v'al kol Yisrael, v'imru: Amen. He who brings peace to His universe will bring peace to us and to all the people Israel. And let us say: Amen.
2.	Unity 02:55		buy track
3.	I Was There 03:15	lyrics	buy track
I was there when the world was born: No time, no form; I could have sworn I was there when the world was born, As I’m a piece of Your soul I am part of Your ancient light I love with all my heart And soul and might I am part of Your ancient light And I’m at peace with Ein Sof
4.	Indeterminacy 11:52		buy track
5.	Sooner or Later 04:13	lyrics	buy track
I woke up this evening, And guess what I found? The world was still turning, But you weren’t around. You went into hiding, You left me no clue. I guess your residing In another point-of-view. Sooner or later We all fall down. Later or sooner Things come back around. I called up my physicist. He told me that I Was living in a world That he could not quantify. I weighed all my options, They didn’t weigh much So I just decided To find you as such Sooner or later The sun will blow up. Later or sooner, You’ll probably show up. I cleaned up my bathroom, And as I did scour I found you were just taking Your time in the shower. Sooner or later We all foul up. Later or sooner You’ll mess me up. Sooner or later We all fall down. Later or sooner Things come back around.
6.	Shekhina's Dream 02:54	lyrics	buy track
And when I have these dreams at night I dream of finding you I dream that you can see my light and it doesn't blind you Bind me as a sign upon your hand Bind me as a seal upon your heart Bind me Bind me... I filled the world with boundless love And offered it to you You fill the world with with endless anger I turn away from you Sometimes it seems that You don't even hear me You don't even see me You don't even feel me Except in your dreams And when I have these dreams at night I dream you find your way You flail about in the dark, But you don't run away Love me With all of your heart And Hold me Closer to your eyes And Show my Name upon your gates And Love me With all of your might And Please don't let me go Please don't let me go
7.	Interlude 01:19		buy track
8.	Quantum Funk 03:47	lyrics	buy track
Now and again I get the blues I get confused Does that excuse my behavior? But then again I could blame you Or blame the moon Or blame the universe for being So indifferent to my dreams What kind of place Could be so cold? Could be so old? That it withholds its deep secrets In time and space What is my role? If there's no soul Then there is No real difference Between good and evil So why even bother To be kind and civil to you? Am I confused? Is it the blues? Is it the moon? Or is it you (universal blues)? Now and again I get a clue It isn't you It isn't me It isn't you It isn't me What can it be? What can it be?
9.	Quantum Reprise 00:58		buy track
10.	Broken Vessels 01:34		buy track
11.	Oseh Shalom 01:46		buy track
12.	Living in Another Time 02:32	lyrics	buy track
I have been living In another time Where the world is right And you are mine And I know that it's crazy But I don't mind So I'll keep on living In another time I've been living In another place But the truth is It's so very far away Until I can be certain That you will be mine I'll keep on living In another time I should have known when I met you That I never ever would forget you Even if it meant throwing my life away. And now that I've found you There's just know way around you My heart won't let me keep you at bay... Until I can be certain That you will be mine I'll keep on living In another time
13.	Superstrings 08:16		buy track
14.	Blues without Barlines 03:35		buy track
15.	Force of Nature 10:02		buy track
16.	Searching 03:44	lyrics	buy track
I have been searching I am searching I'll be searching forever, For something inside, outside Past, present, future forever And I know this about you: You have been searching, You are searching You'll be searching I know this about us: We should be searching together forever I have been looking I am looking In the strangest of places Way back in time When there was nothing Where we now find that space is And I know this about you: You will be looking in the same sort of places I hope this about us: That we can hallow our quest with embraces I have been searching (and searching and searching and searching) For something inside and outside forever and ever Sometimes it's foggy You are with me I lose my bearings You are near me And I know this about you: You will be looking in the same sort of places I hope this about us: That we can hallow our quest with embraces
17.	Finale 06:29		buy track

about

Excerpted from the form Kabbalah Blues Website:

As with the Revolution Ensemble itself, this was a piece of music that had been running around in my head, on some level, for years. For a long time I've been interested in Kabbalah, which is the general term for Jewish mysticism, and equally strong interest in physics, particularly quantum physics and string theory. While I don't claim to be anything close to a scholar in either of these fields, I've done quite a bit or reading on both topics since I was a teenager. In many ways, my interest stems from the same source in both cases—trying to understand the universe on the deepest level possible. Each one, is essentially a language whose purpose is to explain how or why the universe works. Kabbalah is obviously more concerned with the "why" whereas physics is mostly concerned with the how, though I think ultimately the two questions converge. It's interesting to me that even some physicists, who tend to eschew the idea of God in creation, when asked why the universe was created say that there was no other choice, even "God" had no other choice, which is what the Kabbalists say. Music itself, at least for me, is one of the most profound languages for understanding the universe, and perhaps the language that best converges the how and why questions into something beyond knowing altogether.

But getting back to the origins of KBQF (as opposed to the universe): As I said, an idea for this kind of work had been in my thoughts for years, but the specific impetus came when the Chicago Humanities Festival commissioned me to write a new work for their 1999 program. Each year CHF has a theme that they want presenters to address, and in 1999 it was "New and Old". It seemed like the perfect opportunity for me to combine Kabbalah (old) and physics (new)...so I did.

As for the title, it obviously has some double meanings. The "Blues" refers, of course, to the blues itself, which plays an important part in the piece, particularly toward the end, but also refers the even older sense of "blues" feeling in the Kabbalah and Jewish liturgy in general—the blues that comes from separation, separation from God, exile, etc. John Lee Hooker, the great bluesman, once said that the blues originated when Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden, that ultimately blues is about being separated from our source—God. The "Funk" part refers both to the music, and the feeling of being in a funk. But to me there is also a relation between funk music and quantum physics. The idea of indeterminacy, or randomness on the subatomic level reminds me joyful randomness of funk guitar or keyboards.

credits

released June 1, 2000

Music & Lyrics by Peter Saltzman

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Peter Saltzman Chicago, Illinois

Peter Saltzman is a composer, pianist, singer, and songwriter residing somewhere near Chicago. His music has been called "brilliant" by the Chicago Tribune, and "powerful stuff" by the Dallas Morning News.

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