The Charlotte Jewish News- December 2025- Page 22
Eight Notes, Eight Nights: The Soundtrack of Chanukah
By Mara Cobe
Chanukah’ s evolving music tells a story of light, resilience, and joy that spans generations.
Each December, as menorahs flicker in windows from Sarajevo, Bosnia Herzegovina to Fort Mill, S. C., the season hums with music— the soft pluck of a guitar, a child’ s clear voice, the echo of languages nearly lost. Chanukah’ s light shines in many keys, and its songs tell a story as enduring as the flame itself. From the Ladino rhythms of Flory Jagoda’ s“ Ocho Kandelikas” to Daveed Diggs’ s hip-hop hit“ Puppy for Chanukah,” Jewish artists continue to reinvent the holiday’ s soundtrack while keeping its spirit alive.
When Flory Jagoda composed“ Ocho Kandelikas” in 1983, she gave voice to a language and culture nearly lost. Born in Bosnia to Sephardic parents who spoke Ladino— the Judeo-Spanish tongue carried by Jews expelled from Spain— Jagoda survived the Holocaust and became known as the“ keeper of the flame” of Sephardic song. Her joyful counting tune—“ Una kandelika, dos kandelikas …”— celebrates Chanukah through rhythm and remembrance. Today, artists such as Pink Martini, Sarah Aroeste, Idina Menzel, and the Josh Nelson Project have reimagined the same song for new audiences. Nelson’ s animated video, filled with dancing candles against the New York skyline, brings Jagoda’ s Ladino legacy into the digital age, reminding us how one melody can bridge centuries and cultures.
Chanukah’ s music has always evolved with its people. Singer-songwriter Debbie Friedman blended Hebrew prayer and English lyrics to create songs families could sing together, including her versions of“ Mi Y’ malel” and“ Light the Menorah.” Folk icons like Peter, Paul and Mary and Woody Guthrie also illuminated Chanukah’ s themes of freedom and justice through their music.
In more recent decades, Jewish hip-hop and reggae artists such as Matisyahu have translated Chanukah’ s message of resilience into rhythm with songs like“ Happy Chanukah” and“ Miracle.” And in the age of viral videos, a cappella groups like Six13 and The Maccabeats have turned menorah lighting into full-scale musical theater. Six13’ s parodies—“ A Wicked Chanukah,”“ Elton Johnukah,” and“ A Hamilton Chanukah”— capture the humor and heart of the YouTube generation while keeping faith with tradition.
In 2020, Hamilton star Daveed Diggs released“ Puppy for Chanukah,” a Disney-produced hiphop anthem that quickly joined the modern canon. Blending English, Hebrew, klezmer riffs, and humor, Diggs raps about dreidels, latkes, and the thrill of finally getting that puppy. The video’ s diverse cast of children lighting candles captures today’ s Jewish reality— multicultural, exuberant, and proud. Diggs proves that Chanukah’ s music isn’ t bound to one genre; it can groove to any beat that carries light forward.
Chanukah’ s soundtrack mirrors Jewish life itself— diasporic, adaptable, and endlessly inventive. Whether streamed in Hebrew, Ladino, Yiddish, or English, the message remains the same: light triumphs over darkness. Each artist adds a new verse to this ongoing song of endurance. Chanukah’ s melody isn’ t fixed in time; it’ s a harmony still expanding across centuries and cultures.
Here in the Charlotte region, our families and congregations reflect that very same diversity of sound. The menorah’ s glow lasts eight nights, but the music lingers— in our kitchens, in our cars, in every beat that carries memory forward. This year, light your candles and let the soundtrack surprise you: sing a verse in Ladino, harmonize with a cappella voices, or rap to“ Puppy for Chanukah.” However you play it, the song remains the same— light over darkness and joy that refuses to fade.
Temple Solel is a small, inclusive Reform congregation in Fort Mill, S. C. For more information, visit templesolelsc. org, email info @ templesolelsc. org, or call( 803) 610-1707.