Notes:

SARA COHEN ( 1922-2019) Sings Hebrew and Malayalam songs from the Jewish Daily Prayer Book - Tefilat Haderech with Narration and introduction by JACOB COHEN for Dr. Joseph J Palackal, CMI at Kalabhavan Studios, Kochi, India.
Recorded on 1 February 1996 by Joseph J. Palackal

We decided to add this section on the music of Kerala Jews to the Aramaic Project because Jews and Christians have a shared history in Kerala. Both communities share stories of immigration and practicing a foreign-born faith in a multi-religious and cultural milieu. Jewish and Christian communities flourished in Kerala and enjoyed upper-caste status with several social privileges. We do not read of religious persecutions of followers of a foreign faith in India. Both communities engaged in respectful interactions with the local society and made valuable contributions.

In the past, Sarah and Jacob Cohen, who lived in Jew Town in Kochi, were resource persons for several researchers from universities outside India. However, the language department or cultural department of Kerala did not take enough academic interest in their life story. In this context, I decided to document the musical memories of the Cohens. Besides, in 1995, I was on an assignment from the Garland Encyclopedia of World Music to coauthor an entry on Kerala with Dr. Rolf Groesbeck. I decided to write a section on the Jewish music of Kerala. On Saturday, 23 September 1995, I took a trip to the famous Jew Town in Kochi. Johnson Vazahappilly, CMI, who was a student of Kerala history, joined me. We found the home of Jacob and Sarah. They welcomed us joyfully. Subsequently, I visited the Cohens several times. We became friendly enough for Jacob Cohen to allow me to make a photocopy of a sixteenth-century manuscript about the Cochin Jews that was in his possession. The manuscript is available in our digital library. Later, on 1 February 1996, the Cohens agreed to a studio recording of their songs. Those are the songs we hear in this video. We have here a historical treasure in this video. Sarah did most of the singing, but Jacob introduced the song. Thus, we had the unique fortune of documenting the speech voice of Jacob Cohen.

This and the forthcoming videos in this series will be useful to study the extent of textual and melodic similarities of the songs of the Cochin Jews and the Syriac Christians, especially, the Knanaya Christians of Kerala (See P.M Jussey and Aramaic Project 279),

References :

• Barbara C. Johnson. 2004. Oh, Lovely Parrot! Jewish Women’s Songs from Kerala. Jerusalem: Audio CD and book. The Jewish Music Research Centre, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Jewish Women's Songs from Kerala - Book and Audio CD (thecmsindia.org)
• Joseph J. Palackal. 2022. Aramaic Project-279 Part III. “Religious Ecumenism and Thoma Marggam. https://youtu.be/wLLozsq4pIo (6:05-7:00).
• Joseph J. Palackal. 2000. “Jewish Music” in The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: South Asia. The Indian Subcontinent. Alison Arnold, editor. New York and London: The Garland Publishing, pp. 948-949.
• Joseph J. Palackal. 1995. Field notes on the first meeting with Sarah and Jacob Cohen. RR-484 Joseph Palackals's Field note on his first meeting with Jacob and Sarah Cohen at his home at Jew Town Mattanchery (thecmsindia.org)
• P. M .Jussey n. d. The wedding Songs of the Cochin Jews and of the Knanite Christians of Kerala (thecmsindia.org).

Joseph J. Palackal, CMI
New York
20 October 2022

Keywords: #SaraCohen #JacobCohen #jewsofKerala #jewsofKochi

• Brilliant. I'm delighted to hear of your connection with the late Mrs.sarah Cohen. As someone who had the opportunity to see Mrs.Cohen before her passing this is certainly something I looked forward to but didnt expect to hear. Looking forward to more videos of their music and its relationship with Christian music

An Email Recived from Binu George on 2023 July 30
• Dear Father,
  
  I hope this message finds you well. I recently watched one of your videos about the Cochin Jews and stumbled upon something fascinating that I believe is highly relevant to the Aramaic Project. In the very first video, AP 292/VII-0, there's a song called "Ya Ribbon Alam" sung by Sara Cohen. Interestingly, it was mentioned as being in Hebrew, but upon closer examination, I discovered that it is actually an Aramaic piyyut dating back to the 16th century (I am assuming you don't already know this, as there is no mention  of it in the video). You can find more details about it in this wiki article, and the Syriac words in this video.
  The first time I heard the song on your channel a few months ago, I had some doubts as to whether it was really Hebrew, because I could identify several words that appeared to be Syriac (alam, malka, sapra, ramsha, qadisha, etc.). Then, just yesterday, I came across a video by Hadar Nehemya, an Israeli singer, which is a recording of the same melody made in 1991-92 by her Cochin Jewish grandmother. This discovery piqued my interest in Jewish songs, prompting me to rewatch your videos on the subject, which led me to this observation.
  
  I've been an enthusiastic follower of your work with the Aramaic Project and would love to contribute in any way I can. While I lack formal music training, I have a keen ear for melodies. Additionally, I am fluent in reading Syriac and proficient in Eastern Syriac calligraphy.
  
  I am originally from Changanacherry, but live in Kochi currently - If you happen to visit Kerala anytime soon, I would be thrilled to meet you in person.
  
  Best regards,
  Binu George