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Gerald Cohen
Gerald Cohen Music
Adonai S’fatai Tiftach (Holy One, open my lips)
Weaving a meditative melody with rich harmonies, this psalm text asks for the ability to connect with the divine.
SATB Chorus and Piano
Adonai S’fatai Tiftach (Holy One, open my lips) sets a single line of the Psalms, asking God to “open my lips, that my mouth may declare Your praise.” A meditative melody begins without words in solo voices, then in the chorus in Hebrew with a gentle accompaniment in the piano. The middle section sets the same text in English, using “Holy One” and “Breath of Life” for God’s name, as the translation of “Adonai” (traditionally translated as “Lord”). Where the main melody is primarily sung in unison, this middle section has rich and modulating harmonies in the chorus. The return of the main melody brings back the unison melody in the tenor and bass, with luminous responses in English in the soprano and alto. This beautiful piece is appropriate to synagogue, church and interfaith services, as well as concert performance.
Purchase includes a recording pronunciation guide.
Composer’s Notes
Adonai S’fatai Tiftach (Holy One, open my lips) was commissioned by Bet Am Shalom, White Plains, NY, in honor of the retirement of my dear friends and colleagues Cantor Benjie Ellen Schiller and Rabbi Les Bronstein. The well-known text is used as the introduction to the Amidah, the central prayer of every Jewish service, asking God for the ability to connect with the divine presence. Adonai S’fatai Tiftach was given its premiere in June 2025 by a solo quartet of Benjie Ellen Schiller, Natasha Hirschhorn, Isaac Sonett-Assor, and myself, with Joyce Rosenzweig as pianist.
-Gerald Cohen
Text
Adonai s’fatai tiftach,
Adonai s’fatai tiftach,
ufi yagid t’hilatecha.
Holy One, open my lips,
Breath of Life, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
-Psalm 51:17
$3.00 per licensed PDF
