Shana Tova

Original language

English

Music and lyrics

Walter J. Kin

Performance

Riglis Band

Walter J. Kin wrote the music and words and produced this recording, performed by Riglis Band. The author-published description dates the words to 2026. Although Shana Tova is a familiar holiday greeting, this recording is presented as a new song, not as an English translation of a particular earlier Hebrew song.

Sharing a greeting does not establish shared musical authorship.

The verse gathers its world through things children can recognize: an apple, honey, bread, a table and greetings to parents. These objects make the occasion concrete before any explanation of the holiday is required. The movement around the table also gives the song a social form: the listener is invited to take a seat and join others.

The English text keeps the Hebrew greeting in the refrain. Its repetition lets a listener join with a few words while the verses carry the longer story in English. The production description explicitly places the song with children and families and proposes a group line dance.

That is the intended setting, rather than evidence that any one choreography is traditional.

The later verse moves from sweet food and celebration to beginning again and being kind. This gives the holiday wish a small practical task. Listen for that change: the song first names what is on the table, then asks what the coming year might mean for how people treat each other.

A Russian article can explain the invitation without being a Russian sung version; no such recording is confirmed here.

Listen here

Credits, scene and arrangement are drawn from the author-published description checked on 6 September 2026. Interpretations of the lyric are editorial readings.