Yeedle Werdyger

Yehudah "Yeedle" Werdyger (born 1971)^[1] is an American Hasidic Jewish singer. He is the son of singer Mordechai Werdyger (stage name: Mordechai Ben David) and grandson of renowned cantor David Werdyger.

Yeedle (Yiddish; יידל ) is a Yiddish nickname for the Hebrew name Yehudah (Heb. יהודה / יהודא )

Genre

Werdyger's songs and music may be considered Contemporary Hasidic. The music used in his first two albums was generically similar to the Hasidic performers of the early 1990s, with noticeable electric guitar interludes.

With his third album, Shiru Lamelech, Werdyger placed emphasis on using acoustic guitar in a more country music and kumzitz fashion.

Keeping up with technology, Werdyger released his fifth album, Lev Echad, with much innovation. The music genre was more funk with compositions by Rabbi Akiva Homnick, Aharon Razel, and Werdyger cowriting with Eli Laufer. Sound and digital effects on this album were engineered by Eli Leshinsky.^[2]

Using Lenticular printing, the CD cover of Lev Echad showed Hasidic men dancing on a colorful background. Parallel to the music CD, Werdyger released the music tracks with visual video animation depicting himself singing the album's songs. The animation was created by artist Peretz Schmukler.^[3]

Production

Werdyger has produced his father's albums starting from 2001; albums produced include:

• Maaminim Bnei Maaminim
• Kumzitz
• Efshar Letaken
• Kulam Ahuvim

Werdyger assisted in the production of HD video and song "Unity For Justice" performed by MBD together with Avraham Fried and 30 famous Jewish singers. This song was created and performed in solidarity with Sholom Rubashkin, in protest of injustice in his widely publicized case in the USA.^[4]

Family

Werdyger is the son of Mordechai Ben David and grandson of David Werdyger. His uncle Mendy is also a singer and owner of the Jewish record label Aderet Records and music retail store Mostly Music. His cousin Yisroel Werdyger (son of Mendy) is also a singer.

Discography

Main albums

• Together (1993)
• Laasos Retzon Avicha (1995)
• Shiru Lamelech (Sing for the King) (1998)
• Yeedle IV (2002)
• Lev Echod (One Heart) (2008)
• A Verdiger Yid (2013)

Collaboration albums

• Just One Shabbos (1983)
• The Double Album (1990)
• HASC 5 - A Time for Music (1992)
• Special Moments (1994)
• Solid Gold - Volume 1 (1997)
• Yachad (1999)
• Chazak! - Live at the Jacob Javits Center NY (2001)
• HASC 15 - A Time for Music (2002)
• A Day of Shabbat and Rest (2005)
• Shira Chadasha (2005)
• Shabbos with the Werdyger Family (2006)
• Shabbos With the Werdygers II (2010)
• HASC 26 - A Time For Music (2013)
• Boruch Sholom Blesofsky, Bishvili (2015)

^{[5] [6] [7] [8]}

References