Praying with joy

Hi,

"The root of prayer is in heartfelt joy in one's relationship with Gd, as it is written (Divrei haYamim I 7:10), 'Praise His holy Name; may the heart of those who seek Gd be glad.' This is why David, king of Israel, played his lyre in all of his prayers and songs - in order to fill his heart with joy in his love of Gd."

(R' Yehudah haChasid, Sefer Chasidim 18)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Why traditional prayer is not instrumental

Hi,

"We have seen that our ancestors who instituted the prayers did not enact musical instruments even though song emerged from among us in the service in the Beit haMikdash. Our ancestors abandoned it; we see that they felt it inappropriate, because there is no joy before Gd since the day the Beit haMikdash was destroyed."

(Rav Moshe Sofer, Chatam Sofer 6: Likkutim 84)

Have a great day,
Mordechai