My piece Otzar draws inspiration from Abraham Zvi Idelsohn (1882-1938) and his Thesaurus of Hebrew Oriental Melodies (אוצר נגינות ישראל), a ten-volume anthology of liturgical and folk music from Jewish traditions around the world, published between 1914 and 1932. Exploring the contents of these extensive volumes, I was particularly drawn to two melodies. The first is Baruch Sheamar from the Moroccan tradition, part of the daily Shacharit prayer. The second is a Kaddish melody from the Southern German Jewish tradition, a prayer of mourning. In Otzar, commissioned by the Jerusalem Music Center, I juxtapose these two melodies to explore the contrast and uneasy balance between the hectic pace of everyday life and the solemn moments of mourning and introspection.