Zionists wanted to develop their own musical sound, folk as well as art or so-called classical music. They approached it in a number of ways that were inspired by romantic nationalism again. They went “back to the people” and recorded the musical traditions of various Jewish communities from around the world, primarily from non European Jewish communities, which were considered more authentic and closer to ancient Judaistic musical traditions. They also reinterpreted musical traditions from Eastern Europe, from whence most of them came. The attempt to bind together East and West characterized early Zionist musical creations, which often included lyrics in Biblical and rabbinic Hebrew that emphasized the nation’s ancient pedigree.