Is it permissible for a man to hear the voice of a woman singing? Answer to Anjuli Pandavar*
There are few arbitrators who believe that it is permissible for men and women to sing sacred songs together, without a woman singing solo. And perhaps your opinion is that since they are busy with holy things, there is no fear that they will commit an offense.
* By Avinoam Ben Dor, 5 February 2024
It's funny that you raised this point of view in Islam. I guess that they copied it from Judaism, as they plagiarised many things from our religion. That same issue is controversial within the Haredi sector [in Israel] as well:
I translated the following for you from Hebrew:
Is it permissible for a man to hear the voice of a woman singing?
Question: I heard that the Halacha [Jewish sacred law, Ed.] regarding the prohibition of hearing a woman's voice is not clear, and there are lenient ones. Is there no insistence that the rabbis decide to get stricter and forbid hearing the voice of female singers?
Answer: This issue is complex, and we will try to explain it briefly.
The meaning of the prohibition
The basis of the prohibition is what is said: "And no nakedness shall be seen in you" (Deuteronomy 23:15). And this is the basis for the duty of chastity for men and women, who must not reveal their nudity. The Sages added and said: "A voice in a naked woman; a part in a naked woman" (Talmud Babli Baruchot 24:1), that is, the obligation of modesty also applies to a part from the body in a place that is used to cover up, and also to hearing the sound of a woman singing. And that's how the Rash, Samag, Riad, Samak, Ra'a, Riaz, and many more wrote.
It is true that some say that the main meaning of this prohibition is that a man is prohibited from saying sacred things, such as reading the Shema, while he is listening to a woman's singing (Rabbi Hai Gaon, Rabbi Yehudai Gaon, Rabi'a, Hagahot Maimoniot). And for the former there is no prohibition to hear the voice of a woman singing (Be'er Sheva, Relics of Ash), and some of the latter understood that they also agree that it is forbidden for a man to hear the voice of a woman singing (Hagra, Yad Aharon).
After all, in the opinion of the vast majority of the former, it is forbidden to hear the voice of a woman singing for reasons of modesty, and regarding the opinion of some of the former - the latter were divided. Therefore, it was ruled in the Shulchan Aruch that it is forbidden to hear the voice of a woman singing for reasons of modesty, and this is what all the recent judges have ordered (Shu'a Aha 21:1; M2a 17:17).
When you don't mean to hear
Although a man who is in his home and unintentionally and unwillingly hears the voice of a woman singing, he is not prohibited from doing so (Meiri, Hachikun, Rabbi Yona). And some say that even when he does not intend there is a prohibition (Eshkol), but if it is difficult for him to go to another place, then he is an anus (Yaraim, 28a, 17).
According to the opinion of the lenient in this, some of the rabbis used to, when they were obliged by virtue of their duties to participate in memorial ceremonies that included pieces of singing by a female singer, which they did not go out in order not to insult the members of the bereaved families, but rather they intended not to enjoy the sound of the singing. But where there was no fear of insult, they left.
However, it is clear that it is not possible, by virtue of a private permit intended for certain people to prevent insult, to cancel the Halacha established by sages and allow all soldiers to go to ceremonies where women sing, while thinking that they are always there against their will and set their hearts not to listen to and enjoy the singing. And the fact that there is an order for this does not make the situation easier, but makes it worse, because it is an order against Halacha (Rambam 1 Kings 3:9).
Deborah sang
As we know, the prophetess Deborah sang a song to God after her victory over Sisera and Yabin (Judges 5:1), and how did the sages rule not to listen to a woman's song? The Hida explained that the Shechinah sang about her, so there was no fear of modesty. Some say that she sang shira, and did not sing in a melody (Meta Ephraim).
It can also be said that there are indeed positive aspects to a woman's singing, and therefore according to the written Torah there is no prohibition in hearing it. But the Torah imposed on the sages to amend regulations and make a caveat to the Torah. And when the sages saw that the openness between men and women caused serious problems, until one of the sins that led to the destruction of the first temple was incest, they amended several regulations of chastity, and by this they were able to fence off Israel, until these sins became very rare.
Sacred song
There are few arbitrators who believe that it is permissible for men and women to sing sacred songs together, without a woman singing solo. And perhaps your opinion is that since they are busy with holy things, there is no fear that they will commit an offense. And according to this, rabbis in Germany allowed all those gathered around the Shabbat table to sing sacred songs together, and the author of the 'Relics of Ash' (2:8) also allowed boys and girls in the Yeshuron movement in Paris to sing together, in order to bring them closer to Judaism. Although in the opinion of the vast majority of the judges, even sacred songs are forbidden to be sung together (Zitz Eliezer 7:20), but it is customary not to be careful about women's singing that comes from the help of women (and the Ha'ats Chom Katz was strict about this).
Picture credits:
By דודי פרידמן - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=32246090
https://www.israeltoday.co.il/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/F101110YZ09Yossi-ZamirFlash90.jpg
Screen grab from "Mizrahi Jews Singing in Synagogue", The Mizrahi Project, YouTube, 18 Jul 2018 https://youtu.be/ulEoW5eCNOU