The Baal Shem Tov, or Besht —  the founder of Chasidism — 
met the soul of the Messiah during an ascent to heaven. 
The Besht asked him, "When will the Master come?" 
The Messiah answered, "When your wellsprings break forth to the outside!" 
(from a letter written by the Besht to his brother-in-law about one of his soul ascents) 

Nigun Ha'Ari (Dovid Din)

Yoram Getzler in Israel contributed this instrumental rendition from his album Niggun, Nishama, Haftaah of a nigun that people are starting to attribute to the Ari (Isaac Luria). I learned this same nigun from Shaul Magid as a composition of R. Dovid Din sung to Shir Hama'alot. (Dovid Din's strange story bears telling but will not be told here now.) Here's what Shaul Magid wrote to me about this nigun's provenance:

I got Yoram's beautiful rendition. I also sent to it Zalman who loved it as well. Zalman and I talked about its origins. My recollection is that Dovid claimed to have written it in the House of Love and Prayer. I am not sure how it became known as the Ari's niggun. Others have claimed that, in fact, it originated with Yankele Shamash from the House of Love and Prayer (then of Modiim). In any case, Dovid really owned it and made it what it was. I only heard Dovid sing it to Shir Ha-Maalot. I have heard that Yankele used it for Shalom Aleikhem but I can't verify that.

Download the nigun

Design in progress © Rabbi David Mevorach Seidenberg 2006