Havdalah
Like table singing, home ceremonies leave us a lot of leeway for personal choice, unlike ceremonies performed in the synagogue, that must conform more rigidly to the tradition estabilshed in the community.
To be more explicit: I am suggesting that you listen out for motifs you and your family like, and incorporate them into your own home ceremonies. You will see on the Havdalah page an example of how my family and I have done this.
Havdalah is an obvious and frequently recurring occasion where we can experiment with different customs and renditions.
Here are two Sephardi forms of Havdalah that we use interchangeably in our home, as the mood takes us. I strongly encourage you to adopt versions you hear in synagogues or homes you visit that appeal to you!
Western (S&P) Sephardi
This is the version of Havdalah printed in the London S&P prayer book, and my rendition is pretty faithful to the way it is chanted in London.
Middle-Eastern Sephardi
This is the version of Habdalah printed in "Tefillat Yesharim". My rendition is heavily influenced by own musical taste, so although the nussah is Middle-Eastern, the sound is Western.
S&P Havdalah is followed immediately by Ps. 121 (Esa einai). This version, by Victorian composer Charles Verrinder (d. 1890), is today pretty much the default version used by the S&P on most occasions.
Note: Dr. Charles Garland Verrinder was a highly accomplished Victorian non-Jewish musician who gave organ recitals at the Royal Albert Hall. Both as a composer and as organist of the West London Synagogue, he made a significant contribution to Anglo-Jewish choral music.
Although not strictly part of the service, we always immediately follow this version of Havdalah with Ps. 128, (Ashrey kol yirei) using the lovely German Jewish melody sung in the syngagogue at the end of the Saturday night service, and at weddings:
Note: This tune entered our family repertoire because in my youth, for many years we went to the local German synagogue (GGBH) on Saturday nights, and coming home for Havdalah, wanted to share the beautiful melody we had just sung in synagogue with those who had not attended!
After Havdalah
After Havdalah it is customary to read a selection of verses containing blessings from God to the Jewish people - though they tend to get omitted when people are in a hurry. They are here read with the S&P cantillation. The first group are from the Chumash (Pentateuch) with one cantillation; the second from the Prophets and Writings, with another.
The hymn Hamavdil is also commonly sung. See the Hamavdil page.
For other hymns sung on Motsae Shabbat, see the Melave Malka page.
The late lamented Haham of the London S&P, Solomon Gaon, had a beautiful practice of saying a personal blessing (Misheberach avoteinu...) for each of his children, and everyone present at havdalah. What a great way to help people start the week feeling blessed!