Asaph
Asaph was a Levite musician and psalmist during David's reign, and his descendants served as temple singers (1Ch.6.39; 15:17, 19; 16:5, 7, 37; 25:1, 2, 6, 9; 2Ch.5.12; 20:14; 29:13, 30; 35:15; Ezra 2:41; 3:10; Neh.7.44; 11:22; 12:35, 46; Psalms 50, 73-83).
Asaph was a Levitical musician appointed by David as one of the chief leaders of temple music, who played cymbals before the ark of God (1 Chronicles 15:17–19; 16:4–5). He is credited as the author of twelve psalms (Psalms 50 and 73–83) that are distinctive for their focus on national crisis, the mystery of the prosperity of the wicked, and God's past dealings with Israel. Psalm 73, his most famous, wrestles with the problem of theodicy—why the righteous suffer and the wicked prosper—resolving it through the perspective of God's sanctuary (Psalm 73:17). His 'sons of Asaph' formed a lasting guild of temple singers (Ezra 2:41; Nehemiah 11:17), and Asaphite musicians played at both the laying of the second temple's foundation (Ezra 3:10) and Nehemiah's dedication of Jerusalem's rebuilt walls (Nehemiah 12:35).