Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 4.181 November 13, 1994 1) Warshavsky wrote Oyfn Pripetshik (Louis Fridhandler) 2) "Belz", "Oyfn Pripetshik" (Jeff Warschauer) 3) Prokofiev/Shostakovich (Soreh Benor) 4) "Ale Brider" and "Hey Zhankoye" (Marcia Gruss Levinsohn) 5) Oyfn boydem (Anno Siegel) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 12 Nov 94 23:56:48 EST From: 74064.1661@compuserve.com Subject: Warshavsky wrote Oyfn Pripetshik Zayt mir moykhl. Mayn entfer iz nisht azoy tsu der tsayt. A Mendelnik hot gefregt, "Ver hot geshribn Oyfn Pripetshik?" Ikh hob gemeynt az a sakh Mendelnikes veysn, un emetser andersh vet bald entfern. Anyhow, Oyfn Pripetshik was written by Mark M. Warshavsky. Sholem Aleichem wrote an introduction to a 1900 edition of Warshavsky's songs. He described how the circle of friends of lawyer Mark Warshavsky (the circle included Sholem Aleichem) heard the composer sing his own songs. They discovered that the songs had not been written down. Sholem Aleichem and the other friends persuaded Warshavsky to put them in writing and publish them. Thanks to their efforts we have Oyfn Pripetshik. It has attained the status of a folk song just as Sholem Aleichem predicted in his introduction. In "Tsvey Anti-Semitn" (by Sholem Aleichem), two lone Jews on a train signal their common bond by joining in singing Oyfn Pripetshik. Louis Fridhandler 2---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 13 Nov 1994 00:07:07 -0500 From: warschauer@aol.com Subject: Re: "Belz", "Oyfn Pripetshik" David Ferleger asked about the origin of these two songs. "Belz, Mayn Shtetele Belz" - music: Alexander Olshanetsky; lyrics: Jacob Jacobs. "Oyfn Pripetshik" is by Mark M. Warshawsky. I'd like to be able to claim Warshawsky as a relative, but I can't ;-) . By the way, I have a 1918 edition of Warshawsky's songs (with the 1900 and the 1914 forwards by Sholem Aleykhem) which has the title of this song as "Der Alef-Beys". Jeff Warschauer 3)--------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 13 Nov 1994 00:09:00 -0500 (EST) From: seb28@columbia.edu Subject: Prokofiev/Shostakovich On the subject of Prokofiev's "Overture on Yiddish Themes": I can't confirm this, but I once heard that Prokofiev later denied the music's Jewishness. This is a strong contrast to Shostakovich, who put his soul into his Jewish compositions and stood by his creations. His most obviously Jewish piece, the "Jewish Song Cycle," was written in 1948 but was not released until 1955 (two years after Stalin's death). Other Shostakovich compositions with Jewish-sounding melodies are his fourth and eighth string quartets, his second piano trio, and his 13th symphony (which is based on poems by Yevtushenko -- Shostakovich conceded to the government for this one and changed the words to relate it to all humanity rather than to just Jews). I am doing research for a paper about Shostakovich's relationship with Russian Jews (including Mikhoels and Benjamin Fleishman), and the Jewish community's reaction to his use of Jewish themes. If anybody has information about any aspect of this, please e-mail me. Because I can't read Russian, I am limited in my research capabilities to English and Yiddish sources. Were any Yiddish language periodicals published in the Soviet Union between 1944 and 1956? Soreh Benor 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 13 Nov 1994 02:57:06 -0500 (EST) From: mashinke@wam.umd.edu Subject: Re: "Ale Brider" and "Hey Zhankoye" To Andrew Cassel: (Mendele Vol 4.176) "Ale Brider" is an adaptation of a poem by Morris Winchevsky, "Un mir davnen fun eyn sider...Frum un link fareynikt ale...vi der khumesh mit di rashi, vi der kugl mit di kashe..." Folklorist A. Litvin notes that the song "was the most popular folksong that was sung in the old country, mostly at Bundist parties...Each time it was sung something was added by each singer extemporaneously." You can find the music and words of"Ale Brider," in Yiddish, English, and transcription on page 160 of "Mir Trogn a Gezang" and 154 in "Favorite Yiddish Songs," both published by the Workmen's Circle. Un mir zaynen ale brider, oy, oy, ale brider. Un mir zingen sheyne lider, oy, oy, oy. Un mir haltn zikh in eynem, oy, oy, zikh in eynem, Un mir haltn zikh in eynem, oy, oy, oy. Tra-la-la Tra-la-la. Tra-la-la Tra-la-la. Tra-la-la-la la Tra-la-la-la. Un mir zaynen ale eynik, oy, oy, ale eynik! Tsi mir zaynen fil tsi veynik, oy, oy oy! Un mir libn zikh dokh ale, oy, oy, zikh dokh ale! Vi a khosn mit a kale, oy, oy, oy! Un mir zaynen freylekh, munter, oy, oy, freylekh munter! Zingen lider, tantsn unter, oy, oy, oy. "Hey! Zhankoye" can be found on page 83 of "The Yiddish Song Book" by Jerry Silverman, published by Stein and Day, New York. "Zhankoye was a Jewish settlement in the Crima in the 1930s. It was completely destroyed by the Germans during the war." J. Silverman includes quitar chords with the melody line, English and English transcription of the Yiddish. Az men fort kayn Sevastopol iz nit vayt fon Simfereopol Dortn iz a stantsiye faran. Ver darf zuchen naye glikken s'iz a stantsiye an antikel, In Zhankoye, zhan, zhan, zhan. (Chorus) Hey Zhan, hey Zhankoye, Hey Zhanvili, hey Zhankoye, hey Zhankoye, zhan, zhan, zhan. Entfert Yidn oyf mayn kashe: Vi'zmayn brider, vi'z Abrashe? S'geyt bay im der traktor vi a ban. Di Mime Leye ba der kosilke, Beyle bay der molotilke, In Zhankoye, zhan, zhan, zhan. (Chorus) Ver zogt az Yidn kenen nor handlen, essen fette yoich mit mandlen Nor nit zayn arbetsman? Dos kenen zogen nor di sonim Yidn, shpayt zey on in ponim! Yut a kuk oyf zhan, zhan, zhan. (Chorus) Marcia Gruss Levinsohn 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 13 Nov 1994 10:58:30 +0100 From: anno4000@w172zrz.zrz.tu-berlin.d400.de Subject: Oyfn boydem In Mendele 4.175 Arre Komar asks about the song "Ot, ot, ot azoy est di tzig fin dakh dem hoy". My recollection of the song is incomplete, but maybe it can trigger the memeory of other Mendelniks. Oyfn boydem Oyfn boydem shloft der dakh tzugedekt mit shindelekh. Un i vigl shloft a kint naket gor oyn vindelekh. Hop, hop, ot azoy est di tsig fin dakh dem stroy. Oyfn boydem shteyt a vig, vigt sikh do a shpin in ir. [two lines missing] Hop, hop... Oyfn boydem shteyt a hon un zain kam is faierroyt. Sul di vaib ergets borgn far di kinder a shtikl broyt. Hop hop... Anno Siegel ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 4.181 Mendele has 2 rules: 1. Provide a meaningful Subject: line 2. Sign your article (full name please) A Table of Contents is now available via anonymous ftp, along with weekly updates. Anonymous ftp archives available on: ftp.mendele.trincoll.edu in the directory pub/mendele/files Archives available via gopher on: gopher.cic.net Send articles to: mendele@yalevm.ycc.yale.edu Send change-of-status messages to: listserv@yalevm.ycc.yale.edu a. For a temporary stop: set mendele nomail b. To resume delivery: set mendele mail c. To unsubscribe kholile: unsub mendele Other business: nmiller@mail.trincoll.edu