Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 2 no. 33 July 16, 1992 1) Folk songs and other matters (Berl Hoberman) 2) Yiddish song collection (Paul Weichsel) 3) Borscht belt memories (Yankel Kessler) 4) Der Dibbuk (Shloyme Axelrod) 5) Query (Vicki Fromkin) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: 15 Jul 1992 13:44:42 -0400 (EDT) From: Robert D Hoberman Subject: Rozhinkes a folk song? Is Rozhinkes mit mandeln a folk song? Woodie Guthrie is reported to have said "If the folks sing it, it's a folksong." By his criterion, probably Rozhinkes is a folksong, but Summertime isn't. On a related topic: Snobism about Yiddish theater and theater music isn't simply a response to the borsht belt. My mother's parents were terrible snobs. Born in 1890, came to America in 1905-1907, spoke Yiddish to each other and some friends until the end, but I'm sure all the juicy Yiddish insults and curses were never heard in their house. Anyway, they disapproved heartily of all the second avenue stuff. The only Yiddish songs they ever sang were from the old country. What they got into here was, of all things, opera! I have never understood how these people, coming from a village so small that klezmorim were heard only rarely, became so devoted to opera. And it was sincere and deeply felt: in his deaf old age my grandfather heard a tenor on his old TV and decided he was "even better than Pavarotti". Who was it? Placido Domingo of course. Their snobism wasn't at all Jewish self-hate; he (my grandfather, not Domingo) was also devoted to khazonish, and would go far to hear a good khazn, though he wasn't religious. (A good yontef davening is a lot like a recital of mad-scenes from the opera. [I love'em both.]) The point is that I believe there must have been a distinct streak of snobism about Yiddish theater music well before the post-war borsht belt. Bob Hoberman 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 15 Jul 1992 17:22:49 -0500 From: Paul Weichsel Subject: Yiddish song collection To those interested in having a look at a very fine collection of Yiddish songs I strongly recommend the Anthology of Yiddish Folksongs by Vinkovetzky, kovner and Leichter published by the Magnus Press of the Hebrew Univ of Jerusalem. It is in 4 volumes and was still in print in 1989 when I purchased a copy in Israel. The "Folksong" part should be taken with a grain of kosher salt, but it is beautifully produced and has some wonderful material. Paul Weichsel 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 15 Jul 92 18:38 PDT From: KESSLER Subject: Borscht belt memories Dear Mendel & C: I spent years and years in the Borscht Belt, from the cottages (kokhalayns) in the 1930 through bussing and waitering and caddying and all, until 1949. The music was awful, of course, and I cringe now with tony Bennet and Sinatra too, bad singers, and all that. Jazz and the rest didnt exist. It was all pop stuff. For dancing and necking, which one started even before puberty, what with the casinos. A former student of mine a very talented African-American girl in LA (middle class) mentioned the other day she making headway with the accordion. What playing? Besame Mucho, says she. I was thrown back to 1937-38, and my first date at aged 8, to learn to dance to Besame mucho. That was the thing. Campfires on occasion among the cottagers, and the songs, papirossen and stuff, like that mandolins, uncles and aunts, and lots of workers songs, all new fakes for trotskyites and the like. I agree wiht Noyekh, the music was rotten in the Catskills, Danny Kaye and all them guys, and even Eddie Fisher, whom I saw Cantor introduce at Grossinger's the day before he went into the Army, and i stood at the back and said to some woman guest I was gigolo-ing..he'll never make it. He did make it. He never could sing anyway. Kessler 4)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 16 Jul 1992 11:04 EST From: Seymour Axelrod Subject: `Dybbuk' film I recently bought, from a company called something like Ergo Home Video, a videocassette of the classic Yiddish film 'Der Dibek', produced in Warsaw in the '30s. It's thrilling to watch, even though the print from which the video was made was in dreadful condition (many skips & jumps) and the dialog is just barely intelligible. Both the Workmen's Circle (Arbeter Ring) in New York City and the Brandeis Jewish Film Center list a video of the same production in their catalogs. Does anyone know whether either is of better quality than Ergo's? Shloyme (Seymour) Axelrod 5)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 16 Jul 92 09:20 PDT From: Vicki Fromkin Subject: query A most serious question -- what is the 'proper' Yiddish translation of 'sex' and 'sexual intercourse'. No vulgarities like 'shtup'. Those I know. Vicki Fromkin ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol 2.16 If your message is intended for MENDELE, please write to: mendele@vax1.trincoll.edu If you want to discuss personal business or have a shmues with the shames, please write to: nmiller@vax1.trincoll.edu Please sign your articles.