The Yiddish Mate Tea Song / דאָס ייִדישע מאַטע־טייליד Sung by Clara Bitman, recorded by Itzik Gottesman 1980s.
Clara Bitman learned this song in the 1950s in the Zhitlovsky-shul in Buenos-Aires; a school that was part of the leftist Yidishe kultur-farband organization in Argentina. She sang it at a Yugntruf “shraybkrayz” [writing circle] in NYC in the 1980s. Thanks this week to Janina Wurbs and Emily Socolov.
The Yiddish Mate Tea Song
Mume Zlate trinkt a mate un farbayst a kikhl. Nokh a mate gist on Zlate farn feter Mikhl.
Aunt Zlate drinks mate and snacks on a cookie. Another mate Zlate pours for her uncle Mikhl.
Feter Mikhl neyt a shikhl mit der rekhter hant. Mit der linker, mate trinkt er, trinken zey banand.
Uncle Mikhl sews a shoe with his right hand. WIth his left he drinks mate. So all three drink together.
Kumt fun shul der kleyner Shmulik, hungerik farbayst. Gist im Zlate on a mate; trinken ale dray.
Little Shmulik comes home from school hungry, so he snacks. Zlate pours for him a mate, So all three drink.
Fun a tetsl nasht dos ketsl milekh mitn hintl. Do a lek, do a shmek sara lib gezindl.
The kitten snacks from a saucer some milk with the puppy. Here a lick, there a whiff – what a loving family.
Di shteytishe meydelekh [kh’bin geboyrn a dorfsmoyd] The City Girls (I Was Born a Country Girl)
Sung by Lifshe Schaechter-Widman. Recorded by Leybl Kahn, 1954 NYC
Jewish girl from village outside of Zagreb, courtesy of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Di shteytishe meydalekh geyen shpatsirn Zey geyen geuremt mit sheyne kavelirn. In der puder aleyn Er makht zey di bekelekh sheyn.
The city girls go for a walk. They’re arm in arm with handsome suitors. And just the powder makes their cheeks pretty.
Ikh veyn in klug. Ikh ver nisht mid. Keyner hert mayn veynen nit. Of mir iz nebekh a noyt. Kh’bin geboyrn a dorfsmoyd.
I cry and lament. I don’t get tired. No one hears my weeping. I have, alas, a fault: I was born a country [village] girl.
Di shteytishe meydelekh trugn zikh net. Zey libn nisht keyn yidn; nor ales kadet. Nor af mir, iz nebekh aza noyt. Kh’bin geboyrn a dorfsmoyd.
The city girls are so elegant. They don’t love Jews, only cadets. But alas, I have a fault – I was born a country girl.
Ikh veyn in klug, Ikh ver nisht mid. Keyner hert mayn veynen nit. Oyf mir iz aza noyt. Ikh bin geboyrn a dorfsmoyd.
I cry and lament. I do not tire. No one hears my weeping. I have, alas, this fault – I was born a country girl.
COMMENTARY BY ITZIK GOTTESMAN
I could not find this song in any collection and it is not found in the play “Dos dorfs meydl” by Perlmutter and Wohl. It is probably from an old Yiddish musical play but whether the singer Lifshe Schaechter-Widman learned it growing up in Bukovina, or in NYC when she was living there from 1908 to 1914 is not clear (she went back to Europe in 1914, and did not return to live in the US until 1951).
די שטעטישע מיידלעך איך בין געבוירן אַ דאָרפֿמויד געזונגען פֿון ליפֿשע שעכטער־ווידמאַן
Ikh bin oysgefurn di gantse velt / I Traveled the Whole World Over A love song from the 19th century sung by Lifshe Schaechter-Widman [LSW] Recorded by Leybl Kahn, NYC 1954
TRANSLITERATION
LSW speaks: Fin mayn mamen a folkslid; dus iz shoyn… Ekh hob ekh es gehert mit 60 yur.
Ikh bin oysgefurn a gantse velt. Ikh ho’ gemeynt ikh vel eraykhn [erreichen] dus greste glik. Tse dir, tse dir mayn tayer zis leybm. Tse dir hot mekh getsoygn tsurik. Tse dir, tse dir mayn tayer zis leybm. Tse dir hot mekh getsoygn tsurik.
Vi ‘zoy ken ikh dikh libn, vi ‘zoy ken ikh dikh ern. Vi ‘zoy ken ikh dikh gants farshteyn? Az di heyse libe, vus hot getin brenen, Iz geloshn gevorn mit mayn geveyn. Az di heyse libe vus hot getin brenen, Iz geloshn gevorn mit mayn geveyn.
[alternate second verse as remembered by her daughter Beyle Schaechter Gottesman]]
Vi ken ikh dikh libn, vi ken ikh dikh shetshn Vi ken ikh dekh den ern? Az di heyse libe vus hot getin brenen, Is ousgeloshn mit mayne trern]
TRANSLATION
LSW speaks: A folksong from my mother. I heard it 60 years ago.
I traveled the whole world over, I thought I would attain the happiest joy. To you, to you, my dear, sweet love [literally: life] To you, I was drawn to return. To you, to you, my dear, sweet love To you, I was drawn to return.
How can I love you? How can I honor you, How can I understand you completely, when the passionate love that burned was extinguished with my tears.
[alternate 2nd verse]
How can I love you, how can I appreciate you, How can I honor you? when the passionate love that burned was extinguished with my tears.
Lifshe Schaechter-Widman with her grandchildren, Itzik and Hyam Gottesman
Commentary by Itzik Gottesman
I have not found any variants of this beautiful lovesong that LSW remembers from the 1890s. She says that her mother Tobe knew about 30 songs but once Tobe’s husband died young, she was not in the mood to sing. But when Lifshe heard her singing a tune to herself, she asked her to sing it to her.
Senderl (Ayzikl) mayn man / Sender (or Ayzikl) My Husband Two versions Sung by Rose Serbin and Bella Cutler Ruth Serbin recorded by Ruth Rubin in Patterson, New Jersey, 1956, from Ruth Rubin Archive at the YIVO Sound Archives. Bella Cutler recorded by Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman, 1988, in Daughters of Jacob Nursing Home, Bronx
Research into the one verse remembered by Bella Cutler (from Bolokhov, Galicia, today Bolekhiv, Ukraine) led me to a printed version of the song with music entitled “Senderle [sic] mein Man” in the collection Jewish Folk Songs from the Baltics: Selections from the Melngailis Collection edited by Kevin C. Karnes, 2014. (Scans attached – Karnes 1,2). According to Karnes, Melngailis possibly heard the song in Keidan (today Lithuania, Kedainei) in 1899.
The innkeeper and his wife in Suchestaw, Eastern Galicia. (YIVO)
In the Ginsburg and Marek (GM) collection of 1901, Yidishe folkslider fun rusland, there are two versions, # 305, #306, one with 8 verses from Kaunas; one with 4 verses from Minsk.
In Der pinkes, ed. Shmuel Niger, Vilna, 1913, there is a version in the collection “Folklsider” of L. B-N [Leyvi Berman].
Rose Serbin (1890 – 1974) was born in Bohopolye, Podolia, Ukraine. In the Ruth Rubin Archive this song is entitled “Vi vel ikh nemen”.
All evidence indicates that it originates in Lithuania or other countries “up north”. Of the six versions of the song (all from the 19th century), three were written down in Lithuania, one in Belarus, one in Galicia, one in Ukraine. The important rhyme at the end of each verse “kroyn” and “aleyn” only rhymes in the “Litvish dialect” where “kroyn” is pronounced as “kreyn”.
The textual differences are also intriguing. Is the husband leaving? Is he dying? The question “Where should the wife get bread for the children?” is answered in four ways. In GM #306 and Serbin – “from the lord of the estate”, in GM #307 “at the stall”, in Karnes “at the store”, in Berman ” from the baker”.
Serbin’s version is the most satisfying, not only because she is such a wonderful singer, but also because it ends with a wedding which is where many folk narratives conclude.
Thanks for help with this week’s blog to: Paul Glasser, David Braun, Arun Viswanath, Philip Schwartz, Michael Alpert, Sergio Lerer and YIVO Sound Archives.
RUTH SERBIN: Transliteration and Translation
Oy, vi vel ikh nemen mayne kinderlekh oyf broyt, Senderl mayn man? Vi vel ikh nemen mayne kinderlekh oyf broyt, Senderl mayn man?
Baym purits mayn tayer vaybele, Baym purits mayn tayer taybele, Baym purits, mayn tayere kroyn. Di blabst do shoyn aleyn.
Where will I get bread for my children, Senderl my husband? Where will I get bread for my children Senderl my husband?
From the lord of the estate, my dear wife. From the lord of the estate, my dear dove. From the lord of the estate, my dear love [crown] You will remain here all alone.
Bam purits iz du hintelekh, Senderl mayn man? Bam purits iz du hintelkeh, Senderl mayn man?
Mit a shtekele, mayn tayer vaybele, Mit a shtekele, mayn tayer taybele, Mit a shtekele, mayn tayere kroyn. Di blabst do shoyn aleyn.
On the lord’s estate there are dogs, Senderl my husband. On the Lord’s estate there are dogs Senderl my husband.
With a stick, my dear wife. with a stick, my dear dove. with a stick, my dear love [crown] You will remain here all alone.
Mit veymen vel ikh firn mayne kinderlekh tsi der khipe, Senderl mayn man? Mit veymen vel ikh firn mayne kinderlekh tsi der khipe Senderl mayn man?
Aleyn, mayn tayer vaybele Aleyn, mayn tayer taybele Aleyn mayn tayere kroyn. Di blabst do shoyn aleyn.
With whom shall I lead my children to the marriage canopy, Senderl my husband? With whom will I lead my children to the marriage canopy Senderl my husband?
Alone, my dear wife. Alone, my dear dove. Alone, my dear love [crown] You will remain here all alone.
Bella Cutler’s version: translation and transliteration.
Vos veln mir geybn di kinder esn, Ayzikl mayn man? Vos veln mir geybn di kinder esn, Ayzikl mayn man?
Broytenyu mayn vaybele Broytenyu mayn taybele Broytenyu mayn kroyn Du veyst dos shoyn aleyn.
Ina fektori lebn a mashin (Khane, hayret mit mir) / In a Factory, Near a Machine (Hannah, Marry Me)
Sung by Mary Roten(1900 – 1993), recorded by Gertrude Nitzberg in 1979,Baltimore, Maryland
Commentary by Itzik Gottesman
“Khane Hayrat mit mir” is a typical song from the Yiddish theater of the 1910s when Mary Roten learned it. She sings it in a “Litvish” dialect – “em” instead of “im”, “farfleygn” instead of “farfloygn”“di land” instead of “dos land” etc.
I have not yet found the composer, author or possible play where it was performed but I would bet the melody is taken from a popular American tune of the time period. Does anyone recognize it?
Photograph from the Jewish Museum of Maryland
The singer Mary Roten was born in 1900 and died in 1993. In the above photograph she is teaching her nursery class at the Baltimore Jewish Educational Alliance, circa 1930.
The recording of this song was done by Gertrude Nitzberg who donated the recording to the Jewish Historical Society of Maryland, now part of the Jewish Museum of Maryland. Nitzberg was a teacher and collector of Yiddish folksongs, stories and life history. For more on Gertrude Nitzberg read her obituary here.
Nitzberg was 81 years old when she died in 2000.In the Museum description of the collection, it mentions 20 tapes of field-recordings of singers.
Note on the words to “Khane, heyrat mit mir”: “Mashin” means sewing machine.
“COD” means Cash on Delivery
“Operator” = sewing machine operator
TRANSLITERATION
In a fektori lebn a mashin,
zitst a yunger-man,
in der land iz er grin.
Lebn em zitst a yunge meydele,
shtendik zi neyt. Un zi trakht vegn dem operaterl
vos zingt ir dos lid:
Refrain:
Khane, heyrat mit mir.
Ales vel ikh ton far dir. Mir veln lebn, sheyn, a prakht. Ikh vel arbetn shver tog un nakht far mayn frumer Khanele.
Yorn hobn farfleygn,
heyrat hobn zey.
Got hot zey geshonken
mit kinderlekh tsvey.
Yetst haltn zey a “biznes” [ business],
a kleyn “groseri.”[grocery]
un farkeyfn tsu ale kustomers
by COD.
Fraytik tsu nakht
zitsndik baym tish,
iber di lange lokshn,
un iber di gefilte fish,
zogt zi tsu em:
“Tsi gedenkstu di tsayt ven
du host gezungen dos lid?”.
Refrain:
Khane, heyrat mit mir.
Ales vel ikh ton far dir. Mir veln lebn, sheyn, a prakht. Ikh vel arbetn shver tog un nakht far mayn frumer Khanele.
TRANSLATION
In a factory, near a machine,
sits a young man,
in this land he is “green”.
Next to him sits a girl
who always is sewing.
And she thinks about the operator
who sings her this song:
Refrain:
Khane, marry me.
I will do everything for you.
We will live wonderfully, a wonder.
I will work hard all day and night.
For my pious Khanele.
Years flew by;
they were married.
God gave them a gift of two children.
Now they have a business,
a little grocery store.
And all the customers pay
COD [cash on delivery]
Friday night, sitting at the table,
with the long noodles and with gefilte fish, she says to him:
“Do you remember when
you sang me this song?”
Refrain:
Khane, heyrat mit mir.
Ales vel ikh ton far dir. Mir veln lebn, sheyn, a prakht. Ikh vel arbetn shver tog un nakht far mayn frumer Khanele.
Az in felder geyt a regn/When it rains in the fields Sung by Jacob Gorelik, lyrics by Wolf Younin with music by Maurice Ruach
Recorded by Itzik Gottesman at the Sholem Aleichem Cultural Center, Bronx, 1980s.
Commentary by Itzik Gottesman
Jacob Gorelik probably learned this song as a member of a Yiddish chorus in NYC or from a chorister, since it is part of a longer “Folk Oratorio/Ballet for Chorus” (1947) called “Fun Viglid biz Ziglid”; words by poet, lyricist, journalist, teacher Wolf Younin (1908 – 1984) and music by composer, writer, choir leader, Maurice (Moyshe) Rauch (1910 – 1994). On Rauch see this link, while for information on Younin see his obituary.
“Gorelik at the microphone” drawing by Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman
In the Ruth Rubin Archive at YIVO, Yehudis Wasilievsky (Gorelik’s neighbor in the Chelsea-Elliiot Houses in Manahattan) sings another song from this oratorio – “Granatn”.
The Goldene Keyt/The Yiddish Chorale with Zalmen Mlotek conducting, recorded the work on their compact disc “Mir zaynen do tsu zingen”, 1997. The Jewish People’s Philharmonic Folk Chorus in NYC, Binyumen Schaechter conductor, performed the oratorio in 2008. The composer Mark Zuckerman transcribed the words and music for this performance — view his choral arrangement of the song at the end of this post.
Thanks to Binyumin Schaechter and Mark Zuckerman for help with this week’s post.
*Note: Gorelik’s text differs only slightly from Younin’s libretto, so we put in brackets Younin’s original words next to the way Gorelik sings them.
TRANSLITERATION (Gorelik’s text)
Az af [in] felder geyt [shpritst] a regn, vern grozn nas
un di zangen oykh, un di zangen oykh.
In mayn hartsn brent a fayer, nor ver ken zen dem roykh?
In mayn hartsn brent a fayer, nor ver ken zen dem roykh?
Tsvishn felder, tsvishn velder flist a griner taykh
un er vert gornit mid, un vert gornit mid.
Zingt a foygl tsu a foygl: oy, ikh hob dikh lib.
Zingt a foygl tsu a foygl: oy ikh hob dikh lib.
Ven ale beymer zaynen feder, [Ven yeder boym zol zayn a feder
ale yamen tint un papir der veg, [fun papir der veg]
ale yamen tint un papir der veg.
Undzer libe tsu bashraybn volt es nit geklekt
Undzer libe tsu bashraybn volt es nit geklekt
Az in felder geyt a regn vern grozn nas
un di zangen oykh, un di zangen oykh
in mayn hartsn brent a fayer, nor ver ken zen dem roykh?
in mayn hartsn brent a fayer, nor ver ken zen dem roykh?
TRANSLATION
When it rains in the fields the grass becomes wet,
and the stalks as well, and the stalks as well.
In my heart a fire burns, but who can see the smoke?
In my heart a fire burns, but who can see the smoke?
If the trees were all feathers, and the oceans were ink
and the paths made of paper, and the paths made of paper.
It would not suffice to describe our love.
It would not suffice to describe our love
In fields, in woods,
a green river flows and does not tire at all,
does not tire at all.
A bird sings to another bird: “I love you”
A bird sings to another bird: “I love you”
When it rains in the fields the grass becomes wet,
and the stalks as well, and the stalks as well.
In my heart a fire burns, but who can see the smoke?
In my heart a fire burns, but who can see the smoke?
Excerpt of choral score for “Fun viglid biz ziglid” by Mark Zuckerman:
Fun vanen nemen zikh di libes? / How do romances begin? Sung by Lifshe Schaechter-Widman, recorded by Leybl Kahn 1954, The Bronx, New York City
Commentary by Itzik Gottesman
Though once fairly well-known and found in field recordings and several printed collections, I do not believe this lyric love song was ever recorded commercially other than on the CD Bay mayn mames shtibele, sung by Lifshe Schaechter-Widman’s (LSW’s) daughter Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman. Here we present a version by LSW herself.
Lifshe Schaechter-Widman, 1972
In the I. L. Cahan collection (1957) there are three versions of the song (#26, 27, 28) from the Kiev region, the Vilna region and Podolia region; so the song has been “traveling” over a wide area for a while. One of the verses in those versions (#27) continues the counting of excuses:
Dem dritn terets zolstu zogn,
du host dikh gelernt shvimen.
Dem fertn terets zolstu zogn,
az du host dayn tsayt bakumen [bakimen]
The third excuse you should give
is that you were learning how to swim.
The fourth excuse you should give
is that you are having your period.
Thus making this the only Yiddish song I have found so far that mentions menstruation.
YIDDISH TRANSLITERATION & TRANSLATION
Fun vanet nemen zikh di libes
fin deym shpeytn in fin dem lakhn.
Indzer libe hot zikh geshlosn,
in eyne, tsvey of der nakhtn.
How do romances begin?
From mocking and from laughing.
Our love was sealed –
during one, two evenings.
Tsvelef shlugt zikh shoyn der zeyger.
Fir mekh up aheym.
Vus far a terets vel ikh zugn
Bay mayn mamen in der heym?
The clock has already rung twelve.
Take me home.
What excuse will I say
at my mother’s at home?
Dem ershtn teyrets zo’sti zugn,
az di host geneyet shpeyt.
Dem tsveytn teyrets vesti zugn –
az di host geblondzet dem veyg.
The first excuse you should give
is that you sewed late.
The second excuse you should give
is that you got lost on the way.
Vus toyg mir dayne teyritsem.
Fir mekh up ahem.
Di mame vet dus tirele farshlisn,
in droysn vel ikh blaybn shteyn.
What do I need your excuses for?
Take me home.
Mother will lock the door
and I will be stuck outside.
In this posting, we examine three Yiddish Songs set to the tune of the Italian pop classic Return to Sorrento:
1) Fil gelitn hob ikh miter sung by Lifshe Schaechter-Widman, recorded in 1954 by
Leybl Kahn
2) Sheyn iz Reyzele dem sheykhets sung by Reyzl Stalnicovitz, and recorded by Itzik Gottesman in Mexico City, 1988.
3) Sore-Yente a song found in Meyer Noy’s collection at the National Library in Jerusalem, and performed by Sharon Bernstein, piano and vocal, and Willy Schwarz on accordion, Florence, Italy 2001.
This week we highlight three Yiddish songs that use the melody of an Italian pop classic Torna a Surriento (Return to Sorrento) music by Ernesto De Curtis (1875 – 1937), copyright 1905. The original lyrics were by his cousin Giambattista De Curtis. Here is a Dean Martin recording of the Italian song which we chose because it has a translation of the Italian lyrics (click here to listen).
There are even more Yiddish songs that use this melody, among them: in 1933 after the murder of Haim Arlosoroff in Tel-Aviv, a song was composed to this melody and a song sheet was published (A tragisher mord in Tel-Aviv/A Tragic Death in Tel Aviv). A song about the Polish Jewish strongman Zishe Breitbard (1883 – 1925) also uses a version of the melody (see Mlotek, Songs of the Generations, page 147-148 ).
Thanks this week to Aida Stalnicovitz Vda Fridman and Sharon Bernstein.
1) Fil gelitn hob ikh miter (I Have Suffered Much Mother)
Performance by Lifshe Schaechter Widman, recorded in 1954 by Leybl Kahn in NYC.
Lifshe introduces the song by saying “S’iz a lidl vus me hot gezingen in der ershter milkhume (It’s a song that was sung in the First World War).” The four verses are entirely in the mother’s voice, apparently addressed to her mother, as indicated in the first line.
TRANSLITERATION
Fil gelitn hob ikh miter
bay der as[ent]irung fun mayn kind.
Gearbet hob ikh shver in biter
Far vus lad ikh nokh atsind.?
Iz mayn zin nokh mayn nekhome
Vi iz er fin mir avek?
Afarshundn iz er in der milkhume.
Un a seykhl in un a tsvek.
Ziser Got ikh beyt ba dir
loz mikh nokh a nes gesheyn.
Eyder eykh vel shtarbn
Vil eykh mayn kind nokh eyn mol zeyn.
Dentsmult vel ikh riyik shtarbn.
Got tsi dir keyn tanes hubn.
Loz mayn kind khotsh eyn mul mir
nokh, “mamenyu” zugn.
TRANSLATION
Much have I suffered mother,
from the drafting of my child.
I worked hard and bitter.
Why do I still suffer?
My son is still my comfort
Where did he go and leave me?
Disappeared into the war,
for no logic, for no reason,
Dear God I pray to you
May another miracle take place.
Before I die,
I want to see my son once more.
Then I would calmly die
God, have no complaints to you..
Let my child say to me –
just once more “my mother dear”.
2) Sheyn iz Reyzele dem sheykhets (Beautiful is Reyzele, the Shokhet’s Daughter)
Performance by Reyzl Stalnicovitz, recorded by Itzik Gottesman, Mexico City, 1988.
Reyzl Stalnicovitz, photo by Itzik Gottesman
Reyzl Stalnicovitz was born in 1935 in Xalapa, district of Vera Cruz, Mexico. She was a teacher at the I. L. Peretz shul (“Di naye yidishe shul”) in Mexico City, and passed away in 1996.
Of the three songs presented in this post, this song was by far the most popular and has been printed in several collections and can be found in the field recordings of Ben Stonehill, Sarah Benjamin and at the National Library in Israel. As for commercial recordings: Lea Szlanger sings it on her CD Lea Szlanger In Song.
The text was originally a thirteen verse poem by Zusman Segalovitch (1884 – 1949) that first appeared in the periodical Der shtrahl, Volume one, #2 Warsaw, 1910 (see below). There it was titled Dem shoykhets tokhter: balade (The shoykhet’s daughter: ballad) followed by the inscription – Dos hobn kinder in shtetl dertseylt (This Was Told by Children in Town).
The plot – Reyzl wants to marry Motl but the father, a shoykhet (kosher slaughterer) boils with anger as she combs her hair because she refuses the match he made. He then cuts her golden locks. Then it gets “weird”: she swims into the Vistula (Yiddish = Vaysl) river and builds a little shelter for herself along the bank until her hair locks grow again.
Stalnicovch sings four verses. This ballad was almost always shortened when sung. For example in the Arbeter Ring’s extremely popular songbook Lomir zingen (1939, NY), only five verses are printed (that scanned version, words and music, are attached below).
TRANSCRIPTION
Sheyn iz Reyzele dem sheykhets.
Zi hot a yunge harts on zorgn.
Zi tants un freyt zikh mit ir lebn.
Vi a shvalb mitn frimorgn.
Es bakheynen ir di oygn
Es bakreynen ir di lokn.
Un a shtoltse iz zi shtendik.
Zi vet far keynem zikh nit beygn.
Un ir tate iz a frumer
un dertsu a groyser kaysn.
Ven di tokhter kemt di lokn
Heybt er on di lipn baysn .
Un der tate veyst nokh gornisht
Vos in shtetl veysn ale:
Az Reyzl hot shoyn a khosn.
Un me ruft ir Motls kale.
TRANSLATION
Beautiful is the shoykhet’s daughter Reyzl
She has a young heart with no worries.
She dances and is joyful with her life
as a swallow is with the morning.
Her eyes make her pretty
Her locks are a crown on her;
And she is always proud.
She will bow for no one.
Her father is religious
and also quick to anger.
When he combs her locks,
he starts to bite his lips.
And her father doesn’t know anything
what everyone knows in town:
that Reyzl has a groom,
and they call her Motl’s bride.
Spoken (transliteration):
Dos iz vos ikh gedenk. Ober di mame flegt mir dertseyln az s’iz geven epes a gantse tragedye, vayl der tate hot nisht gevolt az zi zol khasene hobn. Vayl er iz geven a sotsyalist, a yingl, un er iz geven a frumer yid. Er hot gevolt zi zol khasene hobn mit a yeshiva bokher. Un zi’s antlofn mitn bokher.
Spoken (translation): That’s what I remember. But the mother used to tell me that it was a whole tragedy because the father did not want her to get married. Because he (the groom) was a socialist boy and he (the father) wanted him to marry a Yeshiva student. And she ran away with the boy.
3) Sore-Yente
Performance by Cantor Sharon Bernstein, Florence, 2001 (accompanied by Willy Schwarz on accordion)
The third song that uses the melody of Sorrienta is Sore-Yente – a word play on the original Italian title. This was collected by Meir Noy in Israel in 1962 from Shmuel Ben-Zorekh, who learned it from an immigrant from Minsk. A scan of Meir Noy’s original notation, words and music are attached below.
TRANSLITERATION
Mit a nign fun akdomes
shteyt baym fentster Yosl-Monish,
Far der sheyner Sore-Yente
Zingt er dort tsu ir a lid:
Kum tsu mir mayn sheynes benken,
Eybik vel ikh dikh gedenken.
Kh’vel mayn lebn far dir shenken.
Vayl ikh bin in dir farlibt.
Azoy lang iz er geshtanen
vi der groyser pipernoter
un zi hert im vi der koter
un geyt derbay af gikh avek.
TRANSLATION With a melody from Akdometh stands at the window Yosl-Monish
For the beautiful Sore-Yente
there, he sings this song:
Come to me my longed for beauty
I will long for you eternally.
I will give you my life
For I am in love with you.
He stood there for so long
like a giant dragon.
She totally ignores him
And walks quickly by him.
Sheyn iz Reyzele dem sheykhets (Beautiful is Reyzele, the Shokhet’s Daughter) by Zusman Segalovitch (1884 – 1949) in the periodical Der shtrahl, Volume one, #2 Warsaw, 1910:
Sheyn iz Reyzele dem sheykhets (Beautiful is Reyzele, the Shokhet’s Daughter) from the Arbeter Ring’s songbook Lomir zingen (1939, NY):
Az in droysn geyt a reygn vern di shteyner nas
When It Rains Outside the Stones Get Wet
Sung by Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman and Lifshe Schaechter-Widman
BSG recorded by Itzik Gottesman, Bronx, 1980s; LSW recorded by Leybl Kahn 1954.
Commentary by Itzik Gottesman
Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman (BSG) learned this lyrical love song from her mother Lifshe Schaechter-Widman (LSW), and LSW probably learned it in her hometown of Zvinyetshke, Bukovina. At this “zingeray” (song sharing session) in the Gottesman home, one can hear other singers featured on “Yiddish Song of the Week” – Tsunye Rymer and Ita Taub –joining in:
Leybl Kahn had years earlier recorded LSW singing the same song; so we have a rare opportunity to compare the singing of the same song by mother and daughter:
In this performance BSGleaves out the second verse which she usually included. LSW does include that verse.I have transcribed and translated both versions though they are very similar.
Both versions have the wonderful rhyme of “khipe” (wedding canopy) with “klipe” (shrew or an evil spirit that won’t leave you alone).
At the beginning and end of the LSW recording the collector Leybl Kahn sounds confused because LSW had just sung for him another song beginning with the same line “Az in droysn geyt a reygn”.
BSG TRANSLITERATION
Az in droysn geyt a reygn,
vern di shteyndelekh nas. Un az a meydele shpilt a libe
vern ire bekelekh blas.
Second verse that she left out: Un az zi shpilt shoyn oys di libe
farlirt zi dokh ire farbn.
Un az zi shpilt nisht oys di libe,
miz zi dokh yingerheyt shtarbn]
Vos dreysti dikh mame far mayne oygn?
Dreyst dekh nor vi a klipe.
Kh’vel mit im avekforn in an anderer medine
un vel mit im shteln a khipe.
Oy, un a shadkhn, oy vey iz der mamen, vet ir zikh beyde nemen?
Say ez vet dir git geyn, say es vet dir shlekht geyn – far keyn kind vil ekh dikh mer nisht kenen.
Az in droysn geyt a reygn,
vern di shteyndelekh nas. Un az a meydele shpilt a libe
vern ire bekelekh blas.
BSG TRANSLATION
Outside, when it rains the stones get wet.
And when a girl falls in love
her cheeks get pale.
Second verse that she left out: And if the love is successful
she loses her colors.
And if the love is unrequited
then she must die
Why are you always before my eyes, mother.
You’re clinging to me like an evil spirit. I will run away with him to a foreign land
and marry him under a canopy.
“Without a matchmaker, woe is to your mother, you will take each other?
I don’t care if things go well, or bad with you.
I will no longerconsider you as my child”
Outside, when it rains the stones get wet.
And when a girl falls in love
her cheeks get pale.
LSW VERSION TRANSLITERATION
Az in droysn geyt a reygn
vern di shteyndelekh nas.
In az a meydele shpilt a libe
vern ir di bekelekh blas.
In az zi shpilt di libe
vert zi dokh un di farbn
In az zi shpilt nisht oys di libe
miz zi dekh yingerheyt shtarbn.
Vus dreysti dikh, mametshkele, far mayne oygn.
Di dreyst dekh arim vi a klipe.
Ikh vel mit im avekfurn in a fremder medine
un vel mit im shteln a khipe.
Un a shadkhn oy vey iz der mame
vet ir aykh beyde nemen. Say es vet aykh git zayn, say ez vet aykh shlekht zan
Far keyn kind, vil ikh dekh mer nit kenen.
Say es vet aykh git zayn, say ez vet aykh shlekht zayn
Far keyn kind, vil ikh dekh mer nit kenen. Say es vet dir git zayn, say ez vet aykh shlekht zayn
Far keyn kind, vil ikh dekh mer nit kenen.
LSW TRANSLATION
Outside, when it rains the stones get wet.
And when a girl has a love
her cheeks get pale.
And if the love is successful
she loses her colors.
and if the love unrequited
then she must die
Why are you always before my eyes, mother.
You’re clinging to me like an evil spirit. I will run away with him to a foreign land
and marry him under a canopy.
“Without a matchmaker, woe is to your mother, you will take each other?
I don’t care if things go well, or bad with you.
I will no longer consider you as my child”
Vus hosti dekh azoy ayngelibt in mir? / Why did you fall so in love with me? A lyric love song sung by Lifshe Schaechter-Widman.
Recorded by Leybl Kahn, 1954 NYC
Commentary by Itzik Gottesman
Yet another lyric love song, a dialogue between boy and girl, from Lifshe Schaechter-Widman [LSW], recorded by Leybl Kahn. She most probably learned this in her home town in the Bukovina, Zvinyetshke. The song implies that the “Christian Hospital” is the worst place for a person to be.
A page from Leybl Kahn’s notes on LSW’s songs, 1954-55.
The typical four-line stanza in Yiddish lyric song usually has an ABCB rhyming scheme. In this song, the singer rhymes “gezeyn” with “fayn” in the 2nd and 4th line, in the first stanza. Rhyming the “ey” and the “ay” sounds seems to be acceptable to the Yiddish folksinger and LSW is not the only one to do this.
TRANSLITERATION
LSW spoken: A libeslid.
Vus hosti dekh azoy ayngelibt in mir?
Vus hosti af mir azoy derzeyn?
Kenst dekh nemen a sheyn meydele mit nadn
in leybn mit ir gur fayn.
Sheynkeyt hob ikh shoyn gezeyn.
in raykhkeyt makht bay mir nit oys.
Az ikh gib mit dir a red a pur klige verter,
tsisti bay mir mayne [di] koykhes aroys.
Shpatsirn ze’ mir gegangen,
der veyg iz geveyn far indz tsi shmul.
A shvartsn sof zol dayn mame hubn,
zi zol lign in kristlekhn shpitul.
Shpatsirn ze’mir beyde gegangen,
der veyg iz geveyn far indz tsi breyt.
A shvartsn sof zol dayn mame hubn,
vayl zi hot indz beyde tsesheydt.
TRANSLATION
LSW spoken: a love song.
Why did you fall so in love with me?
What did you see in me?
You could have taken a pretty girl with a dowry,
and lived with her just fine.
Beauty, I have already seen,
and wealth doesn’t matter to me.
When I speak just a few smart words with you,
you pull out all of my power.
We went a walking,
the road was too narrow for us.
A black end may your mother have,
I hope she lay in the Christian hospital.
We went a walking,
the road was to wide for us.
A black end may your mother have,
for she split us up.
Photograph from the Jewish Museum of Maryland
“Gorelik at the microphone” drawing by Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman
Lifshe Schaechter-Widman, 1972
Reyzl Stalnicovitz, photo by Itzik Gottesman
Yiddish Song of the Week 