About this website
When I listen to and sing Jewish folksongs, I enter a fascinating world of tradition. I open the door to a multi-layered convergence of factors underlying the songs: customs and folklore, history, religious texts - the Bible, midrashim, prayers and poetry - and the routines, joys and tribulations of daily life. I am aware of the impact that the surrounding world has had on Jewish culture. I see how Jewish tradition has been interpreted in art, literature, legends and folk stories, and I hear how different languages and musical elements have been incorporated into the songs. One door leads into another, and I am able to see Jewish folk living in the different parts of the Diaspora and singing about the many different aspects of their lives. I'm touched by the songs and all they convey, and my own life is enriched.
I have tried to convey some of these notions in this website. The underlying idea of the site is not simply to advertise the lecture-recitals, but to share some of the fascinating insights which I have become aware of while preparing the background material. For example, in learning the Sephardic wedding song "Morenica", I wonder why so many different songs have been sung about dark-skinned girls and whether there is any connection between those in Spanish culture and the heroine of the Biblical "Song of Songs"; I also think about the relative values attached to dark or light skinned people, from Biblical times to our very day. Another example is the popular Yiddish song "Tum Balalayke": what is the connection between this and the English and Scottish riddle ballads, and which functions have riddle songs played in Jewish culture? Why do people keep singing text which doesn't make sense? As you can see, each song opens up an unending series of doors to fascinating worlds beyond us which still have an impact on our present lives.
The web-pages accompanying two of the lectures are presented in this manner: "Songs in Yiddish and Ladino: Are they Jewish?" and "Kings and Queens". Taking each of the songs in turn, I search for answers to the questions which are inherent in the texts. All the other subjects are organized more globally; introductions to the lectures are in the process of being added to the website, and the full information texts are presented to participants of the lecture-recitals.
The folksongs mainly cover Yiddish and Ladino-speaking cultures, and I also look at a few piyyutim, chasidic and Israeli folksongs. Most of the information sources I have given are from the Internet, so that you, too, can easily find out more about how the folksongs are connected to Jewish tradition and culture. If you look at both the English and Hebrew sections of the website (!) you'll see that, in the main, different sources are cited for each language. In order to complement the material in the lectures, I have also created a reference section with brief summaries and references to information sources regarding different aspects of Jewish heritage, particularly musical tradition.
Batya
