Page 30 - Jewish News_October-2020
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30                         October 2020                                                                   JEWISH INTEREST


     Something uplifting: “Bei Mir Bist Du Shein”                                                                                                       Jewish-themed Crossword Puzzle


     By Arlene Stolnitz
              ith all the difficult news late-  for research, and to work I went. As is   out that this song was beloved by the   recordings of “Bei Mir,” the comments   Your monthly crossword puzzle
              ly, we need something up-   typically the case, I discovered a story   Nazi party in the ’30s!          of listeners are quite amusing. Here are
     Wlifting, and the swing music        I was unaware of.                         “Bei  Mir”  had  a  lively  existence   some “mondegreens”  for “Bei  Mir:”   is generously brought to you by
     of an earlier era does create that ”feel   The  recording  was released  in   after its initial premiere in 1932. Af-  “My dear  Mr. Shane,”  “A Beer  Mr.
     good” sensation. To my mind, there is   1942. The A-side of the record was a   ter  a  rather  complicated  start,  which   Shane” and “My Mere Bits of Shame”
     nothing quite like the swing music of   Gershwin  song,  “Nice  Work if  You   involved many composers and musi-  are just a few that I ran across.
     the ’40s.                            Can Get It,” while the B-side was an   cians trying to get rights to the song,   “Bei  Mir” is accessible  on  You-
                           Recently, my   unknown  Yiddish love song called  “   the original “Bay Mir Bist Du Sheyn”   Tube with renditions by many well-
                       50-something       Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen,” translated as   in Yiddish, became “Bei Mir Bist Du   known musicians such as the Andrews
                       daughter sent me   “To Me, You Are Beautiful.”           Shoen” in  German,  and  was made     Sisters, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Good-
                       a video she had        The song was written in the ’30s   popular  by the Andrews Sisters’ ren-  man and the Barry Sisters. The record-
                       seen on the inter-  by Shalom Secunda (composer) and     dition. By 1938, the song, in German,   ing I like the most is found under the
                       net. It sounded to   Jacob Jacobs (lyricist) for the 1932   had become a smash hit of the Nazis.   title  “Bei  Mir Bist Du Schejn”  and
                       me like she had    Yiddish comedy musical  I Would if  I   German sympathizers in the U.S. even   is known as the  “original”  Yiddish
                       never heard  of    Could (Men Ken Lebn Nor Men Lost      sang the tune in ale houses, not know-  version  as  recorded  by  the  Budapest
                       this group before.   Nisht), which closed after a one-season   ing the song was composed by a Jew.   Klezmer Band. The vocalist is Natalie
                       But she was ex-    run in Brooklyn’s Parkway Theater. It   It was picked up during the WWII era   Dessay, a  French  singer  and  actress
        Arlene Stolnitz  cited to hear “Bei   has been reported that Secunda, a Rus-  by a German swing group called Char-  known for her former career as a col-
     Mir Bist Du Shein” sung in Yiddish by   sian born cantor who had emigrated to   lie and His Orchestra, which did Nazi   oratura soprano. The video is complete
     the Andrews Sisters. Who in this group   the U.S. in 1906, was paid a mere $30   propaganda parodies aimed at British   with images from yesteryear.
     of readers does not remember this    for the song, and that he bypassed the   and American Allied Forces. The band   Comments from listeners on You-
     song?  Anyone  alive  during  the  ’40s   upcoming George Gershwin in favor of   played  jazz  standards  but  with  modi-  Tube show how beloved the song has
     knows how popular it was!            Jacobs as his lyricist.               fied lyrics meant to demoralize the en-  been throughout the years. Many lis-
        Of course, for me, that was cause     Even  more  amazing  was  finding   emy by spreading Nazi ideology.     teners remember a parent or grandpar-
                                                                                    Eventually, this music and all other   ent singing “Bei Mir “ to them when
                                                                                “jazz” music was banned by the Nazis
                                                                                                                      they were young.
           L’Dor                                SERVING THE JEWISH              as “degenerate” music.                Arlene Stolnitz, founder of the Sara-
                                                COMMUNITY SINCE 1978
                                                                                    I had never heard the term “mon-
                                                                                                                      sota  Jewish  Chorale,  is  a  member of
                                                Charter Members of Temple Sinai
                                                                                degreens” before researching this song.
                                                                                                                      the Jewish Congregation of Venice. A
                  V’Dor                         Selling Real Estate             Turns out it refers to misheard lyrics.   retired educator from Rochester, New
                                                                                                                      York,  she  has sung in  choral  groups
                                                                                Not to be confused with “parody,”
                                                                                                                      for over  25 years and also sings in
                                                                                which is an intentional  rephrasing of
                                                to Every Generation
                                                                                lyrics, a mondegreen occurs when peo-
                                                                                ple misunderstand the lyrics in a song   The Venice  Chorale.  Her interest  in
                                                                                                                      the preservation of Jewish music of all
                  Selling the “Sarasota Lifestyle”...                           and substitute  new words giving it  a   kinds has led to this series of articles
                                                                                different meaning. In listening to many
                                                                                                                      on Jewish Folk Music in the Diaspora.
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