A kind (A child) - a Yiddish song in which nobody dies!
I would not have bothered recording this song except for its one spectacular eccentricity - in the whole song nothing bad happens.The parents have a child, he grows up to be healthy and nice, nobody dies. Everybody is happy.
All I can think is that it was perhaps sung as the sad fantasy of a childless woman. It's inconceivable things would ever go this smoothly in a Yiddish operetta.
Other than its inexplicable pleasantness, the song is pretty generic, and is set to a tune used for many other penny songs, probably because it was very well known: A mentsh zol men zayn (One should be a decent human being). Here it is, from this morning (I only sang two of the three verses):
I used these same two tracks, guitar by Ken Bloom and bass by Jim Baird, for a previous song set to the same melody: Keyn nar zol men nit zayn (don't be a fool).
Text and translation after the jump.
Batrakht di froy vos brengt a kind a kind nor af der velt
Es kost ir mi un fil gezunt un zi derfun onkvelt
Ven zi fun dem kind dos ershte vort hert
Di muter far freyde entsikt zi bald vert
Raykh un shtolts filt zi zikh dan keyn glaykh tsu ir iz faran
Zi koyft bald geshvind a shpilekhl dem kind
un vinsht im tsu yoren gezunt!
A kind iz tayer un oykh lib a tsirung iz es in der shtib
Dos shenste iz a kind nor af der velt s'iz tayerer fun gelt!
Far simkhe tanst di mamenyu fun nakhes kvelt der tatenyu
Dos greste glik far tate mame: a kind nor af der velt!
Fariber iz draytsn yor tsayt, bar mitsve vert dos kind
Di eltern zenen fil mit freyd, vayl tfilin leygt er atsind.
Der tate di mame farbetn fil fraynt tsu hern di droshe vos dos kind zogt haynt
Batsoln dos iz keyner umshtand zogar mit gold, perl, briliant.
Mit freyd zeyer fil geyt dos kind in shil
un di eltern zingen zikh shtil:
Shtolts zenen haynt di eltern gor mit zeyer tayer kind
Gevorn iz er akhtsn yor un khasene hot er atsind
Fil mekhutonim, zey tantsn mit freyd,
Un mazl-tov hert men fun yedvider zayt
Di muter far glik lozt a trer, vayl lib iz dos kind by ir zeyer
Atsind nor batrakht vi lib un geakht
Tsu hobn a kind iz a prakht!
Es kost ir mi un fil gezunt un zi derfun onkvelt
Ven zi fun dem kind dos ershte vort hert
Di muter far freyde entsikt zi bald vert
Raykh un shtolts filt zi zikh dan keyn glaykh tsu ir iz faran
Zi koyft bald geshvind a shpilekhl dem kind
un vinsht im tsu yoren gezunt!
A kind iz tayer un oykh lib a tsirung iz es in der shtib
Dos shenste iz a kind nor af der velt s'iz tayerer fun gelt!
Far simkhe tanst di mamenyu fun nakhes kvelt der tatenyu
Dos greste glik far tate mame: a kind nor af der velt!
Fariber iz draytsn yor tsayt, bar mitsve vert dos kind
Di eltern zenen fil mit freyd, vayl tfilin leygt er atsind.
Der tate di mame farbetn fil fraynt tsu hern di droshe vos dos kind zogt haynt
Batsoln dos iz keyner umshtand zogar mit gold, perl, briliant.
Mit freyd zeyer fil geyt dos kind in shil
un di eltern zingen zikh shtil:
Shtolts zenen haynt di eltern gor mit zeyer tayer kind
Gevorn iz er akhtsn yor un khasene hot er atsind
Fil mekhutonim, zey tantsn mit freyd,
Un mazl-tov hert men fun yedvider zayt
Di muter far glik lozt a trer, vayl lib iz dos kind by ir zeyer
Atsind nor batrakht vi lib un geakht
Tsu hobn a kind iz a prakht!
Consider the woman who brings a child into the world
It costs her her strength and health, yet she beams with joy
When she hears the child's first word, she's happy and delighted.
She feels rich and proud then, nobody's her equal!
She quickly buys a little toy for the child
And wishes him long healthy years!
A child is dear and beloved, a treasure in the home.
A child is the most beautiful thing in the world, dearer than money!
The mother dances in celebration, the father beams with pride.
The greatest happiness for the father and mother: a child in the world!
Thirteen years pass, the child becomes bar mitzvah.
The parents are full of happiness because he lays tfilin now.
The father and mother invite a lot of friends to hear the speech he'll give today.
You can't pay for this, even with gold, pearls, diamonds.
With great happiness the child walks into the shul
And the parents sing quietly:
Today the parents are proud of their dear child
He's now eighteen years old and he's marrying
Many relatives are dancing happily
and you hear "mazl-tov" from every side
The mother cries from happiness because she loves her child so
Now just think how beloved and esteemed
It's wonderful to have a child!
For sheet music and/or performances contact me: jane@mappamundi.com
by melinama @ 9:28 PM
Yiddish Ragtime
Ikh bin busy
Opgenarte velt
Vos hot men tsu mir
Der East Side fun amol
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home