Luft, luft, luft (Air, air, air) - one of Solomon Small's Yiddish parlor songs
I've published some videos recently of songs by Solomon Smulewitz (Solomon Small) that are found on the Library of Congress website. I was wondering what to call them: they weren't sold on the street, so they're not really penny songs. They weren't, as far as I know, sung in the Yiddish theater. I think what they are is the Yiddish equivalent of parlor songs. Smulewitz put them out in albums, probably for singing in the home.
The language is difficult. Since the songs are usually published without oysyes (probably for an audience which was losing its ability to read them), and the transliterations are inconsistent and not at all up to klal Yiddish standards, a lot of guessing is involved. I've discovered the language of this time and place (early 1900s, New York) enrages or disgusts today's Yiddishists with its Daytshmerisms and Yinglish. I think, though, there is a lot to be learned about the time and place by studying (or singing) these songs. There are dissertations by the dozens waiting to be written! Here's my living room recording from yesterday:
Another trope is the consequence of "allrightniks" now wealthy enough to do as the goyim did and spend summers in the country or, more commonly, to send their wives to the country while they stayed in the city for work and/or relief from their wives. Evidently this arrangement led to dalliances in both locations.
Yiddish Ragtime
Ikh bin busy
Opgenarte velt
Vos hot men tsu mir
Der East Side fun amol
<< Home