Abraham sutzkever, one of the great yiddish poets of his generation who evoked the nightmare of the holocaust with images of a wagonload of. Avrom sutzkevers the lead plates of the rom printers. Abraham sutzkevers paean to nature sung in yiddish. In 1937, he published his first volume of yiddish poetry, lider songs. In honor of national poetry month and the yiddish book centers decade of discovery theme for this year, yiddish in america. Avrom sutzkever is remembered as one of the greatest yiddish poets of the twentieth century, and the poetic voice of the worldaltering events he lived through, but his prose is sometimes overlooked.
Three poems by sutzkever from the penguin book of yiddish verse, republished on tablet includes link to pdf of yiddish originals sutzkevers facebook page, an open group for anyone wishing to find out more about his poetry. A new film tells the story of the heroic poetturned. He was one of fewer still who lived through it as a writer, producing between 1941 and 1945 some of his finest poems. The new york times wrote that sutzkever was the greatest poet of the holocaust. A unique blend of nature poetry and childhood memories, set in one of the most unlikely geographical settings for yiddish poetry, siberia opens the book with sutzkever s own process of. Abraham sutzkever was born in 19 in what is now belarus. Yiddish poet avrom sutzkever, creator of a golden chain. Ten poems from poems from my diary by abraham sutzkever. Poems of avrom sutzkever suny press, 2019, which features sutzkevers poems in their original yiddish along with feins english translations. Ruvnyankev, along with his friend, collaborator, and regular yiddish voice cohost sholem beinfeld, discuss feins recently published book the full pomegranate. Remarks on sutzkevers 10th yortsayt by beinfeld interview with fein about his book. Mira mirele sutzkever, daughter of yiddish poet avrom sutzkever, reads a poem of her fathers titled yiddish.
The yiddish word for sun, itself a major character in the poem, is identical to the yiddish word for sona pun sutzkever employs like a musical variation. Born in smorgon, a small industrial city southeast of vilna, avrom sutzkever spent his early childhood in omsk, siberia, where his parents took refuge from the invading german armies during world war i. Unable to get a visa for the united states, he had come on a speaking tour of several canadian cities, spending most of his time in montreal, where i was living at the time. Sutzkever, one of the major twentiethcentury masters of verse and the last of the great yiddish poets, is presented to the english reader in this banquet of poetry, narrative verse, and poetic fiction. Arguably the most important yiddish writer in israel during the 20th century was the poet abraham sutzkever. This wonderful library had many such lectures for the public. Programs on yiddish literature and culture recorded at montreals jewish public library, 19532005. This story, from the collection messiahs diary, is, like all of his work, both antirealist and transcendent.
The entire album contsining recordings of sutzkever reading his poems in. Abraham sutzkever was born in smargon, white russia, on july 15, 19, and died on january 20, 2010, in tel aviv. Avrum abraham sutzkever, an oyster treasure of both the jewish people and world literature, was born into an oreme ober gelernte mishpokhe a poor but well educated family. The elegist february 1, 2010, a reflection on sutzkevers life by prof. Abraham sutzkever on poetry and battling the nazis. Cultural encounters, were featuring a podcast with faith jones about her work translating the experimental yiddish poet celia dropkin, a dadaist sound poem about coney island from the late 1930s, and an article about. In 1915 sutzkever and his family fled their home in.
Sutzkever lived for several years in warsaw, where he published his first book of poetry. Abraham sutzkever abraham sutzkever poems poem hunter. He lived to 96 and continued publishing yiddish poetry for most of those years. The documentary black honey, the life and poetry of abraham sutzkever, which screens this month as part of the jewish international film festival, tells not only the story of the greatest yiddish poet of the 20 th century, it also shows the greatness of yiddish culture before the holocaust born in belarus, in the town of smorgon, sutzkever and his wife were sent to the vilna ghetto following. Yiddish literature began with translations of and commentary on religious texts. The close association of yiddish poetry with the ethos of popular jewish folk life at the turn of the twentieth century is evident in the enormous popularity of mark varshavskis poems, which appeared in book form under the title yidishe folkslider mit notn yiddish folk songs with musical notes in. Feins translations appear alongside the original yiddish, while an introduction by justin cammy situates sutzkever in both historical and literary context. Abraham sutzkever was one of the tiny percentage of creative artists who lived through and survived the devastation.
Abraham sutzkever on poetry and partisan life youtube. But avrom sutzkever, the premier 20thcentury yiddish poet, is the. Belatedly, in 1985 sutzkever became the first yiddish writer to win the prestigious israel prize for his literature. The themes of his work span his early childhood in siberia, youth in vilna, lithuania, the catastrophe of the holocaust, and a new life in israel. Following the death of his father, sutzkevers mother, rayne, resettled the family in vilna in 1921. Only in 1985 was sutzkever awarded the israel prize, the first yiddish poet to be so recognized. Yiddish poet avrom sutzkevers winter wonderland tablet magazine. The poem tells of narrators experiences when his family fled to siberia to avoid the germans in world war two. Sutzkever and others risked their lives to rescue rare yiddish books. The harshavs were responsible for the highly praised american yiddish poetry. Translated from the yiddish and introduced by jacob sonntag. William sauronew york times few mastered the intricacies of yiddish with the passion and aplomb of.
He was a yiddishlanguage poet whose works chronicle his childhood in siberia, his life in the vilna vilnius ghetto during world war ii, and his escape to join the jewish partisans. Avrom sutzkever, 192010, abraham sutzkever was the definitive yiddish poet of the postwar period. Yiddish poet avrum abraham sutzkever learn yiddish. Poetry saved my life you could take sutzkever s life from beginning to end and it would be the most astonishing guide. This beautiful largeformat book includes a poem by abraham sutzkever, translated from the yiddish. There he was involved in a massive effort to preserve jewish books and documents, as well as in the underground resistance. Lithuania, where sutzkever published his first books of poetry. It is one of the largest and most accessible recordings of yiddish. Fein selects and translates some of sutzkever s best poems covering the full breadth of his career. Yiddish cinematheque a wagon of shoes read by avrom. Previously aired on the yiddish voice in september 2019 readings of sutzkevers poems in english translation and yiddish original by fein and beinfeld recorded at their reading at harvard hillel in september 2019 interview with beinfeld about feins.
Sutzkever s imposing body of work links images from israels present and past with the extinction of the jews of europe and with deeply personal reflection on human existence. It is shot through with a reverence for his father and an emerging awareness of the siberian life around him. Five poems from poems from my diary by abraham sutzkever. The most important writer of old yiddish literature was elijah levita known as elye bokher who translated and adapted the chivalric romance of bevis of hampton, via its italian version, buovo dantona. Sutzkever s career once he arrived in israel was a long one. O n the 6 th of june, 1959, i arranged a rendezvous for the yiddish poet avrom sutzkever, who was then on his maiden visit to north america. Yiddish book centers francis brandt online yiddish audio library, contains recordings of lectures by and interviews with writers and poets who visited the jewish public library of montreal between 1953 and 2005. His poetry has been translated into many languages, but this is the most comprehensive presentation of his work in english. There, despite prejudice against the yiddish language, he continued to write poetry prolifically and founded the yiddish literary journal the golden chain. Sutzkever was born in 19 in the town of smorgon, near vilna, during the czarist empire. Richard fein and sholem beinfeld read from and discuss the book the full pomegranate. How poetry literally saved the life of a famed yiddish.
Among other publications she has produced a book of literary texts for students of yiddish, mit groys fargenignwith great pleasure, 2003, an english edition of of esther kreitmans novel diamonds 2010, and her bilingual edition of the poetry of avrom sutzkever has just appeared. Written by abraham sutzkever translated from the yiddish by maia evrona. A unique blend of nature poetry and childhood memories, set in one of the most unlikely geographical settings for yiddish poetry, siberia opens the book with sutzkevers own process of revision. Aug 06, 20 abraham sutzkever recalls some of his experiences in the vilna ghetto and as a jewish partisan and discusses the origin of some of his poems. Abraham sutzkever died on january 20, 2010, in tel aviv at the age of 96. Poems of avrom sutzkever suny press, 2019, which presents sutzkever s poems with feins english translations. Known today primarily for being one of the greatest poets of the 20th century and.
Poems of avrom sutzkever, translated from the yiddish by richard j. Sutzkever s second book of poetry, valdiks from the forest, was published in 1940. He published his first poem in bin, the jewish scouts magazine. Narrator yiddish michael benavraham, the israeli string quartet for contemporary music violin, viola, cello. Reading avrom sutzkevers poem yiddish yiddish book center. In what sounds like a hollywood script, the regime sent two planes to take sutzkever from the woods near vilna. This lecture, recorded on may 24, 1959, was given during a public program at the jewish public library of montreal. Sutzkever began writing poetry in vilna in the 1930s, wrote the preeminent yiddish scholar ruth wisse. He moved to vilna about 1920 and began publishing yiddish poetry associated with the young vilna group in the 1930s. Poems of avrom sutzkever suny press, 2019, which presents sutzkevers poems with feins english translations. Selected poetry and prose, translated from the yiddish by sutzkever, a. Abraham sutzkever, the poetry of abraham sutzkever vilno poet. Poems of avrom sutzkever suny series in contemporary jewish literature and. Abraham sutzkever author of selected poetry and prose.
See article on the yiddish language for a full description of these texts. Jul 31, 2017 mira mirele sutzkever, daughter of yiddish poet avrom sutzkever, reads a poem of her fathers titled yiddish. Following the death of his father, sutzkever s mother, rayne, resettled the family in vilna in 1921. And he continued to turn out yiddish poetry, most notably lider fun togbukh poems from a diary 19741981, which many regard as his masterpiece. After the holocaust he became a major figure in yiddish letters in israel and throughout the world. The yiddish word for sun, itself a major character in the poem, is identical to the yiddish word for sona pun sutzkever employs like. Originally published in 1966, an anthology of modern yiddish poetry was the first bilingual anthology to feature the rich, spirited, and passionate yiddish poetry of the twentieth century. Shall i start from the beginningshall i a brotherlike abraham. Minsk, belarus when yiddish poet avraham sutzkever said that poetry saved his life, he meant it more literally than many of his listeners realized.
Born in smargon, near vilna, in 19, sutzkever entered the world of yiddish literature in the 1930s, with his first book, simply titled lider poems. The elegist february 1, 2010, a reflection on sutzkever s life by prof. A poem written by avrom abraham sutzkever in vilna ghetto, read by the author. Yiddish was not a language afforded great respect in israel during the states early decades. Aficionados of yiddish language and culture will be drawn into uri barbashs affectionate biopic of one of the greatest yiddish poets of the 20th century, avraham sutzkever, who died in. However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study. He was a yiddish language poet whose works chronicle his childhood in siberia, his life in the vilna vilnius ghetto during world war ii, and his escape to join the jewish partisans. Abraham sutzkever july 15, 19 january 20, 2010 was an acclaimed yiddish poet. Abraham sutzkever passed away in 2010 in tel aviv, at the age of 96. Cultural encounters, were featuring a podcast with faith jones about her work translating the experimental yiddish poet celia dropkin, a dadaist sound poem about coney island from the late 1930s, and an article about detroits soulful yiddish poet, ezra korman. Abraham sutzkever is the greatest living poet in yiddish, and one of the great poets of the twentieth century. His biography embodied the transformations of jewish life in the twentieth century, both its catastrophes and its triumphs. Recorded may 24th, 1959 during a public program at the.
This was clearly a phrase that stuck with the poet for the rest of his writing career. Chagall, marc drawings and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Nearly thirty years after the original publication, the interest in yiddish studies continues to. Abraham sutzkever recalls some of his experiences in the vilna ghetto and as a jewish partisan and discusses the origin of some of his poems.
And in 2005, a selection of his poems appeared in hebrew translation. Abraham sutzkever abraham sutzkever biography poem hunter. Following world war ii, sutzkever testified at the nuremberg trials and immigrated to palestine illegally, just before the founding of the state of israel. Abraham sutzkever, one of the greatest jewish poets to have lived, passed away wednesday morning in tel aviv. Abraham sutzkever 19 2010 turned out to be the most significant yiddish poet of the twentieth century for a variety of reasons. Oct 20, 2018 a copy of his book of poems, kol nidre, found its way into the hands of the soviet unions leaders, who were so touched by the first poetic testimony of the mass murder of the nazis that he wanted to meet the young jewish poet. Abraham sutzkever 192010 recalls some of his experiences in the vilna ghetto, in the narach forest and as a jewish partisan during the second world war, both of which influenced his poems. Avrom sutzkevers the lead plates of the rom printers the. Five centuries of yiddish poetry, written by women mikhail krutikov may 30, 2019 joanna liseks book on the dramatic history of yiddish women poets absolutely needs to be translated into english.
There is the delicacy of his prewar love poems and the uniqueness of his pastoral suite siberia. Jul 25, 2017 the great yiddish poet abraham sutzkever was born on july 15th, 19 in smorgon, a city in what is now belarus. On april 24, 1952, a frustrated abraham sutzkever complained to his former mentor max weinreich that yiddish poets often missed the radiant core finklendiker iker of his poems. Born in a russian shtetl in 19, the great yiddish poet avraham sutzkever was among the thousands of jews confined to the vilna ghetto by the nazis in 1941. Oct 11, 2010 abraham sutzkever was born in smargon, white russia, on july 15, 19, and died on january 20, 2010, in tel aviv. Nearly thirty years after the original publication, the interest in yiddish studies continues to grow, making this definitive collection all the more. The liner notes provide a biography of sutzkever and information about vilno. Rina and another daughter, mira, survive him, along with two grandchildren. Fein selects and translates some of sutzkevers best poems covering the full breadth of his career. In sutzkevers poetry the yiddish language attains a refinement, richness of sound, and complexity of meaning unknown before. Avrom sutzkever, yiddish language poet whose works chronicle his childhood in siberia, his life in the vilna vilnius ghetto during world war ii, and his escape to join jewish partisans.
Read in yiddish, produced by ruth wise on folkways records. I am now putting the finishing touches on a book called when yiddish was young, one of whose chapters will explore sutzkever s earliest years as a poet prior to world war i. Avrom sutzkever, sutskever leyent lider, audio collection of the jewish public library in montreal. To achieve this, sutzkever stretches the language as far as it will go, verbing nouns as needed and making every word work overtime. The director, the famous teacher mira of the eponymous poem sutzkever would later write, reserved an afternoon in the school for the young poet avrom sutzkever to come read us poems from his recently published book, valdiks from the forest. I am now putting the finishing touches on a book called when yiddish was young, one of whose chapters will explore sutzkevers earliest years as a poet prior to world war i. Sutzkever was almost 97 at the time of his death, one of the greatest poets of the twentieth century, yet nearly unknown amongst the residents of the country that he chose as his second home and in which he lived for most of his life. By the fall of 1943, when the story of this poem is supposed to take place, the remaining jews in vilna had been imprisoned in the ghetto for two years already, where they.
Almost all of his poetry was written in his native yiddish, the primary secular language of the jews of eastern europe. Biography abraham avrom sutzkever was born on july 15, 19 in smorgon, russian empire, now smarhon, belarus. Three poems by sutzkever from the penguin book of yiddish verse, republished on tablet includes link to pdf of yiddish originals sutzkever s facebook page, an open group for anyone wishing to find out more about his poetry. Sylvan, a fairly uncommon english word meaning of the woods, is an exact yiddish equivalent of valdiks, which is the title of both sutzkever s poem and the 1940 poetry collection in which.
Mira mirele sutzkever, daughter of yiddish poet avrom sutzkever, was interviewed by christa whitney on june, 2014 in tel aviv, israel. True, it was not called then the yiddish real gymnasium, but rather the fortieth state gymnasium. Digitized by the yiddish book center as part of its frances brandt online yiddish audio library. Smith college professor justin cammy remembers abraham. Yiddish literature yiddish literature writers in israel. Initially ridiculed for his rejection of politics in poetry and his embrace of lyricism, today. A film about yiddish poet avraham sutzkever sheldon. Poem, avrom sutzkever s the lead plates of the rom printers, circa 1944, in yiddish and in english translation, and audio recording of sutzkever reading the poem. Miron makes an impassioned plea for sutzkever to be understood as an israeli poet, pointing out that the greatest poem on israels war for independence is a yiddish work by sutzkever, gaystike erd.
His life story reflects an important element in the annals of the jewish people during the 20th century. To learn more about the yiddish book centers wexler oral history project, visit. Poems of avrom sutzkever suny press, 2019, which features sutzkever s poems in their original yiddish along with feins english translations. In 1985, he was awarded the countrys most prestigious award, the israel prize.
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