Welcome

It’s a curious feature that, in Yiddish, when one person says “Good morning!” (Gut morgn / גוט־מאָרגן) the standard response is “Good year!” (Gut yor / גוט־יאָר). It’s the same when you greet someone at midday, or in the evening, or on the Sabbath. There are a number of thoughts as to why this might be.

As we begin the fall semester, it’s a pleasure for the Mayrent Institute to wish everyone a hearty Gut yor!

And it’s shaping up to be a wonderful year for Yiddish at UW–Madison with events planned—both on-line and in-person—that will highlight the diversity of Yiddish creativity. We look forward to welcoming record producers, podcasters, and culture-makers (kultur-tuers / קולטור־טוערס) to campus.

The work of cataloguing and digitizing the Mayrent Collection of Yiddish Recordings also continues to move ahead. Here are a few highlights:

  • Listen to Abraham Goldfaden’s classic Yiddish lullaby “Raisins and Almonds” (Rozhinkes mit mandlen) from 1923. (Hint: It starts at the 1:39 mark!)
  • Laugh to Max Badin’s 1949 comic Yiddish and English sketch “Fun the Hospital” (“Fun in a hospital”)
  • Dance to Joseph Moskowitz’s lively instrumental of cimbalon and piano

Mayrent Collection Materials on Display in New Exhibit

The Mills Music Library’s new exhibit Press Play: Recorded Sound from Groove to Stream explores the evolution of recorded sound across time and medium. Among the many different artifacts and recordings featured are several items from the Mayrent Collection. The Mayrent material on display includes:

  • Assortment of pink, maroon, and black Lambert Cylinders, Chicago, circa 1901-1905. 4-inch Cardboard-Base Cylinders.
  • Case 1.  Cylinder recording of Small, Solomon, “Tahne nit” is on exhibit playlist.
    Berland, Sigmunt. “Jidel Mit’n Fidl.” Saturne S-211, England, 1950. Picture disc.
  • Case 5.
    Berland, Sigmunt. “Chiri-bim – chiri-bom.” Saturne S203, England, 1950. Picture disc.

You can see these items and more on display through Dec. 22 in the UW-Madison Memorial Library’s ninth-floor Special Collections area. For more information on the exhibit, click here.