Zolotnitsky D. Jewish Folk Songs Arranged for Piano in 2 and 4 Hands

The main personage of this collection is the Jewish folklore having attracted its researcher Dmitri Zolotnitsky for a long time. It began in far 1960ies, when Zolotnitsky, the student of the music college of the Tran Carpathian city Uzhgorod was carried away once and forever by the most captivating and unique traditional melodies. His practice as the concertmaster at the vocal and dancing ensembles, the repertoire of which consisted of the folk (Tran Carpathian, Hungarian, Czech, Romanian) music evoked the spirit of traditional music-making in the young musician. The researcher understood that benevolent influence of the folklore studying. The essay dedicated to the Russian folklore was included to his educational text-book “Music History” published by the “Compozitor Publishing House • Saint-Petersburg” in 2001. The Russian folk musical turns were elaborated in the piece “Music Picture”, the eighth miniature of his album “When I Grow Up”.

Zolotnitsky’s scientific activity in the sphere of the Jewish folklore continues already for fifteen years. Being an experienced teacher and concertmaster Zolotnitsky composes brilliant folk arrangements himself. He is making for the Jewish folklore to be interesting for all kinds of musicians and listeners. 

All the pieces entering this collection are composed on the base of the Jewish folk songs, taken from the “Anthology of the Jewish Folk Songs” published by the “Compozitor • Saint-Petersburg Publishing House” in 1994. These songs were written down on the vast territory of the Western Europe. Of course, they were fed by the neighbouring cultures (the Ukrainian, Moldavian, Romanian etc.). Generally most of them are represented unchanged. Zolotnitsky resorts to variation and variant principles of the material evolution, peculiar for folklore. Polyphonic methods are also the significant stimuli for such a facture. Original modal turns, strokes and ornamentation reveal the national nature in the melodies supposedly belonging to the bordering peoples. 

The songs are partially given translations from the Yiddish, close to the underline ones (realized mainly by A. L. Kaplan), the majority are accounted in poetical form, adjusted for to be sung simultaneously with the melody (created by Ye. Ya. Hazdan on the base of A. L. Kaplan’s word for word translations).

The author’s zealous inquisitive passion for the Jewish music shall undoubtedly penetrate under the skin of both performers and listeners, filling their hearts with supreme luck.

CONTENTS:

A lidele in idis (Song About Peace). Little Song in the Jewish Spirit. Verses by I. Kotlyar (Music text example) 
Lomir ale inejnem (Let Us Altogether). Festive  
Du mejdele, du fajns (Pretty Little Maiden). Love riddle    
Varničkes (Dumplings). Love song  
Di verbe (Willow). Love song. Verses by H. N. Byalik  
Lomir zix iberbetn (Let Us Make It Up). Love song  
Di mame hot mix gešikt (Mother Sent Me). Love song  
Mazl-tov! Wedding song  
Mexutonim gej’n (In-laws Are Coming). Wedding song  
Di mexutonim gejen šojn (Family Is Coming). Wedding song  
In rod arajn (Join the Circle). Wedding song  
Der rebe hot gehejsn frejlex zajn (Rebe Told Us to Be Merry). Festive song  
“štejt in feld a bejmele (A Tree Grows in the Field). Lullaby. Verses by I. L. Peters  
S’lojfn, s’jogn švarce volkns (Black Are the Clouds in the Sky). Lullaby. Verses by A. D. Nomberg  
S’dremlen fejglex (Birds Are Asleep). Strange women lullaby. Verses by R. Rudnitskaya  
“šlof, majn toxter (Sleep, My Daughter). Lullaby  
Fejgele, luli (Little Bird Twitters). Lullaby 
Bulbe (Potato). Family song  
Ix her a gešrej (I Can Hear Someone Shouting). Family song  
A nigndl (Tune). Family song. Verses by N. Shterngeim  
Far vemen zol ix šrajen (How Can I Help Not Crying). Family song  
Xapt im, nemt im… (A genejve) (Stop Thief!) (Theft). Tragicomical song  
A frejlexer šnajder (Merry Little Tailor). Labour song  
Ot azoj nejt a šnajder (This Is how the Dressmaker Sews). Labour song  
Idn šmidn, zingen (Jews Work A-Singing). Labour song. Verses by M. Broderson (Music text example)  
Tunes Without Words
Ensembles 
Du mejdele, du fajns (Pretty Little Maiden). Love riddle  
Lomir zix iberbetn (Let Us Make It Up). Love song  
Di mame hot mix gešikt (Mother Sent Me). Love song  
Mazl-tov! Wedding song  
Der rebe hot gehejsn frejlex zajn (Rebe Told Us to Be Merry). Festive song (Music text example) 
Bulbe (Potato). Family song  
Ix her a gešrej (I Can Hear Someone Shouting). Family song  
Xapt im, nemt im… (A genejve) (Stop Thief!) (Theft). Tragicomical song