Re: Birobidzhan

[Ashkenazim <ashkenaz...>]

How strange...full scale revival? flourishing?  There are less then 10000
Jews now in Birobidzhan, and a great number of them leave the city each
year. What for would Jews go to one of the poorest and hardest areas of
Russia, particulary from Israel.
They did have an All-Russian Festival of Jewish culture in Birobidzhan last
several years, but I am not sure they are able to organise more. There are
no professional Jewish musicians in Birobidzhan now. Jewish leaders from
Bir-n used to invite klezmer ensemble Simkha from Tatarstan, Kazan every
year, and that was sometimes the only opportunity for the community to
listen to something Klezmer-like.
As an artistic leader of the All-Russian Jewish performers competition I
need somebody from that area to participate. Every day I get letters from
Jewish performers from Petrozavodsk, Novosibirsk, Tumen. I've never heard
from Birobidzhan.
I wonder what for people talk about the revival of Yiddish and Jewish
culture in general if the situation it totally different! For getting
foundation? then I am one of them. I am sure no funding could change the
situation of Russian Jews, sad to say.
Dear Jonathan, I could try to find people from Birobidzhan for you to ask
direct
questions to. I know, you speak Russian, so?
About the JCC of Birobidzhan (in Russian only)
http://www.shalom.omsk.su/city/birjan/001.shtml

anyway, thank you for care
paulina

----- Original Message -----
From: "R.A.S." <richards (at) rainlore(dot)demon(dot)co(dot)uk>
To: "World music from a Jewish slant" <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org>
Sent: Saturday, October 19, 2002 8:14 AM
Subject: Re: Birobidzhan


>
>
> *********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********
>
> On 17/10/2002 at 12:43 Jonathan Walton wrote:
>
> >Dear list members,
> >
> >I was wondering if anyone could shed any light on the (non)existence ofa
> >Jewish music tradition in the ex-Soviet Jewish Autonomous Republic of
> >Birobidzhan. I know that the Jewish population there was only active for
>
> The BBC World Service (radio) (http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice) recently
> (within the last six weeks or so) broadcast a report from there. It would
> appear that the Jewish community there is once again thriving and indeed
> being enlarged quite considerably by immigration from other parts of the
> Russian Federation as well as returnees from Israel, and a full scale
> revival of Yiddish culture and language seems to be flourishing. It might
> be worthwhile contacting worldservice (at) bbc(dot)co(dot)uk for a 
> transcript, if this
> should be of interest.
>
> >What Im interested in is the possibility of archive recordings in the
> state
> >radio archives... does anyone know of someone who might be working in
this
>
> >area? I met a lady from Siberia who is involved in digitising and raising
> >money for the preservation of state archives across the ex-USSR, many of
> >which are turning into piles of magnetic dust as we speak. I'm
considering
>
> >getting involved in this, and before I do I'd be interested to find out
if
>
> >anyone knows what research (if any) has been done.
>
> Judging from the above BBC report, I would assume that local efforts must
> be under way. (Then again.... never assume...)
>
> Richard
>
>
>
>




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