|
Help to expand the English language repertoire of great Yiddish poetry: enter the CIYCL 2008-2009 International Yiddish-to-English-Poetry Translation Contest and join the ranks of previous prize-winning translators Jon Levitow of California; Kathryn Hellerstein of Philadelphia; Joan Braman of New York; Hinda Burstein of Sydney, Australia; and Andrew Firestone of Melbourne, Australia. The submissions deadline has been extended to September 15, 2008 (see below for detailed information).
LEARN YIDDISH ON-LINE
Aspiring Yiddish speakers will be happy to learn that on-line classes are forming at all levels of Yiddish with live instruction by some of the best Yiddish teachers in the world. For more information, visit www.eYiddish.org.
UPCOMING YIDDISH EVENTS ON THE WEST COAST
AUGUST 2008
Arbetering/Workmen's Circle presents
פֿאַר יוגנט
Far Yugnt/For Youth: the Yiddish Songbook of S. Polonski
Sunday, August 10, 2008 o 2 PM
1525 S. Robertson Blvd. o Los Angeles
Admission: Free
CIYCL is honored to be a participant in an important annual commemoration, one of a number that take place around the world in memory of a tragic and significant event, the murder of Soviet Yiddish writers by the Stalinist regime on August 12, 1952. The 14 murdered writers and Jewish community leaders included such prominent figures as David Bergelson, David Hofshteyn and Itsik Feffer. The executions were part of a longstanding attempt to destroy Jewish culture in the Soviet Union.
This year's program recognizes song composer S. Polonski through a performance of the entirety of his charming songbook written for Yiddish-speaking schoolchildren, published in the Soviet Union in 1931. The performance is by the Workmen's Circle own Mit Gezang Yiddish Chorus and will be in Yiddish and English.
SEPTEMBER 2008
Yiddishkayt L A presents
iViva Yiddish! Festival and Concert
September 20, 2008 All Day
California Plaza o 350 S. Grand Ave. o Downtown Los Angeles
For more information visit www.yiddishkaytla.org
OCTOBER 2008
International Association of Yiddish Clubs presents
12th Annual Conference: "Czernowitz: 100 Years Later "
October 24-27, 2008
Marriott Hotel o La Jolla, CA
CIYCL Director, Miriam Koral, will be chairing a panel on teaching Yiddish and presenting a workshop in Yiddish and English, "The Passionate Ones: Yiddish Women Poets".
CIYCL Board Member and President of the LA Yiddish Culture Club, Lilke Majzner, will be the recipient of the Lifetime Yiddish Service Award.
Featured in concert will be Yale Strom and Elizabeth Schwartz of Hot Pstromi Klezmer Group; Second Avenue Klezmer Ensemble; and Adrienne Cooper, among others.
For more information on the conference:
Philip "Fishl" Kutner o Phone: 650-349-6946. E-mail: FISHL@derbay.org
|
CIYCL is pleased to present the winner of our Third Annual Yiddish-Into-English Poetry Translation Contest, Dr. Joan Braman of New York for her sensitive and faithful translation of Avrom Reisen's celebrated poem about the plight of the poor yeshiva bokher (the Yeshiva student) ,
"May-Ko Mashme-Lon" ("What Does This Mean?") מאי קאָ משמע לן
Avrom Reisen (b. Minsk, 1876; d. NY 1953) was one of the most prolific of Yiddish poets and writers. In addition to publishing poetry, short stories, and memoirs, he wrote for many newspapers and edited a number of periodicals both in Warsaw and in NYC. He was known for expressing his compassion for the ordinary, oft-suffering Jew. (See link below)
This new translation helps to bring the creativity and richness of Yiddish culture to a wider audience. The Contest is also achieving its aim of encouraging and stimulating Yiddish aficionados to bring the translator's art to their favorite poems, as had many stellar submissions from all over the globe.
The contest and award are sponsored by H. Lee Chesnin (in blessed memory of Fima Chesnin) and CIYCL Board Members Chic Wolk and Stephen Lesser. The First Place Winner will also be featured in our upcoming newsletter for CIYCL members. Please see our announcement below for the Fourth Annual Yiddish-Into-English Poetry Translation contest.
Click here to see the First-Place Winning Poem
Call for entries:
THE 2008 YIDDISH-INTO-ENGLISH POETRY TRANSLATION CONTEST!
2008 פּאָעזיע איבערזעצונג קאָנקורס ענגליש -צו- ייִדיש
Contest Rules: Your single entry of up to two pages must include the original Yiddish poem (in Yiddish lettering) and your own, never before published English translation. Entries over the required length or that have been published or are accepted for publication elsewhere will be disqualified.
Submissions must be received by September 15, 2008 via post (CIYCL, 333 Washington Blvd., #118, Marina del Rey, CA 90292; or email (miriam@yiddishinstitute.org). First place winners will be announced in Fall '08 and will receive $180, plus publication on our website and newsletter.
Links to Some Other Yiddish-English Poetry Worthy of Discovery
For more excellent new translations of Yiddish poetry on the web, please check out the following:
Download Mission Statement Flyer in PDF Format
|
We are The California Institute for Yiddish Culture & Language (CIYCL). Since 1999 we have been challenging the fog of lost memory and ignorance about Yiddish culture. We work against the tide that separates most Jews alive today from their own remarkable heritage and that has put Yiddish at risk of expiring. We cherish and illuminate a vast legacy - a heritage which cannot be replicated. We are a spark of historical memory for the local and broader Jewish community, one that reaches beyond the normative Holocaust or Israel-related endeavors to keep alive the heart-and-soul culture that fed our people during a 1000-year long and vital period of our history. Our motto is "preservation through innovation."
CIYCL is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
|
- The Ruth/Allen Ziegler Foundation
- Simha Lainer
- Nurit & Rick Amdur
- The Yablon Cultural Foundation
- The Leibovitz Foundation
- The California Council on the Humanities
- Luis & Lee Lainer
- Mark Lainer
- Daniel Ajzen
- Lilke Majzner
- Sabell Bender
- August Maymudes
- Dr. Martin Bobrowsky
- Arva Rose
- Terri Hanauer
- Henry Slucki, Ph.D.
- Miriam Koral
- Joyce Tamara
- Stephen O. Lesser
- Chic Wolk
- Aaron Apelfeld
- Mendy Cahan
- Ed Asner
- Dovid Katz , Ph.D.
- Theodore Bikel
- Yitzhok Niborski, Ph.D.
- Mike Burstyn
- Avrum Sutzkever
