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AMERICAN RABBI IN RUSSIA
The Jan Peerce Story
Hartwell Garment Company
AND
Perhaps the most comforting and
cheering experiences were associat
ed with the concerts of Jan Peerce
(a member of my congregation in
New Rochelle and dear personal
friend , who was invited by the
Ministry of Culture to give recitals
in the larger Russian cities. Even
before I left New York I had read
of the great triumphs he scored
wherever he performed. En route,
in Amsterdam and in Copenhagen,
we heard other glowing reports
of his sensational success. As a
Jew and as an admirer, I was very
proud. He was the first American
artist to be invited and being a
Jew, his visit had special signifi
cance to me, and, as I later learned
to the Jews in Russia.
Before departing I was asked
to take the Peerces’ sixteen-year-
old daughter Susan with me to
Russia where she was to join her
parents. She was with us on the
plane to Amsterdam and accompan
ied us through Denmark, depart
ing for Moscow one day before we
did. Soon after our arrival in Rus
sia I called the Peerces and asked
them to reserve seats for our party
for his July 3rd concert, his last
performance in Russia.
As we were leaving the syna
gogue that afternoon, following a
conference with Rabbi Schliefer,
two women on the street breath
lessly ran to us and asked whether
we were the American rabbis they
had heard about. When we said
we were they tightly clasped our
hands and trembled with joy.
They spoke of the bankruptcy of
Jewish life, the lack of a Jewish
newspaper, of social and cultural
contacts among Jews, and their
tragically empty Jewish existence.
One of them remarked with glee
ful excitement, with the hearty
concurrence of her companion,
that she enjoyed her greatest thrill
in many years only a few nights
ago. She happened to turn on her
radio and to her great ecstasy, a
Hebrew song! Yes, a Hebrew song
by Jan Peerce. This was the first
such thrill in many years. I then
knew that Jan Peerce’s presence
was more than a visit from a world
famous opera star. It had great
significance and meaning to the
Jewish people.
Although the huge hall was com
pletely sold out soon after the
tickets went on sale, we were de
lighted to find that he had pro
cured seats for our entire party.
Among the celebrities present were
Ambassador and Mrs. Bohlen,
high Soviet officials, foreign dig
nitaries, news correspondents, and
a representative cross-section of
by D. L. GOLOVENSKY
from CONGRESS WEEKLY
Moscow’s intellectual and cultural
elite. The audience filled every seat
in the huge hall with many stand
ees in the aisles. The Jews among
them were not of the bearded syn
agogue variety but consisted al
most exclusively of young intellec
tuals, university graduates, pro
fessionally trained and esthetically
cultivated people who were expect
ed to have been completely divorced
from Jewish life.
Mr. Peerce’s program included
Italian and French arias, a Russian
song, and other classical and folk
selections. His offerings also in
cluded a Hebrew song, "Hayar-
den,” and two Yiddish numbers, ‘a
Dudele,” a popular lullaby, and “A
Chazandle auf Shabbos”, a hum
orous folk song. All his songs
were greeted with prolonged and
spirited applause. When his He
brew song was announced I sensed
a tension among a substantial seg
ment of the audience. It was warm
ly applauded, but with some res
traint. However, the first Yiddish
song was so thunderously applaud
ed that it was quite obvious to me
that something unusual was hap
pening. The Jews present, though
reared in atheism and contempt for
religion, suddenly gave expression
to their Jewish feelings which,
though suppressed, still lay dor
mant in their hearts. Their ap
plause was so resounding and per
sistent that Mr. Peerce, though
fatigued by the long program and
six encores, returned to the stage
and bowed in grateful acknowledg
ment of their plaudits.
When the audience saw that he
was about to leave, the volume of
applause mounted and they began
a rhythmic applause which be
came so overwhelming that he an
nounced his third Yiddish number,
“A Din Torah Mit Gott,” a deeply
stirring and plaintive song in which
a saintly Jew appeals to God for
mercy for the oppressed Jewish
people. This song obviously grip
ped them and provided a catharsis
for their spiritual woes. When
Peerce’s magnificent voice cried out,
“Vos villst du fun mein folk Yis-
roel,” “O God, what do you want
from my people Israel? Why don’t
you come to their rescue?”, many
in the audience could not res
train their tears and some wept
openly.
The applause following this song
figuratively shook the rafters and
filled the huge vaulted concert
hall. This was a demonstration
which moved all of us to tears but
also provided a ray of comfort and
hope. We had the feeling that in
spite of all that had happened
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