»Dos gezang fun vilner geto – Lieder aus dem Wilnaer Ghetto«

July 2, 2026 / 7.30 pm / Hall

What happened in the Vilnius ghetto under the German occupation, which had set itself the goal of murdering the entire Jewish population and wiping out their culture?

Songs tell this story: in 1947, a large-format, 55-page booklet was published in Paris under the title "Dos gezang fun vilner geto", edited by the poet and partisan Shmerke Kaczerginski. It contained a collection of 37 songs written in the Vilna ghetto during the German occupation and the Shoah, describing the experiences of the population. The booklet was written in Yiddish, i.e. in Hebrew script. Only 100 numbered copies were printed. Some of these songs are world-famous today, others are almost forgotten - the collection itself was only known to a few specialists for almost seventy years.

Now Dieter Koller (Tübingen) and Sebastian Wogenstein (Hartford, USA) have republished them, transcribed the Hebrew letters of the Yiddish and translated the songs into singable German; the new edition was published in 2025 by Hentrich & Hentrich. The editors will recite songs from the collection in both languages, tell stories about the creation of the songs and show photos.

Admission: 10,- / 7,- EUR ǀ Event organized by Literaturhaus Leipzig e.V., supported by the Cultural Office of the City of Leipzig. With the support of the University of Connecticut Center for Judaic Studies and Contemporary Jewish Life

Reduced tickets are available for disabled persons and their companions (only with entry in the disabled pass), unemployed persons, schoolchildren and students (up to 35) as well as holders of the Leipzig Pass or an honorary pass, in each case only on presentation of the pass).