Klezmer Juice - Oyfn Pripetshik

Oyfn Pripetshik (On The Hearth) is a traditional Jewish song written in Yiddish in the 19th century by Ukrainian-Jewish folk poet and composer Mark Warshavsky and recorded and released in 2003 by the Argentine-American Los Angeles-based klezmer band Klezmer Juice. Oyfn Pripetshik by Klezmer Juice is the eleventh track on the 2013 Putumayo World Music album, A Jewish Celebration. Klezmer Juice is led by clarinettist Gustavo Bulgach, who grew up as part of the Argentinian Jewish community of Buenos Aires. Oyfn Pripetshik, a song about understanding and respect, which became one of the most popular songs of the Jews of pre-Holocaust Central and Eastern Europe, dates back to the 1800s and tells of a rabbi reciting the Hebrew alphabet to his young students along with powerful life lessons about the history of the Jewish people. The song is also symbolic of the Jewish tradition of studying Torah and the Five Books of Moses and the passing down of heritage from one generation to another. The album is available here: It’s also available on iTunes: and on : Lyrics (not included in this instrumental version)—in Yiddish: Oyfn pripetchik brent a fayerl, Un in shtub iz heys, Un der rebe lernt kleyne kinderlekh, Dem alef-beys. Zet zhe kinderlekh, gedenkt zhe, tayere, Vos ir lernt do; Zogt zhe nokh a mol un take nokh a mol: Komets-alef: o! Lernt, kinder, mit groys kheyshek, Azoy zog ikh aykh on; Ver s’vet gikher fun aykh kenen ivre - Der bakumt a fon. Lernt, kinder, hot nit moyre, Yeder onheyb iz shver; Gliklekh der vos hot gelernt toyre, Tsi darf der mentsh nokh mer? Ir vet, kinder, elter vern, Vet ir aleyn farshteyn, Vifl in di oysyes lign trern, Un vi fil geveyn. Az ir vet, kinder, dem goles shlepn, Oysgemutshet zayn, Zolt ir fun di oysyes koyekh shepn, Kukt in zey arayn! Lyrics—translated into English: On the hearth, a fire burns, And in the house it is warm. And the rabbi is teaching little children, The alphabet. See, children, remember, dear ones, What you learn here; Repeat and repeat yet again, “Komets-alef: o!“ Learn, children, with great enthusiasm. So I instruct you; He among you who learns Hebrew pronunciation faster - He will receive a flag. Learn children, don’t be afraid, Every beginning is hard; Lucky is the one has learned Torah, What more does a person need? When you grow older, children, You will understand by yourselves, How many tears lie in these letters, And how much lament. When you, children, will bear the Exile, And will be exhausted, May you derive strength from these letters, Look in at them!