Postwar songbook sheds new light on Holocaust memory

Dr. Joseph Toltz, a researcher at the University of Sydney, discusses the recovery and significance of ‘Out of the Depths’, a rare 1945 Yiddish songbook. Compiled in liberated Bucharest, the collection documents the immediate musical testimonies of Holocaust survivors.

‘Out of the Depths’ - A postwar Yiddish songbook

‘Out of the Depths’ is a rare postwar Yiddish songbook that sheds new light on how Holocaust survivors used music to document trauma, memory and resilience.

In a conversation with SBS Hebrew, Dr. Joseph Toltz, a researcher at the University of Sydney, said the fragile 1945 booklet was discovered in the home of a Holocaust survivor and later identified as the first collection of songs compiled after the war.

Score from ‘Out of the Depths’, a rare postwar Yiddish songbook

The anthology features twenty songs categorized by themes of despair, hope, and victory, originating from ghettos and lesser-known work camps like Janowska, near Lviv in Ukraine. Dr. Toltz’s research emphasizes the role of women and children in these creative acts of "bearing witness."

His research also uncovered the people behind the songs, including women and children, and traced their postwar journeys across Israel, Europe, and beyond.

This the cover of one of the songs by Israeli musician Chava Albertsein.