Introduction
In this lesson, students will review two Hebrew songs that each were significant in the Refusenik era. Students will learn the background of these songs, read the lyrics, and then analyze the meaning of each song by comparing and contrasting.
Procedure
- Explain to students that 2 well-known Hebrew songs play a significant role in the fight for Soviet Jewry. Play students a short clip from each song (in the links below) and ask who recognizes either song and what they already know about it.
- Review both songs below, by reading the lyrics in English and/or Hebrew, reviewing the song’s background and meaning, and listening to the songs’ melodies.
- Lead an active discussion with students, comparing and contrasting the two songs. This can be done through a comparison chart or Venn diagram on the board, or through group discussion.
Points to consider:
- Is it clear from the lyrics alone the period each song was written? In what way does the time in which each song was written influence its words and meaning?
- Which song seems more hopeful? Why?
- Which song has a more universal message?
- Did reading the history and background of each song affect how you feel about the song? In what ways?
Blue and White
SONG #1 :
כחול ולבן – Kachol Ve-Lavan
THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG
“Kachol Ve-Lavan” (translation: Blue and White), is a Hebrew patriot song that became an anthem of Soviet Jewry and was also popular in Israel.
The song and its melody were written in the late 1960s by Israel Rashel, a Jewish resident of Minsk, who was then 21. Rashel wrote these words as a poem that expressed his connection to Israel. He fought for his right to immigrate to Israel until he achieved it in March 1971.
THE SONG’S MEANING
The song expresses feelings and meanings associated with the colors blue and white, the national colors of the State of Israel.
LINK TO SONG’S MELODY
LYRICS IN ENGLISH AND HEBREW
| ENGLISH | Transliteration | HEBREW |
| Blue and white | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| are my colors, | Ze tzeva sheli | זה צבע שלי |
| blue and white | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| the colors of my land, | Tziv-ay admati | צבעי אדמתי |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| are my colors. | Ze tzeva sheli | זה צבע שלי |
| For all my days, forever, | Kol yamay, le-o’lam | כל ימי לעולם |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| like a song, like a dream, | Kmo shir, kmo chalom | כמו שיר, כמו חלום |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| a hope for peace. | Tikva le-shalom | תקוה לשלום |
| Blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| are my colors, | Ze tzeva sheli | זה צבע שלי |
| for all my days, forever, | Kol yamay, le-olam | כל ימי לעולם |
| blue and white. | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| Hermon and Kinneret, | Hermon ve kineret | חרמון וכנרת |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| my heart is singing, | Libi mezamer et | ליבי מזמר את |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| are my colors, | Ze tzeva sheli | זה צבע שלי |
| for all my days, forever, | Kol yamay, le-olam | כל ימי לעולם |
| blue and white. | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| Sky and snow, | Shamayim ve sheleg | שמים ושלג |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| It’s a wonder and a wonder, | Ze pelle ve pelle | זה פלא ופלא |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| are my colors, | Ze tzeva sheli | זה צבע שלי |
| for all my days, forever, | Kol yamay, le-olam | כל ימי לעולם |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| there are no other colors. | Ein tzeva acher | אין צבע אחר |
| Blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| I’m just repeating to say, | Ani rak chozer | אני רק חוזר |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| blue and white, | Kachul ve-lavan | כחול ולבן |
| are my colors, | Ze tzeva sheli | זה צבע שלי |
| for all my days, forever. | Kol yamay, le-olam | כל ימי לעולם |
Tzion, Tzion, Tzion
SONG #2 :
SONG TITLE IN HEBREW
צִיּוֹן, הֲלֹא תִשְׁאֲלִי לִשְׁלוֹם אֲסִירַיִךְ – Tzion, halo tishali lishlom asira’ich
THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG
This song is an excerpt from a poem for Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi, associated with the tragedies of Tisha B’Av — the long Jewish exile from Israel and the destruction of the Temples. The song evokes a yearning for the “prisoners,” or the exiles from Israel, to one day return to their homeland, Zion (Israel). With the return to Israel in modern items since the emergence of the State of Israel, the song’s meaning has evolved to refer to a variety of other “Jewish prisoners,” including the Refuseniks.
THE SONG’S MEANING
Rabbi Yehuda Halevi’s poem is a song of love and longing for his beloved soul, in the Land of Israel. As a devoted and faithful lover, he faces the ups and downs of a whirlwind of heavy feelings – betrayal, difficulty dealing with the loss of his lover’s youth, and the supposed loss of her special qualities. In contrast to the emotional jolt of the speaker, the collective presented in the poem exhibits a steady attitude towards Zion. They are prisoners of love for her. Apparently, the agitated speaker derives his stability from the collective’s stability. At the end of the poem, he becomes part of the collective, that awaits patiently. Source
LINKS
LYRICS IN ENGLISH AND HEBREW
| ENGLISH | Transliteration | HEBREW |
| Zion, why don’t you ask about the wellbeing of your prisoners? | Tziyon, ha-lo tishali li-shlom ashira-ich, | צִיּוֹן הֲלֹא תִשְׁאֲלִי לִשְׁלוֹם אֲסִירַיִךְ |
| The remaining members of your flock (community)? | Dorshei shlomech vehem yeter adaraich | דּוֹרְשֵׁי שְׁלוֹמֵךְ וְהֵם יֶתֶר עֲדָרָיִךְ |
| From the (West), and the East, and the North and Yemen | Ma-eim u-mizrach u-me-tzphone u-timan shalom | מִיָּם וּמִזְרָח וּמִצָּפוֹן וְתֵימָן שְׁלוֹם |
| From near and far, bring them (the prisoners) from every direction, | Rachok ve-karov she-ee mikol avara-ich | רָחוֹק וְקָרוֹב שְׂאִי מִכֹּל עֲבָרָיִךְ, |
|
The prisoner’s tears are like the dew on Mt. Hermon, Who wants to let them fall on the slopes your peaks? |
U-shalom ashir teava, noten dimotav ketal hermon ve-nichsaf lirdetam al harara-ich | וּשְׁלוֹם אֲסִיר תַּאֲוָה, נוֹתֵן דְּמָעָיו כְּטַל–חֶרְמוֹן וְנִכְסַף לְרִדְתָּם עַל הֲרָרָיִךְ! |
|
To cry of your pain I holler out like a jackal, But in times that I dream that your imprisonment might end, I become like a violin for your songs. |
Livkot anutech ani tanim, ve-et achlom shivat shevotech – ani kinor leshira-ich | לִבְכּוֹת עֱנוּתֵךְ אֲנִי תַנִּים, וְעֵת אֶחֱלֹם שִׁיבַת שְׁבוּתֵך – אֲנִי כִנּוֹר לְשִׁירָיִךְ. |
Nick Greene of Valley Beth Shalom Synagogue, told us about the students reaction to this lesson:”This lesson was perfect for our students. As 8th and 9th graders, music is an integral part of their lives. For them, culture is indeed the driving force for the world around them, and music can be considered their most important cultural aspect. We learned the song “Kachol Ve-Lavan” and sang it as a class. Some students are more advanced than others in Hebrew, but none are fluent speakers, so we spent time going over all of the words and dissecting the importance of each line. By the end, each student felt that they had a connection to the lyrics and in turn, the Refuseniks whom championed them. It takes a lot for thirteen and fourteen year olds to be vulnerable, and singing a song they aren’t familiar with is certainly a vulnerable situation. The fact that they sang with gusto and pride proves that they connected to the lesson and of course their Refusenik brothers and sisters.”
Watch a video of Nick’s students singing: https://youtu.be/UjRxZWHbuw8