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YIDDISH SOUNDS OF CANADA

Ukrainian Jewish ethnomusicologist and Yiddish scholar Moisei Beregovsky collected hundreds of Jewish songs in the 1930s and 1940s with the intention of publishing an anthology. After the liberation of Ukraine in 1944, he continued to collect Yiddish musical folklore created by Jews in ghettos, concentration camps, partisan units, and in evacuation. However, during the post-war period of Soviet anti-Semitism, Beregovsky was arrested for "Jewish nationalism" and sent to the Gulag. His archive was thought to be lost. In the early 1990s, University of Toronto professor Anna Shternshis discovered the archive by chance while working at the Vernadsky Library in Kyiv. A group of musicians from different countries gathered in Canada to recreate these songs, using popular Soviet melodies from that era.

  • Olga Antimony
    Director
  • Olga Antimony
    Writer
  • Gregory Antimony
    Producer
  • Anna Shternshis
    Key Cast
    "Historian"
  • Daniel Rosenberg
    Key Cast
    "Producer"
  • Psoy Korolenko
    Key Cast
    "Musician"
  • Sergei Erdenko
    Key Cast
    "Musician"
  • Artur Gorbenko
    Key Cast
    "Musician"
  • Alexander Sevastian
    Key Cast
    "Musician"
  • Vladimir Strungar
    Key Cast
    "DOP"
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    ביידיש קולות של קנדה
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Music Video
  • Runtime:
    51 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    January 10, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    20,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada
  • Language:
    English, Russian, Yiddish
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Olga Antimony

Olga Antimony is a documentary film director of Ukrainian origin. She graduated from Moscow State University with a degree in "Television Journalism" and the Higher Courses for Scriptwriters and Directors. Her first film, "Chernobyl 2", shot while studying at the Higher Courses, was showcased at various Russian and international film festivals: The Open Film Festival of CIS countries, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia "Kinoshock"(Anapa), «Stalker» (Moscow), «Docpoint» (Finland), «International Studentfilmfestival sehsüchte» (Germany), «Human rights documentary films days» (Ukraine), «Mediterranean Environmental Award» (Spain). The film won multiple awards, including «Best Short Film» in The open festival of documentary films in Yekaterinburg; Leonid Gurevich's prize for search of original dramatic solution; «For a choice of heroes» in «Human rights documentary films days» in Ukraine etc. In 2010, she moved to Canada at the invitation of the television company Ethnic Channels Group, where she is a director of several television projects and a director and creative consultant of documentary films ("Darkness casts no shadow", "In Fantasy I Will Be Bathed in Tears", "To Each His Own Crusade", "Yiddish Sounds of Canada", "Aelita:Dream Big", "Crazy Canuck Collections", "Trojan Jazz", "Giya Kancheli: I Used to Hate Clarinet", "The Wind Breathes Where He Wills", "Mary Pickford's Kiss", "GULAG. Unpaid Debt", etc.).

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Director Statement

"Yiddish Sounds of Canada" is a project that bridges the past and the present, connecting lost voices to modern audiences. When I first heard the story of Moisei Beregovsky, a Jewish ethnomusicologist who dedicated his life to preserving Jewish songs only to have his work suppressed and nearly erased by the brutal hand of history, I felt a deep responsibility to bring his legacy back to life.

This film is not just about music; it’s about resilience, identity, and the power of cultural memory. Beregovsky’s archive, hidden for decades, is a testament to the strength and survival of Jewish culture even in the face of oppression and persecution. When the archive was rediscovered in Kyiv, it was as if the lost voices of a generation were calling out to be heard again.

Recreating these songs with contemporary musicians, using popular Soviet melodies of the time, allowed us to create a dialogue between the old and the new, the silenced and the outspoken. It is a tribute to those who risked everything to preserve their heritage and an invitation for us all to listen, remember, and carry these stories forward.

"Yiddish Sounds of Canada" is a celebration of the enduring spirit of a people, the transformative power of music, and the importance of remembering our roots. It’s a story of hope, a story of survival, and a story of finding our place in a complex, ever-changing world."
Olga Antimony