Moving video: Austrian rescuer teaches Syrian refugees a Yiddish song

Moving video: Austrian rescuer teaches Syrian refugees a Yiddish song

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norman lebrecht

November 28, 2015

A Viennese son of Hitler refugees, Hans Breuer has been shpherding Syrians to safety across his country, all the while teaching them to join in singing his Yiddish heritage.

The video went up on Youtube a couple of months ago and is gathering a global audience.

hans breuer

The words of the song are:

By the roadside stands a tree;
All the birds have flown.
Turn to the west, turn to the east,
And the rest–turn toward the south,
And the tree is abandoned to the storm.

I say to mama–“Listen, If you don’t stand in my way,
Then, one–two, I’ll quickly become a bird.
I’ll sit in the tree and lull it during the winter,
Comfort with a lovely tune.”

Comments

  • Jevgeniy says:

    well I guess putting up with that is the “fare” they pay

    is he just driving them to Germany and dumping them?

  • Kar says:

    Jevgeniy dear,am afraid you don’t understand too much

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