A Goy Fiddler on the Roof. How the Non-Jewish Participants of the Klezmer Revival in Kraków Negotiate  Their Polish Identity in a Confrontation with J Cover Image

A Goy Fiddler on the Roof. How the Non-Jewish Participants of the Klezmer Revival in Kraków Negotiate Their Polish Identity in a Confrontation with J
A Goy Fiddler on the Roof. How the Non-Jewish Participants of the Klezmer Revival in Kraków Negotiate Their Polish Identity in a Confrontation with J

Author(s): Magdalena Waligórska
Subject(s): Social Sciences
Published by: Polskie Towarzystwo Socjologiczne
Keywords: klezmer music revival; identity; Kraków; Polish-Jewish relations

Summary/Abstract: The revival of Jewish traditional music in Krako´w, performed mostly by non-Jews, provokes the question about the relation of ethnic identity and ethnic music. How do Polish klezmer musicians and cultural organizers identify themselves with the Jewish culture that they cultivate? The interviews with the members of the klezmer milieu in Krako´w indicate that the revival provokes them to undergo a complex process of negotiating their Polish identity in confrontation with Jewishness and the Jewish outlook on Polish history. The experiencewith the music of the “others” inspires them to revise their nationalmyths and stereotypes. While doing that they adopt various techniques that help them achieve a positive identification with their ingroup.

  • Issue Year: 152/2005
  • Issue No: 4
  • Page Range: 367-382
  • Page Count: 15
  • Language: English