The Yiddish Book Center's
Wexler Oral History Project
A growing collection of in-depth interviews with people of all ages and backgrounds, whose stories about the legacy and changing nature of Yiddish language and culture offer a rich and complex chronicle of Jewish identity.
Why I Got Kicked Out of Kindergarten: Yiddish in My Childhood
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Velvel Pasternak, z"l, musicologist and major publisher of Jewish music, recalls the Yiddish of his childhood and how they once sent him home from school because "manishtana-ed," he spoke every sentence with the traditional Jewish melody.
This is an excerpt from an oral history with Velvel Pasternak.
This excerpt is in English.
Velvel Pasternak was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1933. Velvel died in 2019.
This interview is part of the Yiddish and the Arts: musicians, actors, and artists series.
