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.

How Roman Schlossberg Ended Up Playing for the British Army in Iraq

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Roger Mason, resident of Miami and musician, shares the incredible story of one of his Polish Jewish relatives playing music in the British Army while in a Russian camp.

This is an excerpt from an oral history with Roger Mason.

This excerpt is in English.

Roger Mason was born in Hagerstown, Maryland in 1944.

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Other video highlights from this oral history

"The Defeated Enemy Was On the Outside: Growing Up On U.S. Army Bases Post-World War Two

3 min 47 sec

An American In Post-War Japan

1 min 40 sec

Mother's Ambivalent Relationship to Judaism and Roger's Subsequent Obsession with Discovering Roots and Heritage

3 min 6 sec

Early Connections and Associations with Jewish Identity

2 min 28 sec

Unconventionally Diverse Music Training and Work as a Music Teacher

2 min 48 sec

Discovering His Family's Musical Past

2 min 33 sec

The Importance of Forgotten Musicians for Younger Jewish Generations

4 min 6 sec

My Great-grandfather the Cantor, Aryeh Leib Schlossberg

2 min 19 sec

Jewish Musical Relatives from Eastern Europe

2 min 19 sec

Superstition and Mixed Feelings: Discovering My Jewish Musical Family Roots

2 min 14 sec

More information about this oral history excerpt

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