Azi Schwartz

Millions of Jews came to America from places like Belz, Vilna, Warsaw, Odessa, Minsk, and countless towns whose names still live in family stories - or in the silence where those stories were lost. They came escaping poverty, pogroms, antisemitism, and later, destruction.

Born in the world of Second Avenue Yiddish theater and later featured in the 1937 film The Cantor’s Son, Mayn Shtetele Belz carries the longing of generations who left one home and built another.

As an immigrant myself, I hear in this song questions that still feel alive: How do we become fully American without losing the Jewish voice that shaped us? And as Tisha B’Av approaches, how do we carry memory without being trapped by it?

May our remembering lead us not only to mourning, but to resilience, compassion, and hope.

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom.

== Credits: Featuring: Cantors Mira Davis and Azi Schwartz Song: Alexander Olshantsky and Jacob Jacobs Arrangement: Raymond Goldstein, commissioned by PAS Music Center Music director: David Enlow Video editor: Terrell Simms Audio editor: Oli Jung AV: Oscar Acevedo, Terrell Simms, Erik Van Batavia, Justin Goodman

www.azischwartz.com

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