In Polish Lands

Koro Saloniko

1944

Trees cry for rain

And mountains for air.

So cry my eyes

For you, dear Mother;

So cry my eyes

For you, dear Mother.

I turn and I ask what will become of me.

In Polish lands

I am destined to die.

White you are and white you wear;

White is your face.

White flowers fall from you,

From your beauty;

White flowers fall from you,

From your beauty.

…

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Creator Bio

Koro Saloniko

1940s

Also known as the Grupo de Reskatados de los Kampos de Alemania (the Group of Liberated Inmates from the German Camps), the Koro Saloniko (or Choir of Salonika) was a group of young Sephardic Jews from the city of Thessaloniki who sang during their internment in Auschwitz. Their tunes were known to blend traditional folk forms, such as the short Iberian form known in Ladino as the kantiga, and other melodies, ascribing new words or meanings to songs that already held deep meaning among the Sephardic inmates. This act of resistance took on a special meaning for its performers and listeners, as Sephardic Jews often felt isolated in Auschwitz by their inability to understand Yiddish or German.

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