Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places: Hava Nagila Resonates in Southern Poland

In Southeastern Poland, close to the borders with and Slovakia, the sounds of Hava Nagila were heard in the streets of Rzesziw in 2010. The song was featured in a concert outdoors in the rain, with a large chorus and orchestra leading the way, and the large crowd, holding umbrellas, joining in the singing.

As we point out in the headline above, this is a Jewish trace, but not a Jewish group singing. It's a Christian choir started by two Catholic priests in the area of Rzeszow, with much the same energy as the Cornerstone Singers from Texas expended in their country version of Hava Nagila, which we reported on way back in November 2009, our first blog post about the spread of this song around the world.

Shabbat shalom!

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