Aftermath of Holocaust� WOLFE Frank, the chief interpreter atthe Nuremberg Trials, has articles hewrote about the Holocaust’s aftermathpublished in a new collection.

Wolfe was the subject of Nuremberg’sVoice of Doom last year. The UndercoverNazi Hunter: Exposing Subterfuge andUnmasking Evil in Post-War Germany(Frontline Books), edited by Paul Hooley,includes the confession of war criminalWaldemar Wappenhans, which reveals thenickname given to the architect of the

Holocaust Hermann Goering at cadetschool that may have sparked his hatredof Jews.

Addition to registry� THE earliest recordings of Yiddishsongs are being inducted into America’sLibrary of Congress’s National RecordingRegistry for 2019. Neil Diamond’s SweetCaroline is one of this year’s additions, aswell as Attractive Hebrews of theStandard Phonograph Company’s YiddishCylinders from 1901-1905.

DIGEST

35Jewish Telegraph

Friday March 29, 2019

Glastonbury-raised Emilystages career as author

BY SIMON YAFFE

THE late Americanwriter Maya Angelouonce stated: “There isno greater agony thanbearing an untold

story inside you.”It is something which Emily

Scialom has taken onboard.For she has used her life’s

experiences, including suffering anervous breakdown when she was24, to write her first novel, TheReligion of Self-Enlightenment(Olympia Publishers, £6.99).

It tells the story of CarrickAres, who grows up without abelief in anything, butexperiences an existential crisis.

The only person to help him isa psychiatrist, Doctor PaulTurnstone.

Together they exploreCarrick’s theories about life andhe proceeds to write a newreligion, The Religion of Self-Enlightenment, which becomesthe expression of his ideology.

London-born Emily, who wasraised in the Somerset town ofGlastonbury — home to theiconic music festival — said:“Growing up there wasconflicting for me, becauseeverybody believed in somethingdifferent.

“Everybody had differentdietary requirements anddifferent meditation techniques.

“I’d had poetry published andwritten songs, but realised that Ineeded a bigger palette to expressmy beliefs.

“When I had my nervous

breakdown, I really thoughtabout life for around six monthsand felt that I had something tosay to the world.

“The book is really an echo fordesire for peace in the world andhow we can achieve it.

“There is a history of religiousbeliefs in there, includingJudaism.”

Emily and her parents movedto Glastonbury when she was twoyears old, as her father believedthe town to be a spiritual place.

The family later moved toCambridge and Emily went on toread communications, media andpopular music at the Universityof Liverpool, before she returnedto Cambridge, where she is nowbased.

Emily said: “I wanted to be amusician and I went to see amedium after my mother died,who told me I would meet myartistic partner.

“Later on, these girls appeared

and I knew it was them and that Ishould have been in a band withthem.

“One night, I dreamed that Iwas on stage with them, but whenI woke up, I heard a voice say itwas not true, which led to mybreakdown and made me realisethat I should have followed myown intuition.

“Everyone has their ownpathway in life and we need tohonour and respect that.”

Emily was also influenced byher late grandfather, DavidScialom, who fled Egypt and itsantisemitic, dictatorial presidentGamal Abdul Nasser for Britainin 1956.

The 34-year-old explained: “Hehad two houses, in Cairo andAlexandria, and was a verywealthy man, but he arrived inBritain with nothing as theEgyptian government hadconfiscated all his money.

“My grandfather went on towork for the Ministry of Trade inthis country and was amysterious and intelligent man,but was quiet about his faith.

“At the end of his life he cameback to Judaism with a passionand started going to synagogueagain and talking more about hislife.”

Emily and her sister visitedtheir roots when they went toCairo and Alexandria when shewas 21, but felt “uncomfortablebeing a Westerner in the Arabworld”.

Her second novel, a love storycalled The Rivers (AustinMacauley Publishers) is due outsoon.

SINGER Tally Koren paystribute to her late husband onnew single, Smile Again.

The lyrics were written byTally’s biggest fan, poet SteveKay, of Yorkshire.

“The words of the song reflectmy personal experience and arean authentic echo of the searchfor comfort in the grievingprocess,” Israel-born Tally said.

“Steve wrote the beautifulpoem especially for me, wishingto see me smile again.

“I’ve decided to release it onthe first day of spring as I feelit’s time to put a spring into myheart.”

The release date also coincidedwith World Poetry Day whichties in with NSPC4PEACE, acompetition she created tounlock the potential of youngpeople and encourage them toexpress their emotions throughpoetry.

Tally’s husband SimonEdwards died in May, aged 60.

Smile Again is taken fromTally’s forthcoming album, If ICould Write a Love Poem, basedon poems she edited and turnedinto songs.

Several of the songs wereadapted from the winners of theNational Schools PoetryCompetition on the theme ofpeace.

The album will also include anew production of the BBCRadio 2 playlisted song BeautyOf The Duty, which also startedlife as a poem.

Tally, who spoke at the Houseof Lords in December, will beperforming at a fundraisingconcert in Hampstead for MarieCurie Hospice on April 27 toshow her gratitude for the caregiven to Simon.

The Vision of Hope concertwill also feature a performanceby Iranian singer Roya Arab.

Tally, who voiced an Israeliagent in James Bond filmQuantum of Solace, is headingout on an unconventional tour.

Today, she is performing forMothers Day in Birmingham forthe Muslim community.

On Monday, she will be guestspeaker at the Oxford RotaryClub, where she will discussusing her music as a tool toaspire for peace andreconciliation.

She will be guest speaker andperformer at Oxford InterfaithWeek on Wednesday beforeheading to Warwickshire toperform at Rugby ComesTogether on April 6 at theinvitation of the Mayor ofRugby.

And Tally will be in Leeds onApril 12 to lead a Peace throughPoetry workshop in Leeds CityCouncil library.

� Watch the video for Smile Again attinyurl.com/KorenJT2 and visittinyurl.com/TallyConcertJT for details ofthe Hampstead concert.

EXPERIENCES: Emily Scialom

Fan Steve putsthe smile backon Tally’s face

SINGLE TRIBUTE: Tally Koren withhusband SimonEdwards

A DOCUMENTARY film has beenmade about Fiddler on the Roof.

Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles,directed by Max Lewkowicz,began production in 2016.

It includes interviews withmany of those involved in theoriginal Broadway production,including lyricist SheldonHarnick, producer Hal Prince andactors Austin Pendleton (Motel),Joanna Merlin (Tzeitel), Haim

Topol (Tevye), violinist ItzhakPerlman and Hamilton creatorLin-Manuel Miranda.

“The goal of our documentaryis to understand why the story ofTevye the milkman is rebornagain and again as a belovedentertainment and culturaltouchstone the world over,” saidLewkowicz.

“It’s not a simple musical, it’snot a fluff piece. It’s – as

somebody says in the film – verycomplex, and what makes itamazing is that it deals with somany different themes that we ashuman beings can connect to.”

Fiddler: A Miracle of Miraclestraces the musical from its rootsin Sholem Aleichem’s Yiddishwritings to its Broadway debut in1964, its film adaptation in 1971and its revivals and stagingsaround the globe.

Documentary film promises to tell the Roof,the whole Roof and nothing but the Roof . . .

Klez festivalcelebrates 10thKLEZNORTH celebrated its 10thanniversary in the Derbyshirevillage of Youlgreave with aconcert, attended by more than200 people.

Performing were tutorsScotland-based Michael Alpert,Brighton-based couple Polina, asinger, and clarinettist MerlinShepherd, and fiddle player GicaLoening, of Edinburgh.

More than 100 people took partin workshops in music, singing,and dancing

Next year’s Kleznorth takesplace from March 20-22.

� www.kleznorth.org.uk

AN impresario who introduced a host ofRussian classical music acts and ballet tothe West died on Saturday.

Victor Hochhauser, 95, went behind theIron Curtain to bring stars such as DavidOistrakh, Mstislav Rostropovich, EmilGilels, Sviatoslav Richter and the BolshoiBallet to perform in the West.

Working with wife Lilian, Hochhauserdeveloped a remarkable record innegotiating with the Russians, sometimesin spiriting artists out of the country.

The Hochhausers were also noted fortheir introduction of affordable weekendconcerts at the Royal Albert Hall, whichgave many young musicians their firstchance to make a living and introducedclassical music to people who otherwisemay not have encountered it.

Born in Kosice, in present-day Slovakia,his grandfather was Chief Rabbi ofHungary.

The family emigrated to Britain in 1938and Hochhauser was sent to study at ayeshiva in Gateshead. He then went towork as a fundraiser at a Londonsynagogue for Rabbi Solomon Schonfeld.

It was in that capacity that he set out tostage a charity concert and, in theprocess, discovered that he possessed ahidden talent for promoting musicalevents.

He borrowed £200 from his father,hired the Albert Hall for £30, booked theLondon Symphony Orchestra for £60 andstaged the first of a series of concertsthat featured such names as violinist IdaHaendel and pianists Eileen Joyce, LouisKentner and Benno Moiseiwitsch.

In 1949, he married Lilian (nee Shields)and they had four children — Daniel, Mark(who Hebracised his surname to Soferand became an Israeli diplomat), futureUnited Synagogue president Simon andShari.

As Hochhauser’s reputation grew, hisambitions turned to the Soviet Union’sgreat artists.

Negotiations began in 1953, after thedeath of Stalin and, in 1956, Rostropovichcame for the first time to Edinburgh andthen London, under the Hochhausers.

The relationship eased after an Anglo-Soviet cultural agreement was signed in1957.

With encouragement from the Britishgovernment, the Hochhausers embarkedon a series of exchanges betweenorchestras, soloists and ballet companies.

Awarded an CBE in 1993, Hochhauseralso developed close ties with Israel,buying a house in Jerusalem andbecoming involved in the country’scultural life.

He and Lilian brought the IsraelPhilharmonic Orchestra to the UK, andhelped to stage music festivals in Israel.

Hochhauser’s role in Anglo-Russiancultural relations was eventuallyrecognised by Moscow in 2006 when hereceived a special award at its Londonembassy.

Impresario Victor dies at 95