The Writers, Artists, Singers, and Musicians of the National Hungarian Jewish Cultural Association (OMIKE), 1939–1944
Frederick Bondy (Editors)
Purdue University Press (English)
Shofar Supplements in Jewish Studies
Translated by Anna Etawo
ISBN : 978-1-61249-480-7
12/15/2016
ISBN 9781557537645
254 pp, 2017, www.press.purdue.edu

 

In May 1938, Hungary passed anti-Semitic laws causing hundreds of Jewish artists to lose their jobs. In response, Budapest’s Jewish community leaders organized an Artistic Enterprise under the aegis of OMIKE (Országos Magyar Izraelita Közművelődési Egyesület, Hungarian Jewish Education Association) to provide employment and livelihood for actors, singers, musicians, conductors, composers, writers, playwrights, painters, graphic artists, and sculptors.
Between 1939 and 1944, activities were centered in Goldmark Hall beside the Dohány Street Synagogue in Budapest. Hundreds of artists from all over Hungary took part in about one thousand performances, including plays, concerts, cabaret, ballet, operas, and operettas. These performances appealed to the highly cultured Budapest Jewish community, ever desirous of high-caliber events, particularly under oppressive conditions of the time. Art exhibitions also were held for painters, graphic artists, and sculptors to sell their creations.
Lévai’s 1943 book (with new, additional chapters by noted historians and musicians) is the core of this expanded edition and provides interviews with individual artists who recall their early lives and circumstances that led them to join the Artistic Enterprise. The book records the technical functioning, structure, and operation of this remarkable theater and concert venue. It provides fascinating details about those who worked behind the scenes: répétiteurs, hair stylists, and personnel involved with costumes, lighting, and scenery. Because the stage was small, clever choreographic and scenery improvisation had to be made, and the stagehands were clearly up to the task. Since these artists were not allowed to perform before the general public or advertise with posters on the streets, the book describes special means devised to overcome these difficulties and bring Jewish audiences into the theater in large numbers.
Lastly, the book carries the theater’s story up to Sunday morning, March 19, 1944, a day of infamy, when the German army marched into Hungary.

Frederick Bondy lives in New York City and was married for over forty years until losing his wife, Joan, to cancer in 2015. He has three married children and seven grandchildren, all of whom live in NYC.
He graduated with a BS in chemical engineering from the City College of New York and an MS in chemical engineering from the University of Akron.
He has over forty years of experience leading process engineering designs for over eighty refinery, gasification, petrochemical, specialty chemical, polymer, and pharmaceutical projects.
He is the author of a number of magazine articles and encyclopedia sections related to chemical engineering.
He also wrote the biography István Bondy, Hungarian Actor (1905–1944), which is in the National Széchényi Library and in the Hungarian Theatre Museum and Institute, both in Budapest.
Among his interests are world history (with an emphasis on Jewish and Holocaust History), philately, and marathon running.

 

 

 

http://www.operanostalgia.be/
Rudi van den Bulck
March 2018


In May 1938, Hungary passed anti-Semitic laws causing hundreds of Jewish artists to lose their jobs.
In response, Budapest’s Jewish community leaders organized an Artistic Enterprise under the aegis of
OMIKE
Országos Magyar Izraelita Közművelődési Egyesület (Hungarian Jewish Education Association)
to provide employment and livelihood for actors, singers, musicians, conductors, composers, writers, playwrights, painters, graphic artists, and sculptors.


An oral history of the Kulturbund- Mascha Benya-Matz
A brief documentary trailer about the Kulturbund- a Jewish cultural haven that existed in pre-war Berlin in the 1930s.
As told by Opera singer and member of the Kulturbund Mascha Benyakovsky (Benya-Matz) to her granddaughter, Jenni Matz in 2004.

Between 1939 and 1944, activities were centered in Goldmark Hall beside the Dohány Street Synagogue in Budapest. Hundreds of artists from all over Hungary took part in about one thousand performances, including plays, concerts, cabaret, ballet, operas, and operettas. These performances appealed to the highly cultured Budapest Jewish community, ever desirous of high-caliber events, particularly under oppressive conditions of the time. Art exhibitions also were held for painters, graphic artists, and sculptors to sell their creations. The German army marched into Hungary in March 1944 leading to the closure of the association.
Lévai’s 1943 book (with new, additional chapters) is the core of this expanded edition and provides interviews with individual artists who recall their early lives and circumstances that led them to join the Artistic Enterprise. The book records the technical functioning, structure, and operation of this remarkable theater and concert venue. It provides fascinating details about those who worked behind the scenes: répétiteurs, hair stylists, and personnel involved with costumes, lighting, and scenery.
There’s an interesting “chronology” at the back of the book in the form of scans - not always clear due to the murky quality - of the programs. Yet the names of the composers, artists etc. are not included in the otherwise fine index at the end. The same criticism applies to the appendix featuring several photographs of performances and OMIKE artists.
The fourth appendix has an alphabetical listing of the “victims of the holocaust” yet no information is given of where or when they perished.
Also in the afterword to the English edition author Peter Barsony refers to the past history of the OMIKE association (founded in 1909) and cites a few world-known artists performing with the organization including Maria Basilides. Yet as far as I know Basilides wasn’t Jewish. Does this mean the pre-1939 association was open to non-Jewish artists as well?

German already had its Jewish Cultural league and the Netherlands would get their Jewish concert performances at the Joodsche Schouwburg (click here).


(Maria Basilides, Dezso Ernster, Ozskar Kalman as the high priest in Goldmark’s Queen of Sheba, tenor Pal Feher as Hoffmann, Gabriella Relle soprano, Andor Lendvai all featured on our youtubeclip)

As I read the book, mainly from an operatic perspective, I also wondered why other Jewish singers –the legendary Mihaly Szekely for instance - weren’t hired? Were they refused? Was there a limit? In the casting chapter I read artists were “paid” per show but nowhere could I find out how much they actually got? Did most of them have other jobs?
It is obvious that the book profited from serious editing, as errors/typos are few and of minor importance, such as Pergolese instead of Pergolesi (pg. 32), or not giving Miklos Weinstock’s artistic name of Gafni under which he made an important post-war career, just to give two examples.
Yet don’t let these minor quibbles prevent you from buying this very important book in spite of the rather high price. I’ve read it with great interest and it is a major addition to the study of Jewish cultural life in Hungary during its worst period in modern history.

Here’s a link to the wonderful Hungarian website devoted to OMIKE.
Use google translate. www.omike.hu