New-York tribune., 1919-05-25
About the ''Eili, Eili''
Controversy
By Grenville Vernon


riddles and paradox will have a morsel
grateful to their palates at a concert
Of Jewish music to be given this eve
ming at the De Witt Clinton High
School. The concert is to be given by
"The American Jewish News" in honor
of Mr.. Jacob Koppcl Sander. Mr..
Sander, according to "The American
Jewish News" is the composer of "Eili,
Eili," a Jewish song which during
the last few years has become famous
in the concert world Its melodic
beauty and exotic power have been
recognized by all who have heard it
and it had generally been supposed to
be a Jewish folk-song or synagogical
tune. This belief obtained until a few
weeks ago, when Mr.. Joseph Kotchock,
who, under the nom de plume of "Meyer
Beer" is the music critic of 'The
Jewish News" wrote an article in
which he asserted that the above men
toned Mr.. Sander was the real author
of the song, having written it in 1896
as incidental music for Yiddish play
which was presented at the Windsor
Theatre Mr.. Kotchock as evidence
produced the manuscript of "Eili, Eili,'
in Mr.. Sanders handwriting, and Mr..
Sander when interviewed asserted that
the song is his original composition. So
on the undisputed evidence that in 1896
Mr.. Sander wrote song entitled "Eili,
Eili," for Yiddish play and that this
song possessed the melody of the one
now widely popular, "The American
Jewish News" is this evening to honor
Mr.. Sander as the creator of the melo-
dy, and the chorus of the Metropolitan
Opera School, under the direction Of
Edoardo Petri, is to sing the song. That
Mr.. Sander never before has claimed
the song is laid to his modesty, for he
says that he thought 1t had passed
away with the Yiddish play for which
it was written until one night, three
years ago, his daughter returned from
a concert at the Metropolitan Opera
House and said to her father:
Papa, have just heard Miss Sophie
Braslau sing your Eli, Eili,' and the
audience went wild!"
Mr. Sander then dug out his old
manuscript, took it to Mr.. Kotchock,
who published the news in "The
American Jewish News" and shortly
afterward Mr.. James Gibbons Huneker
used the story to open his Sunday
music article in "The Times" So
almost overnight Mr. Sander became
famous, an undiscovered genius was
revealed to light, and a twenty-three
year old modesty was requited. 1t
seemed too good to be true, like the
fairy tale which ends, "and they lived
happily ever afterward," like the prince
who marries the peasant girl. Com
pensation, that is something we all
want to believe in, something which
warns the cookies of our hearts, and
whispers to us that it is pretty good
world after all. So we will throng
to the concert at the De Witt Clinton
High School tonight, and cheer. Mr..
we will wish that Mr.. Sander really
did write the melody "Eili, Eili," and
that it is not merely traditional air
which he remembered from his child
hood days in Russia. Faith is great
and if Mr.. Sander wrote only this one
song there was Rouget de Lisle, who
wrote only "La Marseillaise."
A statement by Mr.. Kurt SCHNEIDER
the musical director of the Schola Can
forum and a deep student of folk
music, however, throws some doubt or
Mr.. Sanders authorship. Says Mr.
SCHNEIDER:
"'Eili, Eili' is one of the most popu
lar Jewish folksongs in Russia, so much
so that the Society for Jewish Folk
Music in Petrograd has published from
1909 to 1913 three different edition.
Of this melody; one by M. Shalt e
pupil Of Rimsky-Korsakoff) for voice
and piano (rcprinted in several edi
tions); another for chorus by S. euro
witch, and n third, also for chorus, will
slightly different words, but to the
same tune, under the title 'Riboj,
olom. If Mr.. Sander, as he is re
ported to have, claimed, invented thi
song here in New York twenty year
ago. we shall have to assnme that nj