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The life of Moshele der Zinger : how my singing saved my life / Cantor Moshe S. Kraus.

by Kraus, Moshe S.

Baico Publishing, 2017.

Kraus, Moshe S.

Bergen-Belsen (Concentration camp) -- Biography.

Cantors (Judaism) -- Biography.

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Czechoslovakia -- Biography.

Holocaust survivors -- Canada -- Biography.

Jews -- Canada -- Biography.

9781772161069 (pbk.)

Alternate title:

How my singing saved my life

xii, 245 p. : ill. ; 23 cm.

"In the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, he was known as Moshele der Zinger (Moshele the Singer). The young man with the golden voice used his talents to entertain, sustain and give solace to his fellow prisoners as they faced deprivation and death. But as he recounts in his autobiography, Cantor Moshe Kraus's prodigious talents saved his own life on more than one occasion. This book provides a rich account of the remarkable life of Cantor Kraus, 95, and his more than 70 years as a renowned chazzan. He was born in the city of Uzhhorod, which was then part of Czechoslovakia. His family was part of the chassidic movement, which is often referred to as ultra-Orthodox Judaism. After liberation, Cantor Kraus worked for the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, and later moved to Israel to become the first chief cantor of the Israeli army. It was there that he met his future wife, Rivka. In addition to a solo career that took him around the world, Cantor Kraus was head cantor in Antwerp, Johannesburg and Mexico City. The cantor and Rivka settled in Ottawa in the 1970s, where he worked at Congregation Beth Shalom until his retirement in 1980. "Although Cantor Moshe Kraus was not the Cantor of our synagogue, I met him quite often. He was everywhere, inspiring with his melodies, emotionally moving with his prayers. And if he wanted, he could recite the prayers with a rarely matched combination of speed and accuracy. But forget about speed when you read this book. Take your time, and digest it. And if you want inspiration, grab this book. Every time I met Cantor Kraus, he had a story. A different story, always either funny or uplifting. As the years went by, I was wishing more and more that he find a way to preserve all these stories. I suspect that there are many more stories in his arsenal, but for the time being, we should all be grateful to Cantor Kraus for his extraordinary memory, for his enormous life achievements in often impossible circumstances, and for committing to writing the legacy he breathed all his life." - Rabbi Dr. Reuven P. Bulka, C.M., Rabbi Emeritus, Congregation Machzikei Hadas. "When I was Canadian Ambassador to Hungary, Cantor Moshe Kraus came to Budapest during Hanukkah in December 2005, to light the candles in the Menorah in front of the magnificent Parliament buildings. I still remember the sight of this man in his 80’s being lifted up by a cherry picker, torch in hand, on eight cold and wintry evenings. I later accompanied him on a tour of Budapest's Great Synagogue and heard him sing before the Torah ark. He told me that it was from the ghetto around the Synagogue that he and other Jews were led away to the concentration camps. In the years since returning to Ottawa, I have learned much from Moshe about the love of God, humanity and the power of forgiveness. As Moshe says in his book, he is a storyteller, a wonderful storyteller where tales are offered with a dose of wisdom. This book is Moshe's gift to our own and future generations who will be able to share his joy and sorrows and benefit from his wisdom and compassion." - Robert Hage, Former Canadian Ambassador to Hungary and Slovenia"--Provided by publisher.

Autobiographies.

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