One of our great inspirations for Stenclmusic: Majer Bogdanski, tailor, musician and folklorist, born July 14 1912; died September 4 2005

....Majer settled in London's East End, worked as a tailor and developed his education. In 1954, he opened a workshop, where he worked on his own. At the age of 52, he began studying the violin and singing at the Stepney Institute. For 40 years, he entertained students of Yiddish and Jewish music from all over the world at courses and festivals in Oxford, London, Amsterdam, New York and elsewhere. He preserved many ancient Hassidic and cantorial melodies, and composed more than 400 of his own melodies to Yiddish poems, most of which he published in four anthologies, from 1993. The last appeared in 2003, and he wrote out all the music by hand.....

an extract from the Guardian obituary by Heather Valencia.
to read the full obituary click here

Images of Brick Lane and Whitechapel - Past and Present

Some production photographs