- Badchen
A badchen (plural: "badchonim") (meaning "joker" or "
clown ") traditionally entertains before and after Ashkenazic Jewish weddings. They are generally learned men comparable to a "maggid " or sermonizer.Liptzin p. 22-23] Currently they are only common in the Hasidic world.Wedding parties were one of the few contexts in which Jewish tradition allowed music and dance.
In addition to a "badchen", but the
rabbi who actually performs the wedding, an elaborate traditional wedding might also involve a "letz" (a "jongleur"/musician) and a "marshalik" (a master of ceremonies).The "badchen" has to be able both to provide the energy for a party before and after the ceremony itself and also to make the transition to a more serious tone immediately before the ceremony.
Some famous "badchonim" include Chaim Menachem (Mendel) Mermelstien (born March 2, 1920 in Munkacz, died November 7, 1985), considered the father of modern day "badchonus",Fact|date=February 2007 and the present-day performer
Yankel Miller .The 19th century
Broder singer s began as "badchonim", but began to perform outside of the context of weddings. They, in turn, are usually seen as the forerunners ofYiddish theater .On the Jewish holiday of
Purim many young men undertake to be badchanim duringPurim spiel s.Notes
External Links
* One of todays greatest badchonim -
Yoel Lebowits website [http://www.badchen.com www.badchen.com]References
*Liptzin, Sol, "A History of Yiddish Literature", Jonathan David Publishers, Middle Village, NY, 1972, ISBN 0-8246-0124-6, 22-23.
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
