Igor S. Korntayer (, born 1890s, murdered in

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

c. 1942) was a Polish Jewish actor, lyricist, poet, and

coupletist Couplets (, , ) were wittily ambiguous, political, or satirical songs in a number of European countries, usually performed in cabaret settings, usually with refrains, often used as a transition between two cabaret numbers. Couplets could also be in ...

. He is best known for the Yiddish

Tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...

song ''Vu ahin zol ikh geyn? (Where Shall I Go?)'', for which he is usually credited for writing new Yiddish lyrics.

Biography

Little is known about his birthplace or early life. According to

Zalmen Zylbercweig Zalmen Zylbercweig (Yiddish: זלמן זילבערצווייג ; Ozorkow, 1894-Los Angeles 1972) was a historian of Yiddish theater. He is best known as the author of the six-volume '' Leksikon fun yidishn teater'' (Lexicon or Encyclopedia of the ...

, the earliest records of him date from when he arrived in the

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

Yiddish theater Yiddish theatre consists of plays written and performed primarily by Jews in Yiddish, the language of the Ashkenazi Jewish community. The range of Yiddish theatre is broad: operetta, musical comedy, and satiric or nostalgic revues; melodrama; na ...

in 1918, with a translation of

Lermontov Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov ( , ; rus, Михаи́л Ю́рьевич Ле́рмонтов, , mʲɪxɐˈil ˈjʉrʲjɪvʲɪtɕ ˈlʲerməntəf, links=yes; – ) was a Russian Romantic writer, poet and painter, sometimes called "the poet of ...

's ''Spanish Blood'' (called ''Jewish Blood''). Soon afterwards, at Julius Adler's request he translated

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's ''Othello''. He knew several languages and had a knack for dramaturgy. He then moved to Warsaw, where he was hired in 1926 by the ''Scala'' Theater to write song lyrics, for instance to Osip Dimov's ''Yoshke Muzikant.'' In 1927 he wrote lyrics for the operetta ''Velvele Shmudnik'' (music by Sh. Vayntroyb and David Beigelman). He wrote many songs for the theaters ''Scala'' and ''Sambatiyon.'' In 1935 he acted with

Alexander Granach Alexander Granach (April 18, 1890 – March 14, 1945) was a German-Austrian actor in the 1920s and 1930s who emigrated to the United States in 1938. Life and career Granach was born Schaje Granoch in Werbowitz (Wierzbowce/Werbiwci) ( Austr ...

in Alter Kacyzne's ''Velt-gevisn'' in Łódź. He wrote a play called ''Nokh Halbe Nakht'' (After midnight) which debuted June 4, 1942 (directed by Chaim Sandler). He is best known for writing new Yiddish lyrics for the song ''Vu ahin zol ikh geyn? (Where Shall I Go?)'' written with "tango-king" Oskar Strock; their version was based on an existing Russian language tango, "Blue eyes" () which was then popular in Poland in a Polish-language version called "". Two other notable songs are ''Kum tsu mir (Come to me)'', a tango, and ''Mayn libeslid (My Love Song)'', both to music by Pawel Brajtman, premiered in Yiddish theaters in Vienna and Bucharest. On a lighter note, he wrote Yiddish lyrics (performed by Menashe Oppenheim) to the song ''Sex Appeal'' made famous by

Eugeniusz Bodo Eugeniusz Bodo (born Bohdan Eugène Junod; 28 December 1899 7 October 1943) was a film director, producer, singer, pianist and one of the most popular Polish actors and comedians of the interwar period. He starred in some of the most popular Pol ...

in the 1937 movie ''Piętro wyżej (Upstairs)''. Following the

Nazi invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak Republic, and the Soviet ...

in 1939, he was forced to live in the

Warsaw Ghetto The Warsaw Ghetto (, officially , ; ) was the largest of the Nazi ghettos during World War II and the Holocaust. It was established in November 1940 by the Nazi Germany, German authorities within the new General Government territory of Occupat ...

. He continued to compose music and plays there. He wrote the comedy ''Cype fun Nowolipe (Cipe fun Nowolipie)'' which played in June 1941 at the ''Eldorado'' Theater, and a revue called ''Wesele zydowskie (Jewish wedding)'' at the ''Melody Palace''. He was murdered in the gas chambers at

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...

.http://holocaustmusic.ort.org/music/yiddish-tango/ Yiddish tango

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Korntayer, Igor S. Jewish cabaret performers Polish cabaret performers Jewish songwriters Polish people who died in Auschwitz concentration camp 1890s births 1940s deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain Polish civilians killed in World War II People killed by gas chamber by Nazi Germany Polish Jews who died in the Holocaust Jewish Polish male actors 20th-century Polish comedians Jewish male comedians Yiddish-language poets Polish male songwriters Translators of William Shakespeare