犹太人的故事（2013）

the road to Jewish emancipation
对于门德尔松的子孙们来说，通向本族解放的道路
now seemed clogged with barriers.
如今看起来(更加)荆棘密布.
Now they had to prove that a Jew
could also be a good German.
因为现在他们还得向周遭证明，犹太人也可以做个德国良民
One of Moses's children,
Abraham, was a banker.
门德尔松的后代之一，亚伯拉罕是个银行家
He and his wife, Lea,
他和妻子Lea
threw themselves headlong
into German culture.
为了能全力融入德国文化
Judaism took a back seat.
甚至于将犹太教都晾在一旁
And their road into German
acceptance would be through music.
他们将通过音乐融入德国社会
Their children, Felix and Fanny,
both became prodigies.
他们膝下一双儿女，Felix和Fanny都长成了神童
[Felix就是我们熟知的德国作曲家门德尔松.背景是他多部《F小调弦乐四重奏》之一]
'The Queen's diary entry
on first meeting him was,
(维多利亚)女王私人日记上关于小门德尔松的首次觐见
如此记载道:
'"He is short, dark
and Jewish-looking."
"他(门德尔松)个子不高，深肤色，一看就是个犹太人"
'But appearances were deceptive -
in fact, Felix was a Christian.
不过外表并不能说明什么，实际上，小门德尔松是个基♥督♥徒！
'When he was just seven years old,
他7岁的时候，
'his father, Abraham,
had had him baptised,
他爹亚伯拉罕.门德尔松就未雨绸缪，
'hoping to ensure
his future prospects.
让他受过洗了
'But perhaps Felix Mendelssohn's
conversion was never complete.
只是小F.门德尔松也许从未全心皈依基♥督♥...
[背景:小门作品 辨识度极高的e小调小提琴协奏曲第一乐章]
So did success require
a baptismal sprinkle?
那么...像小门德尔松这样的(犹太人)成功案例是否都需要用皈依基♥督♥教(的做法)来"贴金"呢？
The story of another Berlin family
suggests not.
另一个柏林犹太家庭的例子告诉我们并非如此
The Beers were just as
self-confident and ambitious
Beers家族与前例的门家
as the Mendelssohns,
一样自信且胸怀大志不遑多让
but they wouldn't abandon Judaism
to make it in German culture,
虽然身处日耳曼文化包围中，他们依托现代世界来实现自己的志向
instead, they would bring it
into the modern world.
而不是走改宗之路
Judah Beer had made his fortune
in the sugar business.
Judah Beer靠白糖生意发家
[全名Judah Herz Beer]
But it was the voluptuous,
raven-haired Amalia
不过他老婆--头发乌黑，体态丰腴的Amalia
[Amalia (Mulka) Wulff (1767–1854) 也是富家小姐]
who ruled the clan.
才是家族的实际领导
Her childhood name, after all,
had been "Mulka", the queen,
Amalia小名"Mulka",(希伯来语即女王)---
and her pedigree was as close
to royalty
出身犹太名门望族，
as you could get among the Jews -
基本可以说是犹太社团里的"皇族"
learned rabbis and bankers.
她娘家一脉里面，饱学的拉比和富有的银行家比比皆是
Queen Amalia stayed true to both
by being socially dazzling
"Amalia女王"则是精神与物质建设两不误。
她对外是社交名媛，精通世故
and resolutely religious.
对内也能时时自省，笃信本宗
She opened the doors
of her elegant salon at Villa Beer
她家的大宅门里设有高档沙龙，
to the cream of Berlin society -
对所有柏林有识之士和精英阶层都大门敞开
scientists and poets
who vied with each other
科学家和诗人们在这里明争暗斗
for the privilege of
sipping chocolate
为的只是一尝香茗，
and polishing their witticisms
in her regal presence.
或者是在仪态万方的女主面前争相抖机灵
And at the same time,
she and her husband led a campaign
同时，她和夫君还带领
among German Jews for a modern,
enlightened brand of Judaism.
在德犹太人展开运动，倡导犹太教的启蒙与现代化
Leading by example, they built
a synagogue inside their own home,
他们更以身作则，在自己的豪♥宅♥里建了一座犹太教堂
with services held in German
as well as Hebrew
不但用双语布道(希伯莱语和德语)
and, shock, an organ...
而且，信不信由你，还有管风琴
..a choir!
与唱诗班伴奏
CHORAL MUSIC AND CHOIR SINGING
We all think of Jews and music
in the same sentence,
我们总以为音乐是犹太人生活的一部分
but even though music did become
the royal road for Jews
尽管音乐已经成为犹太人
into the heart of German culture,
it was a little surprising.
打入日耳曼主流社会的敲门砖。
但是，颇有些令人吃惊的是 对犹太人来说，
Singing, much less
instrumental music, was really not
声乐毕竟不是(他们所精于的)器乐
part of the world of the community
or the synagogue,
不过是犹太社区还是犹太教堂，(对声乐)都无法信手拈来
but upwardly mobile Jews took
to music like ducks to water.
不过对于总是力争上游，机敏求变的犹太人来说，
在音乐这条道上，简直如鱼得水。
So music was always going
to be very important
因此音乐向来是犹太人上升阶梯的极重要的一环
to an ambitious family
like the Beers.
比如胸怀大志的Beer一家就是这么做的。
If the first generation was
all about the raw power of money,
先辈们为打基业不得不埋头赚钱 原始积累
for the second, what was crucial was
the display of cultural refinement
而富二代们则必须饱读诗书，文化精读，
[所谓仓廪实而知礼节]
in an elegant salon like this.
比如Beer家的高档会所功能即在于此。
And the third generation was always
那么富3代呢，
going to be about cultural
performance.
就必须完全洗净铜臭，精通琴棋书画，做个真13 而不是装13
And there was no performer more
dazzling than the nine-year-old son
在这方面，Amalia夫妻俩那个9岁的儿子
of Judah and Amalia Beer, little
Jacob, who at that tender age
黄口小儿Jacob,可谓13格爆表
managed to pull off
such a sensational performance
他居然能演奏莫扎特的D小调钢琴协奏曲
of Mozart's D minor Piano Concerto,
水平之高，技艺之精
that it wowed Jews and Gentiles
alike.
在当时的犹太与犹太以外社会都造成轰动。
Now, that little boy was going to
grow up to be Giacomo Meyerbeer.
小Jacob后来大名Giacomo Meyerbeer
[德系大歌♥剧早期的领军人物.创作多部大歌♥剧。
提携过瓦格纳.可以说他给法国大歌♥剧最终定了型。大歌♥剧一般4幕或者5幕.比如《阿依达》.]
And this is Giacomo's
travelling piano.
我身后这台就是他随身的钢琴。
He was not only the man
who was going to reinvent
Giacomo Meyerbeer可以说是重新创造定义
the entire form of opera,
了歌♥剧这一艺术形式。
he would also become
an international superstar,
他还是当时的国际巨星
a celebrity.
绝对的名人。
And for such a superstar,
对于这样一位巨星来说
it was always going to be a case
of, "Have piano, will travel".
生活里满满都是"弹琴 作曲 在路上"
And so, Jacob travelled.
而且Jacob确实总是在路上
In 1816, he left Berlin for Italy
to study opera,
1816年，他离开柏林前往意大利(深造)学习歌♥剧
and it was there he changed
his first name to Giacomo.
在意大利，他改名为Giacomo
[名Giacomo的意大利名人不少]
'But while he Italianised at one
end, he Judaised at the other,
他虽然在名字上极端粉意大利，却忠实的保留了自己的犹太姓氏
'adding his grandfather's first
name, Meyer, to his surname,
而且还在其中加入爷爷的名字 "Meyer"来强化之
'emerging as Giacomo Meyerbeer.
最后，他全名 Giacomo Meyerbeer
'He could have returned to Berlin
and made a musical career there.
意大利学成之后，他原可返回柏林继续开创自己的音乐道路
'But if you wanted to make it
big time,
不过呢，当时，搞歌♥剧的要想搞大
'there was only one place for
that...
就只有一个地方可去
'..Paris.'
---巴黎！
1831 - they are packing them
through the turnstiles
1831年的某一晚，巴黎歌♥剧院门前
here in the Paris Opera House.
乌泱泱的挤满了入场的观众
And what are they coming to see?
They are coming to see
今天有新剧目演出----
an opera called Robert The Devil,
一部歌♥剧，名为《恶魔罗勃》
[Giacomo Meyerbeer的成名作。可以说是当年法式大歌♥剧的样板戏.后来者比如《阿依达》和《卡门》]
by somebody called Meyerbeer,
but his first name is Giacomo.
当时大家只知道这个剧作者姓Meyerbeer。名为Giacomo.
Well, does he think
he's Rossini or something?
听着有点怪，(意式的名字)莫非此人以为自己是罗西尼还是咋地?
He's a Jew, we know he's no
Donizetti, no Rossini, no Bellini.
啊，不不，这人是犹太人，不是多尼采蒂，或者罗西尼，或者贝利尼那样的大拿...
[Bellini 即Vincenzo Bellini]
So what's he doing
with this Robert The Devil thing?
哦，那这人拿这出名字怪怪的歌♥剧来现世不成?
Answer -
medieval Renaissance extravaganza.
告诉你吧...这剧充满中世纪风格；文艺复兴元素；
还有铺张华丽的舞台娱乐表演...
Orgiastic nuns rising from the tomb
你看舞台上: 坟地里冒出来一票死鬼修女群魔乱舞...
to do "ooh-er" things
with their shrouds.
(修女)身上的裹尸布各种凌乱，嘴里各种鬼语森森...
A tormented hero on the rim of hell,
and rather liking it.