Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

6-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Program

Biography and Memoir

Advisor

Wayne Koestenbaum

Subject Categories

Ethnomusicology | Fiction | Nonfiction | Other American Studies | Other Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies | Yiddish Language and Literature

Keywords

Klezmer, Memory, Nostalgia, New York City, Childhood Overmedication, Identity

Abstract

This thesis is a series of three memoiristic essays around the vortex of identity. The first is an exploration of how childhood overmedication split the continuity of the author’s self-conception. The second traces the slipperiness of Jewish and Queer identifications detailing their synthesis in the klezmer revival in New York City in late 1980s and early 90s. The third is a polyphonic narration of the recovery of a lost klezmer’s life story in the face of the silence of time and slaughter.

This work is embargoed and will be available for download on Monday, June 02, 2025

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