Jewish prayer “El maleh Rachamim”
“El maleh Rachamim” / “God full of Mercy” is one of the funeral prayers in the Jewish tradition, which reminds the deceased and asks for their repose.
The prayer is practiced today on national days of remembrance, and in particular in Israel on the Day of Remembrance for the Holocaust and Heroism, and on the Day of Remembrance for the Casualties of the Israel Defense Forces.
On this year’s Holocaust and Heroism Memorial Day, when we treasure in our memories the horrors of the Holocaust on the one hand and the horrors of the wars of today on the other hand, we see the duty and importance of stimulating thought and enlightening awareness of the heavy price that all human beings pay for wars.
The epilogue of the film “The Address on the Wall”
The epilogue of the film “The Address on the Wall” concludes the Israeli – Ukrainian film as part of an International Project.
“God full of Mercy” is a soundtrack from the movie “The Address on the Wall” starring Alex Ansky.
The film received praise in the following Festivals:
“THE ADDRESS ON THE WALL” FILM FESTIVALS CAREER:
- Mediterranean Film Festival Cannes / Cannes, France / Nov 2022
- Ogeechee International History Film Festival, Statesboro, Georgia, USA / 23-25.2.2023 – Honorable Mention
- Courage Film Festival / Berlin, Germany / 2-17.1.2023 – Semi Finalist
- Pápa International Historical Film Festival / Pápa, Hungary / April 2023 – Finalist
- IMPACTE!Human Rights Film Festival of Catalonia / Barcelona, Spain / May 2023 – it is on now
- AEI Film Festival (Archaeological, Ethnographic & Historical) / Nemesia, Cypress / July 17-23
- Oakville Film Festival /Toronto, Canada / June 23-25
- DEA OPEN AIR INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL / Tirana / 18-22 JUNE 2023
- Chichester Film Festival, England, August 4-27
- MOSTRA DEL CINEMA DI TARANTO/Italia, Taranto/Augusto 21-27
- LANE DOC FEST/ Tennessee/September 30 October 7
The complexity of the recording
The audio recording was extremely complex, it was recorded in Israel and Ukraine. Baruch Berliner was recorded in singing and prayer in Tel Aviv and in Kiev. Additionally in Kiev was also recorded a chamber orchestra and a Ukrainian boys choir singing in Hebrew and as a special innovation that we are so proud of – a contratenor singer, whose voice is integrated and synthesized with the deep and warm sound of a cello.
Special reason to compose a new version of “God full of mercy”
What was thespecial reason to compose a new version of “God full of Mercy”?
In light of the importance of the prayer “God full of Mercy”, a new musical arrangement and an original and moving cinematic adaptation of this important prayer, was prepared to raise awareness among viewers of the importance of the Holocaust in general and Babi Yar in special. We make every effort to remind and remember the bloody Holocaust, the greatest of tragedies that befell our nation.
Demilitarized zone
Baruch Berliner points out in particular that “God full of Mercy” was played in the demilitarized zone between South and North Korea in memory of the three million victims who fell in the Korean War
The filming of the movie “The Address on the Wall”
The filming of the movie “The Address on the Wall” took place in Babi Yar at the place where about 100,000 Jews were massacred in the last days of September 1941. Baruch Berliner,his wife Ruhama, the producer Nachum Slutzker and the late Chamutal, the wife of Alex Ansky, participated as extras in the filming of the movie.
It was for them extremely moving to walk the path of death together with many dozens of actors, pushed forward and abused by the Nazi soldiers and officers to the loud sounds of motorcycles, other vehicles and the barking of German dogs.
Of course,all of them were dressed in authentic clothes from that time.
Various instrumental and vocal versions
Well-known international musicians fell in love with the instrumental and vocal versions and performed them:
- The Russian/Israeli singer – Lev Elgardt
- The French violinist – Alexander Brusilovski
- The American cellist – Dmitry Yablonsky
- The Ecuadorian violinist – George Sa’ada
- The Hungarian violinist – Graf Murzha
- The Armenian violinist – Hayek Kazazian
- The Russian/Israeli cellist – Boris Andrianov
- The piece has been played in Israel, Italy, France, Croatia, Russia, Portugal, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, El Salvador and South Korea.
Plans for the near future
We are planning a worldwide performance on the International Holocaust Day that will take place on January 27th, 2024, when “God full of Mercy” will be performed by various instrumental ensembles with choirs and singers in different countries, in different languages, and even a performance by a ballet company is planned.
