Works
In the poetry of Tchernichovsky there is a blend of the influences of Jewish cultural heritage and world cultural heritage. He writes on Hebrew subjects as in "In Endor", a poem about King Saul. Saul comes to the witch of Endor, who dramatically describes Saul's condition at the end of his life. Tchernichovsky particularly identified with the character of Saul, perhaps due to his own name. He further describes in the poem the tragic fall of Saul and his sons on Mount Gilboa. In contrast, in the poem "Before a Statue of Apollo", the poet proves his affinity for Greek culture, identifying with the beauty it represents, even bowing down to it.
Tchernichovsky is the Hebrew poet who is identified more than any other Hebrew poet with the sonnet. He introduced the crown of sonnets (Hebrew: כליל סונטות) into the Hebrew language as a "sonnet" built of fifteen sonnets in which the final sonnet consists of the first lines of the other fourteen sonnets. Each of his crowns of sonnets concerns a particular topic, such as "On Blood" or "To the Sun".
Even with his yen for world culture, Tchernichovsky is identified with the fate of his people. In response to the Holocaust he wrote the poems "The Slain of Tirmonye" and "Ballads of Worms" that brought into expression his heart's murmurings concerning the tragic fate of the Jewish people.
Toward the end of his life he composed some poems that are centered on images from his childhood point of view. These poems, which can properly be termed idylls, are regarded by many as his most splendid poetic works. Some even believe that Tchernichovsky's idylls serve as an example and a model for all of the idylls that have been written in the Hebrew language.
Many of his poems have been set to music by the best Hebrew popular composers, such as Yoel Angel and Nahum Nardi. Singer-songwriters have also set his lyrics to music, as Shlomo Artzi did for They Say There Is a Land (omrim yeshna eretz, אומרים ישנה ארץ), which is also well known in the settings of Angel and of Miki Gavrielov. Oh My Land My Birthplace (hoy artzi moladeti, Hebrew: הו ארצי מולדתי) is better known in the setting by Naomi Shemer, as arranged by Gil Aldema. Shalosh atonot (Three Jenny-asses, Hebrew: שלוש אתונות) also became a popular song.
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