Forbidden Music Regained


Leo Smit Stichting
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Hèlpt de wereld bóuwen!

By Martha Dekker-Belinfante

genre
Vocal music
instrumentation
Voice and piano (voice pf)
year
1944
status
published score
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Details

The Hague, 17 January 1944

'Help build the world!' (a simple song, dedicated to those who are of good will)

Words by Martha Belinfante-Dekker

Part of 'Three illegal songs, distributed and sung during occupation

Published by G. Alsbach & Co

About Martha Belinfante-Dekker

Martha Belinfante-Dekker

Martha Dekker, sister of the author Maurits Dekker, led a clandestine existence in hiding in Rotterdam, survived the war and was awarded for her resistance work. She was known for the so-called SD-performances (Singing and Declamation), the Belinfante Method  (after the war renamed as the Belinfante-Dekker Method) focusing on a conscious use of breathing (from the diaphragm) and voice. Martha set her own poems to lyrical dramas, tailored to this method. People suffering from asthma benefitted from her approach. Her work as speech therapist, singing teacher and composer of folk songs, cantatas and resistance songs, has an historical value.