Spring 2009

We have sad news to report. On Wednesday, March 26, 2009, Luba Tryszynska-Frederick passed away. Loretta wrote a song about her titled "Angel of Bergen-Belsen," and recorded it on our 2006 CD, "Just My Heart For You." She was an amazing, courageous woman who saved 54 children from the Nazis while she herself was a prisoner in Bergen-Belsen during World War II.

She heard crying outside her barracks one freezing night, and looked out to see 54 children who had been dumped in the snow to die. She took them all inside, and begged a guard to let her take care of them. Miraculously, she kept 52 of them alive till the end of the war several months later. There were no food or even drinking water rations for children, but she stole, and did whatever she had to to keep them alive. After the war she became known as the Angel of Bergen-Belse. You can read more about her story, and our first trip to visit her here.

Read about the Luba Tour * Read about the Angel of Bergen-Belsen

We were honored to know this real-life heroine. We first read about her in a newspaper article in 2000. After Loretta wrote the song, we searched for her, and found her living in a suburb of Miami. Luba invited us to come visit, and we made four trips to Florida between 2003 and 2006. We stayed with her on the first three trips. She was the perfect hostess, feeding us, teaching us Yiddish songs, taking us to Bingo night at the retirement village where she lived, and getting Loretta to wear perfume and jewelry. A very outspoken woman, she didn't like the fact that Loretta was going to a gig unadorned!

We will miss Luba terribly. Since we first made contact with her, we've called her every couple of weeks. She was not absolutely sure of her age,having been born in a very small village in Poland, but since she said she was 23 when she saved the children, we figure she was about 88 when she died. Luba lived a long life, but the last few years, she was in ill health. We trust she has found peace now. I'm sure she's up in heaven singing and making people eat! The Angel of Bergen-Belsen has taken her place among the angels.

Fall 2008: Curtis & Loretta Christmas CD

We're very happy to announce the re-release of our holiday recording, "Christmastide with Curtis & Loretta." First released as a cassette tape in 1991, it was recorded live in the studio, with no overdubs. It was out of print for several years. Now, it's been digitally remastered, and born again as a CD! There's twelve of your favorite Christmas carols on it, with sweet vocal harmonies and traditional turn-of-the-century instruments. Curtis plays mandocello, mandolin and guitar. Loretta plays folk harp, guitar, and mandolin. And on the lighter, Santa Claus songs, Loretta plays an awesome little acoustic keyboard called a celeste. Invented in the early 1800s, it sounds like bells when played, and it's perfect for Santa Claus songs! Curtis joins in here on harmonica. Like all our recordings, the mood travels from poignant, to inspiring, to downright fun.

So check out this CD, and be sure to sing along!

Summer 2008: Celebrating Minnesota's Musical Heritage

What better way to celebrate summer than to meet where the Rivers meet -- and enjoy a picnic supper, accompanied by songs that were sung by our grandparents? Join us at the junction of the Mississippi and the Minnesota for beautiful scenery and beautiful music. Curtis and Loretta will present songs from the new Minnesota Heritage Songbook on Thursday, August 14 on Picnic Island at Fort Snelling State Park. This Sesquicentennial event celebrates our first European immigrants; Minnesota's Civil War soldiers; our loggers, miners, and farmers; and all the other people who settled Minnesota.

Make your plans now to join us at 6:30 pm on Thursday, August 14 with your picnic supper for an exciting evening hearing and singing along with the songs of our ancestors. This family-hour Sesquicentennial concert and the Minnesota Heritage Songbook are funded by the Minnesota Sesquicentennial Commission and the Friends of Fort Snelling. A State Park sticker is required for admission to the park, but otherwise the event is free. Information: 612-725-2724.

For more information about the Friends of Fort Snelling, visit the www.FortSnelling.org.. For more about Fort Snelling State Park, visit State Park Web Site.

News Winter 2008

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These 5 songs are from a concert we did at The Back Room at the Barton Arts Center in Great Bend, Kansas in November.

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