This is the cover of the sheet music for the composition "Mourning the Loss of Dr. Herzl" written by my great-grandfather on my mother’s side, Nohum Yasnogorodsky, after the death of Theodore Herzl, the founder of Zionism.
Nohum was born in Yasnogorodsk, near Kiev, and the family name comes from the name of this settlement. He received no formal education except cheder, but he became famous for his songs, for which he wrote both the words and music.
It is known that two rabbis were very favorably impressed by this song in particular. He was also a well known journalist in Kiev. He focused on Jewish topics in his articles and songs, telling of the lives of the Jewish community.
Nohum Yasnogorodky’s musical compositions are archived in the public libraries in Kiev and St. Petersburg. He perished during a pogrom in Kiev in either 1906 or 1914 (the exact date is unknown)
