In the occupied territories of the National Socialist terror regime, the Romani prisoners in the camps expressed their experiences of genocide and their personal suffering in song. This musical heritage has been passed down to the present day and bears witness to local historical knowledge, personal knowledge of persecution and intergenerational elements of remembrance over the course of time.
As an example of the art of that time, three of these songs and their regional contexts of origin, their historical tradition through to contemporary music are understood theoretically and musically and
(re)interpreted by professional musicians, but also by young people, who complement them with their own compositions.
The results are the notated scores for a symphony orchestra, recorded with orchestra and choir, as a living reminder of the life and suffering of our ancestors.
The memory of the suffering of the Romani people in the concentration camps and during the Second World War lives on through these compositions, which become part of the cultural heritage of the Romani nation.
The author of the new musical arrangement is Dejan Jovanović, a professional musician of Romani origin. The songs are translated into Romanes and German.
This trilingual work in Serbian, Romani and German provides a profound insight into the history of the Romani people during the Second World War - told through the prism of our musical heritage.
The book sheds light on the little-known history of the living conditions and camps around Belgrade and documents Romani songs that bear witness to the brutal persecution. These poignant musical testimonies have survived the ages and are still sung today - as a living reminder and cultural memory.
Particularly valuable is the detailed presentation of the history of the creation of these songs and their conceptual reinterpretations over the course of time. The music becomes a medium of collective memory and shows how cultural heritage can be preserved and transformed despite unimaginable suffering.
An important contribution to the dignified documentation of Romani history, which has been preserved for generations through musical heritage as a form of resistance against forgetting and cultural memory.
The Silent Suffering of Roma People is a poignant exploration of the historical and ongoing marginalization, discrimination, and human rights violations experienced by the Romani people, particularly in Serbia. Drawing from personal testimonies, oral histories, and scholarly analysis, the book sheds light on the complex struggles and traumas rooted in both historical persecution—such as the often-overlooked Romani genocide (Samudaripen) during the Holocaust—and present-day social exclusion.
Central to the work is the role of narrative and memory, with a special emphasis on how life stories, particularly of Romani women, help reconstruct identity and resilience in the face of systemic injustice. The text discusses the importance of preserving these personal accounts to counter historical erasure.
The book also documents the painful process of deportation from Western Europe back to Eastern Europe, detailing the emotional and material hardship endured by Romani families as they navigate a hostile socio-political environment. These stories highlight themes of forced assimilation, loss, and the challenge of maintaining dignity and cultural identity under oppressive conditions.
Through a combination of scholarly context and powerful lived experiences, The Silent Suffering of Roma People serves as both a call for justice and a preservation of memory, offering a voice to a community too often silenced.
