Posted to Chabad News on

Audio: First Tanya Shiur on the Radio, 1960

Rabbi Yosef Wineberg, OBM, began delivering Shiurim in Tanya on the radio in 1960. These broadcasts would later be transcribed and published as the popular Lessons in Tanya series, which was translated into several languages.

These captivating broadcasts were tuned in to by thousands of Yiddish-speaking Jews throughout the New York City area. Among the program’s avid listeners were the Lubavitcher Rebbe and, until her passing in 1964, his mother, Rebbetzin Chana, OBM.

This morning, blogger Hirshel Tzig revealed that a recording of Rabbi Wineberg’s very first radio broadcast of Lessons in Tanya was discovered by one of the blog’s readers, who purchased the records from a peddler outside 770 Eastern Parkway.

From Hirshel Tzig’s Blog:

Received via e-mail:

“Today I bought these 2 records outside of 770. There is a guy that sells old seforim and shaimos sometimes and he had a bunch of old records.

I was looking for these for a long time. I have digitized them and I want you to put them up l’zchus harabim.

It says on the record that he made 3 records. If anyone has the third he should please send the recording, as we only have the first two. Put up the pictures of the records as well. This was hafotzas hamayonos 50 years ago!!!

Listen to chassidus in your own home. The person these came from probably was not a Lubavitcher, judging from the rest of his collection.”

– [This is a young Reb Yossel Weinberg, OBM. A real treat!]

Related Articles

10 Comments

  • BT Bubby

    This brings back good memories of living on the Upper West Side of Manhattan 40 years ago and listening to these shiurim on the radio. My Yiddish was sort of nonexistent, but Rabbi Wineberg’s speech was so clear and precise that I could pick out words here and there (not concepts). The warmth in his voice, and his ahava and yirah, mekareved me a lot, especially at the end of each shiur when he spoke about the Rebbe’s latest horaos and his voice became very excited. The Orthodox Jews I knew at the time, for the most part, taught Torah intellectually, not with this kind of enthusiasm. I craved it. B”H I found my way to Crown Heights eventually and am living happily ever after. Moshiach Now.

  • Yiddish - Lover

    BS”D

    What a pleasure……Rabbi Wineburg…..I am w/o words……

  • the bigger question?

    We know That R’ Yossel is gone? but the bigger question is why instead of continuing his legacy & The Shiurim they stopped.For those who don’t know at least several months ago maybe more they stopped the Shiurim I for one always looked forward to them even though there is easy access to many Shiurim by phone on line. Now we only get 30 min Of Shmuel Butman & the rest of the night is boring for the most part

  • Anonymous

    it seems that these recordings are not the original radio broadcasts, rather a re-recording done for the records.

    • thoughts...

      Why do you say that?

      Why could this not have been recorded in studio as he was broadcasting?

  • Nostalgia

    “A gute voch alle chosheve radio tzuherer.” Did I get that right?
    WEVD the station that speaks your language

  • maskim

    anonymous (#5) is right (it says so right on the jacket). but they are no less a treasure.