DUETS OF REMEMBRANCE: _Brundibár_, Mendelssohn & Violins of Hope
New West SYMPHONY REMEMBERS THE HOLOCAUST WITH TWO CONCERTS THAT HONOR
THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LIBERATION OF CONCENTRATION CAMPS. The
first program, _Dreams_, features _Brundibár_ (Czech for
“bumblebee”), which was performed by kids at the Jewish Orphanage
in Prague before Nazis began transporting Czech Jews to Terezin in
1942. A score of the opera was smuggled into the camp in 1943, where
Hans Krása orchestrated it for the musicians in the camp. Seeing the
propaganda potential, the Nazi regime sponsored a documentary
featuring productions of the opera as they performed for the Red Cross
International inspectors in September 1944. Two weeks later artists in
the production were transported to Auschwitz, but the beautiful memory
of the production lives on in performances today. The second piece is
by the often-overlooked child prodigy, Felix Mendelssohn, who was 16
years old when he wrote the overture to _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_
to accompany a reading of the Shakespeare comedy in the Mendelssohn
family home. 17 years later, the king of Prussia asked Mendelssohn to
write music for a production of the entire play, and that score has
echoed throughout history, including the ubiquitous “Wedding
March.” The second concert spotlights Violins of Hope, a project by
Israeli Amnon Weinstein who lovingly and painstakingly restored
instruments owned by Holocaust victims, adding ornate decorations and
stars of David. These instruments enjoy renewed life on the stage as
part of Violins of Hope, in a piece written just for them: Jonathan
Leshnoff’s Symphony No. 4 “Heichalos.” Pianist Olga Stern also
performs.
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01/03/2020 Last update