Violins of Hope Bring Stories of Survival Through Performances and Educational Discussion
- Alex Chan
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
Actual instruments that were performed in concentration camps during the Holocaust are on display at the Hilbert Museum, and upcoming at the Merage Jewish Community Center of OC.
These instruments have a story to tell because they are also survivors.
A collection of more than 60 string instruments owned by Jewish musicians before and during the Holocaust belong to Violins of Hope, a project that brings concerts, education and community engagements involving these instruments to many different cities throughout the U.S., in Germany and elsewhere.
The Philharmonic Society of Orange County will present Violins of Hope through various events continuing to take place in Orange County until June 10. This includes select Violins of Hope on display at the Hilbert Museum of California Art in Orange until May 31 and at the Merage Jewish Community Center of Orange County in Irvine from June 1 through June 9.
Violins of Hope founders and father and son duo Amnon and Avshalom Weinstein have dedicated years of their careers as luthiers to restoring the instruments and sharing the stories of where these instruments have been. With the passing of Amnon in March 2024, Avshalom, or Avshi, says the message he and his father hope to carry on through the project is for everyone to learn from the history these instruments have to tell.
During the Holocaust, official prisoner orchestras existed in Nazi concentration camps. These orchestras were comprised of many professional musicians who were made to play music for different purposes. This included performing in concerts for the guard unit that ran the camps and playing background music as prisoners were marched to their work assignments.
Amnon and Avshi Weinstein established Violins of Hope to collect these instruments that were used to humiliate Jewish people and restore them to honor what they truly represent – the victory of the human spirit.
“Each instrument has its own story,” Avshi said. “Some were played inside concentration camps and some were played in ghettos. It’s very important to have Holocaust education all over the world because it is not what it used to be.”
THE VIOLIN THAT LAUNCHED A LEGACY
The art of violin making spans several generations within Avshi’s family, starting with his grandfather who opened the family’s first workshop in Israel after World War II. He then passed on his knowledge of violin making to his son, Amnon.
According to Avshi, an apprentice of Amnon’s approached him with a violin from the Holocaust. Amnon then began acquiring more instruments connected to the Holocaust, putting a call out on the radio to ask anyone to contribute to the collection he was building. Over the years many violins, violas and cellos came to Amnon and his son Avshi, some given as gifts and others that were sold to them. Amnon then founded the Violins of Hope collection and project with Avshi to commemorate those who owned and played the instruments.
Making repairs to the instruments is a very thorough and time-consuming process. One instrument in the Violins of Hope collection took Avshi two years to restore.
Avshi has fixed many violins with cracks and reset necks of the instruments when they were out of place. Each piece of the violin needs to fit into the right angles and the right pressure, he said. Then there is varnish work to give the violins protective and decorative coating to preserve the unique features some of the instruments have, such as inlays depicting the six-sided star of David.
Today, instruments are still coming to Avshi.
EVENTS WITH EDUCATION
Instruments from the Violins of Hope collection have been played by esteemed musicians from all over the world. Only one is on long-term loan to virtuoso violinist Niv Ashkenazi, who will lead a performance and history discussion at a local school and the Holocaust Education Center of Orange County in Newport Beach as part of the Philharmonic Society of Orange County’s presentation of the project.
Ashkenazi’s engagements are one of many pieces of programming to take place under the Philharmonic Society and Violins of Hope in May and June.
The first function with the Violins of Hope instruments on display will be an opening event on Saturday, May 31 at the Hilbert Museum of California Art that will preview the week’s upcoming programs and include a discussion with Avshi and James Grymes, author of the “Violins of Hope” book about the instruments that were played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust, followed by a short performance from Ashkenazi.
Leaders from the Philharmonic Society of Orange County knew they wanted to collaborate with Violins of Hope after seeing the project presented in Long Beach during the pandemic, said Tommy Phillips, president and artistic director of the Philharmonic Society.
“These violins and the project are very sought after and they travel the globe regularly,” Phillips said. “Our goal is to enhance the lives of our community through music in this very unique and special presentation and to see these instruments as symbols of hope and perseverance.”
Developing the month-long programming was a community effort that involved the Jewish Federation of Orange County, public and private schools, musicians, and even Holocaust survivors.
“This partnership aspect has created community connections that are very meaningful because we were able to come together and think about how we can get these stories out there,” said Katherine Yang, vice president of education and community engagement at the Philharmonic Society. “These instruments survived this period of history and we have a chance to see and hear them. This project has deepened my learning of not only history, but of humanity.”
The public can experience a live performance with Violins of Hope instruments on Friday, June 6 at Laguna Art Museum in Laguna Beach, where Orange County Youth Symphony musicians will get the chance to play these instruments and give a short reading and description of each one being played.
In celebration of centuries-old Jewish folk traditions, people can also attend the “Songs & Stories of Hope” free family concert on June 1 at Soka Performing Arts Center in Aliso Viejo, which will present a performance of vibrant Jewish folk music from Eastern Europe, also known as Klezmer music.
Earlier in the week, more book talks for “Violins of Hope” with Grymes will be available through reservation on June 1 at Laguna Beach Books and on June 2 at the Hilbert Museum of California Art. Additional performances and discussions featuring the Violins of Hope instruments will take place throughout the week. Programming will end with a closing night quartet concert on June 10 at the University Synagogue in Irvine.
For a full schedule of events, visit https://www.philharmonicsociety.org/violinsofhope
