Violins Rescued From Holocaust To Be Played At Norwalk City Hall

Information via the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra

NORWALK, CT — A collection of string instruments rescued from the Holocaust will be featured in a unique performance by the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra this weekend.

According to a news release provided by the NSO, the one-night-only event, taking place Saturday at 7 p.m. at City Hall in Norwalk, serves as the centerpiece of a week-long Fairfield County visit filled with cultural exhibits, performances and community education with a message of hope, resilience and unity.

The concert is the highlight of the first-ever local visit of Violins of Hope, which will appear at high schools, synagogues and churches throughout Greater Fairfield County, according to NSO.

Violins of Hope is a private collection of violins, violas and cellos painstakingly restored by the late Amnon Weinstein and his son, Avshalom, violinmakers based in Tel Aviv and Istanbul.

According to NSO, the instruments belonged to Jews before and during the Holocaust, and in some cases were played in concentration camps or desperately thrown from cattle cars in a bid to preserve them from the Nazis.

"With the startling rise of antisemitism and swastikas etched on lockers in our schools, our role in the community is more important than ever," Shelley Kreiger, founding director of the Holocaust Resource Center of the Jewish Federation of Greater Fairfield County, said in a news release. "The Nazis used music to humiliate and degrade Jews in ghettos and camps. The NSO concert, and the entire Violins of Hope program, are the ultimate answer to their plan to annihilate a people and instead represent the victory of the human spirit over evil and hatred."

"Norwalk Symphony Orchestra is truly honored to join with the Jewish Federation of Greater Fairfield County to bring music to life using the Violins of Hope for our community," Executive Director Sandra Miklave said in a news release. "We know the healing power of music, and this is multiplied as we play these truly historic instruments. It will be a meaningful and uplifting experience for both the audience and the musicians on the stage."

The Norwalk Symphony Orchestra will also partner with the Jewish Federation for a children's concert and instrument "petting zoo" Sunday at Sacred Heart University's Discovery Science Center and Planetarium in Bridgeport, which will also include science demos and musical activities for young families.

All proceeds from the two events will support the educational work of the Holocaust Resource Center of Greater Fairfield County, according to NSO.

Violins of Hope has been featured in print, film and television. The instruments have been used in educational programs worldwide, exhibited in museums, and triumphantly played in concert halls around the globe, from Berlin and Tel Aviv to Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., according to NSO.

The entire Violins of Hope visit, coordinated by the Jewish Federation of Greater Fairfield County, is underwritten in part by generous donations from Andy and Carol Boas, Emil and Toby Meshberg, Bob and Barbara Scinto and Congregation Rodeph Sholom, according to NSO.

Tickets for Saturday's concert can be purchased here. Tickets for the children's program, scheduled to take place from 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., can be purchased here.