Restored Holocaust violins coming to Birmingham

In April, Birmingham residents will have the chance to hear the Alabama Symphony Orchestra perform with a set of violins recovered and restored from the Holocaust.

The Violins of Hope began as the work of Amnon Weinstein, who moved to Tel Aviv, Israel, with his family as a child after World War II. Weinstein’s father repaired violins and he followed in his footsteps, until one day a man came to him with a violin that the man had played while imprisoned in a concentration camp.

“The customer survived the Holocaust because his job was to play the violin while Nazi soldiers marched others to their deaths. When Weinstein opened the violin’s case, he saw ashes. He thought of his own relatives who had perished, and was overwhelmed. He could not bring himself to begin the project,” the Violins of Hope website said.

Most of Weinstein’s family died during the Holocaust.

Beginning in 1996, Weinstein began to take on restoration projects for Holocaust violins that were brought to him, and they have become an educational tool that travels around the world. Thanks to the work of organizers Sallie Downs and Kay Donellan, as well as sponsors such as Jeffrey and Gail Bayer, the violins are coming to Birmingham in the spring.

“So the voices of the Holocaust and the people who died there are still being heard,” Donellan said. “Every voice needs to be heard regardless of who is speaking.”

Weinstein and his wife and son will bring the violins to Birmingham April 10-14. Donellan said their time in Birmingham will include youth programs at the Alys Stephens Center and student and teacher workshops, as well as a community lecture at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church on April 11 and a Sabbath service on April 13.

There will be two ticketed events to hear the Alabama Symphony Orchestra perform with the violins: a lecture and chamber music performance on April 12 and a performance at Alys Stephens Center, followed by an exhibit and reception, on April 14.

Donellan said the musical repertoire will include “Hatikvah,” the Israeli national anthem, and other songs of cultural significance for Israel.

Donellan said the goal of bringing the Violins of Hope to Birmingham is to “stimulate conversation about” respect, listening and inter-faith dialogue.

“This religious inter-faith dialogue is so important,” Donellan said.

For more information, visit violinsofhopecle.org. Tickets for the April performances are available at violinsofhopebham.org.