The Florida Holocaust Museum and the Florida Orchestra are holding its “Violins of Hope” concert on March 20 at the Palladium Theater in St. Petersburg.
The “Violins of Hope” is an international project aimed at honoring the lives of Holocaust victims through music. The organization has collected 70 string instruments from the Holocaust-era that survived Nazi concentration camps during World War II.
The performance in St. Petersburg will include four violins, two violas, and two cellos from the collection.
Israeli violin maker, Amnon Weinstein, and his son Avshalom “Avshi” restored the instruments for the concert. In a press release, Avshi said the instruments represent a message of courage.
“These instruments once offered solace in unimaginable darkness, sometimes saving lives,” said Avshi. “Silenced by the events of the Holocaust, these instruments have been given a voice again and will live on forever to carry messages of survival and resilience.”
The concert will be driven by a double-string quarteret led by principal cellist and conductor Yoni Draiblate.
Drailblate has performed in some of the Orchestra’s biggest stages. The Israeli native has Carnegie Hall, the Kimmel Center, and the Philharmonie Berlin attached to his resume.
Like the Weinsteins, Draiblate is also an Israeli native. He told WMNF the performance is amongst his most important because of the historical significance.
“You’re taking the personal story of those instruments, my personal story as an Israeli and a Jew and the fact that it’s somewhat of a more intimate setting,” Draiblate said. “That in itself is even more amazing than some performances I’ve done.”
Draiblate said pieces from composers Johann Sebastian Bach and Felix Mendelssohn will be amongst the music played, just as they were in the concentration camps.
Before the concert, a pre-show VIP event will take place. Attendees will have the chance to meet Avshi and learn more about the history of Holocaust-era instruments.
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