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Violins of Hope
NOTED S TO R Y BY RACHEL FREEMAN P H OTO BY W I L LOW TAY LO R C. Y. ’21 Violins Hope of
MUSICIANS will often say that they can feel the stories of the instruments as they play. On Feb. 11, Middle and Upper School students had an opportunity to see, learn about, and hear the Violins of Hope, a collection of string instruments that survived the Holocaust and have been refurbished by father and son violin-makers Amnon and Avshalom Weinstein. This stop at Nueva was part of the collection’s first-ever visit to the West Coast, and five of the 51 instruments brought from Tel Aviv were brought to Nueva.
“Our violins represent the victory of the human spirit over evil and hatred,” the Weinsteins shared on their website. “As many as 6 million Jews were murdered in World War II, but their memory is not forgotten. It comes back to life with every concert and every act of love and celebration of the human spirit.”
The presentation was led by sisters Rebecca and Elizabeth Jackson, who shared the story of violinist and Holocaust survivor David Arben. They took Middle and Upper School students through David’s journey, from his childhood in Warsaw and his time in a Nazi camp to his immigration to America and his time in the Philadelphia Orchestra. For each chapter, Rebecca played a selection of music from the Western classical music tradition because, she said, “Arben grew up in that tradition.” (Rebecca and Elizabeth gifted Nueva a copy of the biography of David Arben, written by Rebecca and her father, John.)
During the Q&A part of the presentation, many students asked insightful questions of Rebecca and Elizabeth. Eighth grader Sam P. asked, “Are there instances in which people come with their own violins to be repaired and they want to keep it?” To which Rebecca replied, “For this collection, all of the violins are donated or sold to Amnon and Avshalom. So, the owner has chosen to contribute to this collection.”
In response to a question from junior Willow Taylor C. Y. ’21
regarding the fragility of these violins, Rebecca answered, “I wouldn’t say they are more fragile than ones you’d pick up in a music shop. Every person, every instrument has a unique story, and these violins just have a story of significance that others may not.”
Following the presentation, a few Nueva violinists were invited to play one of these special violins. Matthew S. ’21 reflected, “It was a great experience to get to play one of these violins. This violin has a deep resonance that makes it feel like I’m playing it during the time period it came from.”
The Violins of Hope presentation captured the importance of music, and how music has helped people remain hopeful during times of deep pain and sorrow. For David, music is what got him through: “Music is life. Music is hope. Music is peace. I cannot ask for more.” [N]
OLIVIA BARBER, Upper School Science of Mind Teacher
A TEACHER’S PERSPECTIVE
“For 13 years, I was trained as a classical violinist. When I was 17, I quit my classical training and dived into playing world folk music. Through studying folk music, I have learned how to feel into the hearts, souls, and histories of global humanity. This way of playing has taught me how to create and relate from my heart, not my head. ¶ As I picked up that klezmer violin, my heart began to race and my mind went blank. The 20-plus year catalog of music escaped my mind and fingers. I was humbled by the fragile, scratched wood that holds the memory of the human capacity for resilience and the human capacity for heartbreak. I felt everything the Jewish musicians during the Holocaust poured into their music. Their love, their pain, their loss, their sorrow. ¶ Through holding that instrument I was able to transcend a history that I understood intellectually, and meet it on the most humanistic level— through feeling the love and suffering of the people. Allowing my emotion to flow through the same conduit through which survivors offered their prayers and final farewell to friends and families helped me tap into a greater expanse of emotion than I have ever thought possible. ¶ I am so grateful for the opportunity to tap into this vein of history and for the people who have protected and restored the Violins of Hope. ¶ For recognizing that to truly understand and prevent the history of genocide from repeating itself, the depth of human suffering it causes must be felt.”
