MUSIC IN THERESIENSTADT
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| Remembering the Bialystok Children |
In the framework of the meeting "Phenomenon Holocaust" a concert titled "Childrens Dirges" was given at the Terezin church on October 5, 1999. It was in remembrance of the children of ghetto Bialystok who were brought in summer 1943 to the Theresienstadt ghetto - according to rumors they were destined for exchange and were due to go to Switzerland. In fact they were murdered together with their instructors in the Birkenau gas chambers. Among the accompanying adults was Kafka's beloved sister Otla David. The concert was given by a children's choir from Poland, a Czech children's choir and the Bavarian Youth Orchestra under the baton of Martin Turnovsky. In addition to Gustav Mahler's work, which gave the event its title, the repertoire included also the "Children's Mass". The concert was initiated by the Hans Krasa Foundation.
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| 100th Birthday of Krasa and Haas |
In honor of the 100th birthday of Hans Krasa and Pavel Haas, Theresienstadt composers who did not survive, a concert with their works was given on June 17, 1999, at the Berliner Konzerthaus. The string quartet "Rimsky - Korsakov" from St. Peterburg played. The concert was organized by "Musica re Animata", the "Initiative Hans Krasa", the "Association of Friends and Supporters of the Theresienstadt Initiative" in Hamburg. Dr. Pavel Eckstein, Prague, gave a talk about Krasa and Haas.
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On November 29, 1999, a concert was given at the hall of the former "Magdeburg" barracks in Terezin honoring the 100th birthday of Krasa and Haas. The string quartet "Rimsky-Korsakov" from St. Peterburg played. The composition of the young Czech composer Sylvie Bodorova "Terezin Ghetto Requiem", inspired by the ghetto performance of Verdi's "Requiem" in 1944 was performed, too.
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| Works by Composers who Perished in the Holocaust |
A competition for the performance of works by composers who perished in the Holocaust was held on September 26, 1999, at Yad Vashem, together with the Rubin Academy for Music and Dance. The chairman of the Terezin Memorial Music Project (TMMP) Prof. David Bloch was the music consultant and also member of the jury. The jury included also Prof. Emily Berendsen, Mira Zakai, Shmuel Magen, Allan Sternfield, Ora Shiran and Edith Kraus.
The repertoire was divided into 3 categories - solo piano, voice and piano and chamber music. First price - Michael Zuckerman, violin, Amir Van der Hal, viola and Ayala Nicole Seidelman, cello, performing works by H. Krasa and G. Klein. Second price was awarded to Meirav Barnea, soprano and Natalie Zacharov, piano, who performed two works by V. Ullmann. Victoria Zlotkin, piano, who played works by Erwin Schulhof received an honorable mention. In the evening the winners gave a concert at the auditorium of Yad Vashem.
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On December 7, 1999, marking the 80th anniversary of Gideon Klein who was deported in autumn 1944 from ghetto Terezin to Auschwitz and perished there aged 25, the same participants gave a concert in the Clairemont Hall of Tel Aviv university. Two more works enriched the repertoire: Gideon Klein's Duo for Viola and Cello (his last, unfinished work) and Mendelsohn's Trio for Piano - the work included in the Nazi propaganda film about the "model ghetto".
The concert was presented by the Musicology Department of Tel Aviv university, Yad Vashem and TMMP. It was recorded and will be broadcast shortly by the Isr. radio channel "Kol Hamusica". It was reviewed by "Haaretz" and a reporter from the military radio station interviewed Prof. Bloch and some of the musicians. For the participants the competition and the concerts were a very meaningful experience and they all intend to continue studying and performing works by these composers.
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| Gideon Klein's Sister Prof. Eliska Kleinova |
(Lisa Klein, as she was known to her friends in the ghetto), musicologist, died on September 2, 1999, in Prague, aged 87. Since the liberation Lisa devoted her life - in addition to educating children to love music - to search for compositions by her brother. She did her utmost, so his work would not be forgotten and she succeeded. The publication "Terezinska iniciativa" wrote in November 1999, that Lisa took part in the design of the music exhibition, created at the "Magdeburg" barracks in Terezin some 2 years ago. She donated her whole collection to the Prague Jewish Museum and a few works by G. Klein to "Pamatnik Terezin".
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