Sunday, September 28, 2008

16 violins rescued from Holocaust play again

From Yahoo News, by SHAWNA OHM, Associated Press, Thu Sep 25:

Sixteen violins found in Nazi concentration camps and abandoned Jewish communities after World War II have made music together for the first time in a concert outside the walls of Jerusalem's Old City.

The violins were restored by Israeli violin maker Amnon Weinstein, who repairs violins left behind by Jews who were taken away by Nazis ...

...The concert began with Weinstein picking up each of the 16 violins and handing it to the violinist who would be playing it....

...A centerpiece of the event was a violin organizers say was once owned by a 12-year-old boy named Motele. They said Motele played for German officers while hiding with a group of Jewish rebels on the Russian front. He is said to have hidden his violin in the German compound and used its case to smuggle in explosives to help the Russian Jewish irregular forces retake the town.

The concert ended Wednesday evening with a 12-year-old boy playing the Israeli national anthem on Motele's violin in commemoration of Israel's 60th anniversary this year....

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