About Violins of Hope

Violins of Hope is a project of concerts based on a private collection of violins, violas and cellos, all collected since the end of World War 2.  Many of the instruments belonged to Jews before and during the war.  Many were donated by or bought from survivors; some arrived through family members and many simply carry Stars of David as decoration.  

Some of the violins are adorned with six-sided stars that were added by the original violin makers. In the early twentieth century it was not uncommon for amateur violinists to purchase instruments customized with symbolic inlays. Growing up in Israel, violinmaker Amnon Weinstein met many Klezmer musicians who had purchased these pre-war instruments specifically for what they proudly identified as a Star of David. The more “Jewish” a violin looked, the klezmorim explained to Amnon, the more likely that the local Rabbi would recommend its owner be hired to play at a wedding — and the more likely that the performer would receive tips from the celebrants. 

While the provenances of these instruments are not always clear, they are symbols of Klezmer and other Jewish traditions that were all but completely destroyed during the Holocaust.  And all the Instruments have a common denominator as symbols of hope and a way to say:

Remember me, remember us.  Life is good, celebrate it for those who perished, for those who survived.  For all people.

Violin-makers Amnon and Avshalom Weinstein, father and son who work in Tel Aviv and Istanbul, own this collection.  They dedicate their expertise and endless love to ensure that these instruments, most of which were rather cheap and unsophisticated, get a new and beautiful make-over — which includes a fantastic sound worthy of the best musicians and concert halls.

The Nazis used music and especially violins to humiliate and degrade Jews in ghettos and camps.  They confiscated many thousands of instruments from Jews all over Europe.  Our concerts are the ultimate answer to their plan to annihilate a people and their culture, to destroy human lives and freedom. 

The sound of violins is often compared to the beauty of the human voice.  When played with talent and spirit, It is known to reach out and touch hearts.  This was the role of violins in the war – to touch hearts, kindle hope for better times and spread it around.   Wherever there was music, there was hope.

Our violins represent the victory of the human spirit over evil and hatred.  As many as 6 million Jews were murdered in WW2, 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. 

Violins of Hope is not only a memorial to a lost culture and people, it is also an educational act that reaches young students and adults wherever our concerts are performed.  In recent years some of the most world renowned orchestras have held Violins of Hope concerts, including the Berlin Philharmonic, the Cleveland Symphony and many others. 

Every concert brings together people of all faiths and backgrounds.  Every project is accompanied by an extensive educational program.  We visit schools and hold narrated concerts.  We tell the history of some instruments – such as the violin which was thrown out of a cattle train on the way from France to Auschwitz; the violin that was buried under snow in Holland; the violin that saved the lives of people who played in a camp orchestra and survived.  So many stories.

Our project also offers an exhibition of over 40 instruments and their individual stories. It has already been displayed as in Charlotte, NC; The Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage in Cleveland, OH; Nashville, TN; the lobby of the Berlin Philharmonic, Germany,  and many other places. So much history, so many sounds, so much memory.