Violins of Hope: New Orleans

Music brings together people of all backgrounds, unifying them for the measures and notes of a song. Music is also an especially powerful educational tool—something visitors to The National WWII Museum will experience firsthand when the Violins of Hope arrive in New Orleans in January 2023. 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 II, many of which belonged to Jews before and during the war.

January 24, 2023 to January 28, 2023
Learn More + Add to calendar 2023-01-24 12:00:00 AM 2023-01-28 12:00:00 AM America/Mexico_City The National WWII Museum 945 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70130 Violins of Hope: New Orleans Music brings together people of all backgrounds, unifying them for the measures and notes of a song. Music is also an especially powerful educational tool—something visitors to The National WWII Museum will experience firsthand when the Violins of Hope arrive in New Orleans in January 2023. 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 II, many of which belonged to Jews before and during the war.
Location: The National WWII Museum
945 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70130

Music brings together people of all backgrounds, unifying them for the measures and notes of a song. Music is also an especially powerful educational tool—something visitors to The National WWII Museum will experience firsthand when the Violins of Hope arrive in New Orleans in January 2023. 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 II, many of which belonged to Jews before and during the war.

For the project’s first appearance in New Orleans, The National WWII Museum will host Violins of Hope in commemoration of International Holocaust Remembrance Day 2023, which is sponsored by Taube Philanthropies as part of the Taube Family Holocaust Education Program. During its limited-time display from January 24 to January 28, 2023, Museum Members and visitors will have the opportunity to view these priceless instruments in US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center, experience performances with a preserved violin in partnership with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, and learn more about the work the Weinstein family has done to ensure that these instruments are used as an educational resource and memorial for generations to come.

Violins of Hope: New Orleans is a project of The National WWII Museum and Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra.

About Violins of Hope:
Violins of Hope, a project of concerts and educational programming, aims to teach audiences about the Holocaust through music and culture using a private collection of violins, violas, and cellos rescued from the Holocaust and lovingly restored by father-son team and renowned violin makers Amnon and Avshi Weinstein. Each of these instruments belonged to Jewish musicians before and during the war. Many were donated by or bought from survivors, some arrived through family members, and several simply carry Stars of David as a decoration and an identity tag.

Each instrument tells a story—from the violin that was thrown out of a cattle train on the way from France to Auschwitz to the violin that was buried under snow in Holland to the violin that saved the lives of people who played in a concentration camp orchestra. These instruments serve as a testament to death, survival, and hope.

Through the display and playing of these instruments, Violins of Hope is a moving tribute to the more than six million Jews who were murdered in the Holocaust. The Weinsteins have dedicated their expertise and passion to ensuring that these instruments are preserved for future generations to enjoy and reflect on their significance to history.

For Amnon Weinstein, the restoration of these violins has been a labor of love, dedicated to family members who perished in the Holocaust. His father, also an expert violin maker, immigrated to Palestine in 1938, leaving behind 400 relatives in Eastern Europe—all of whom were killed in the Holocaust. More than anyone, the Weinsteins understand the virtuosity and spirit of those musicians who were silenced by the Holocaust, and whose memories now live on through the carefully restored instruments.

Schedule of Events:

Wednesday, January 25, to Saturday, January 28, 2023
Violins of Hope Exhibit on Display

US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center, The National WWII Museum
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily

Wednesday, January 25, 2023
Lunchbox Lecture: Violins of Hope

Karen H. Bechtel and William M. Osborne III Media Auditorium, Hall of Democracy, The National WWII Museum
11:30 a.m. Doors Open
12:00 p.m. Program

Thursday, January 26, 2023
Orpheum Session: The Violins of Hope

The Orpheum Theater, 129 Roosevelt Way, New Orleans, LA 70112
6:00 p.m. Doors Open
6:30 p.m. Pre-Concert Talk
7:30 p.m. Concert

Friday, January 27, 2023
International Holocaust Remembrance Day Student Webinar

Zoom Webinar
1:00 p.m. Program

Friday, January 27, 2023
International Holocaust Remembrance Day Commemorative Program

US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center, The National WWII Museum
5:00 p.m. Reception
6:00 p.m. Program (In-Person and Livestreamed)

Saturday, January 28, 2023 - SOLD OUT
Music at the Museum: Violins of Hope
US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center, The National WWII Museum
6:30 p.m. Reception
7:30 p.m. Program

Tuesday, January 24, 2023 - SOLD OUT
Violins of Hope Exhibit Opening Reception and Program

US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center, The National WWII Museum
5:00 p.m. Reception
6:00 p.m. Program (In-Person and Livestreamed)