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.
