Concert carries on the memory and music of the Jewish orchestra that persevered during 1930s Germany.
MusicaNova Orchestra is teaming up with NPR's Martin Goldsmith and Scottsdale Center for the Arts for a special concert, Winter Journey and The Inextinguishable Symphony on January 22 at 6 pm.
Tickets are $54, $36, $18 and are on sale at scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
The concert features a screening of the film, Winter Journey, that tells the story of NPR host Martin Goldsmith's parents, who emigrated to America in 1941 after playing in the Jüdische Kulturbund, (Jewish Cultural Association) in Germany.
The Jüdische Kulturbund was a little-known aspect of Nazi Germany in which a remarkable ensemble of Jewish artists was maintained as an insidious Nazi propaganda tool.
Following the film, MusicaNova Orchestra will perform Carl Nielsen's Inextinguishable Symphony, the last piece the Jewish orchestra rehearsed before it was shut down by the Gestapo in 1941. The orchestra will also be joined by local choirs for Jean Sibelius' magnificent Finlandia and will include a Q & A with Mr. Goldsmith.
Known for performing lost or little known masterpieces of classical music, MusicaNova Orchestra is celebrating its 20th Anniversary this season.
"In many ways Winter Journey and The Inextinguishable Symphony exemplifies what I dreamed the orchestra's purpose would be when we first started in 2002," says MusicaNova Orchestra Founder and Artistic Director Warren Cohen. "So many glorious pieces of music that need to be heard, so many pieces of important history that must be preserved.
"We're thrilled to be able to perform The Inextinguishable Symphony to keep the memory and music of these brave artists alive. And to inspire us all by experiencing the beautiful music that persevered in the face of unspeakable darkness."
For more information on MusicaNova Orchestra, its concerts, and its work in the community, visit musicanovaaz.org.
Martin Goldsmith is the author of The Inextinguishable Symphony: A True Story of Music and Love in Nazi Germany, which tells the riveting story of the Kulturbund, an all-Jewish performing arts ensemble maintained by the Nazis between 1933 and 1941, an ensemble that included Mr. Goldsmith's parents. The Inextinguishable Symphony is the basis of the acclaimed 2019 film Winter Journey, co-written by Mr. Goldsmith, directed by Anders Ostergaard, and starring Bruno Ganz in his very last film. Mr. Goldsmith is also the author of Alex's Wake: A Voyage of Betrayal and a Journey of Remembrance, the story of his grandfather and uncle, who were two of the more than 900 passengers on the ill-fated Jewish refugee ship St. Louis in 1939, and his own six-week journey in their footsteps in 2011. Mr. Goldsmith also wrote and performed six Composer Portraits (in-depth stories of the lives and music of Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Dvorak, and Copland) on stage at the John F. Kennedy Center with conductor Leonard Slatkin and the National Symphony Orchestra.
Martin Goldsmith has been a classical music radio programmer and presenter for more than fifty years. He semi-retired three years ago from Sirius XM Satellite Radio in Washington, DC, where he now hosts music programs on weekend afternoons. He was the company's initial director of classical music programming, beginning in 2000. For ten years, from 1989 to 1999, he served as the host of "Performance Today," National Public Radio's daily classical music program. During Mr. Goldsmith's tenure as host, PT won the coveted Peabody Award for broadcasting.
Videos