Violins of Hope: Press Information
This page is for members of the media to use in reference to Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust.
Media Contact:
Marissa Norris, Communications Coordinator
216.916.6318 | marissa.norris@ideastream.org
Documentary Vitals:
Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust
Directed by Lance K. Shultz
A WVIZ/PBS ideastream Production
Approved Logos:
Click on logo for full-size version.
Approved Images:
Click on image for full-size version.
Klezmer music students Danny and Darby showing off the restored Violins of Hope they had the opportunity to learn the history of and play for Cleveland community members.
The violins were put on display in a special exhibit at the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage in Cleveland.
Some of the Violins of Hope on display at the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage.
Community members had the opportunity to learn about the history of the violins and see them up close while on exhibit.
The Cleveland Orchestra played a concert featuring the violins and honoring the work of Amnon Weinstein, who was in the audience.
The performance was held at the opening of Silver Hall in the Milton and Tamar Maltz Performing Arts Center on the campus of Case Western Reserve University.
Violin virtuoso Shlomo Mintz was the featured soloist of The Cleveland Orchestra concert.
Cleveland Orchestra Music Director Franz Welser-Möst conducted the concert highlighting the violins.
About the Documentary:
Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust, narrated by Academy Award-winner Adrien Brody, is a documentary featuring Israeli violinmaker Amnon Weinstein and his efforts to restore violins recovered from the Holocaust. Some were played by Jewish prisoners in concentration camps; others belonged to the Klezmer musical culture, which was all but destroyed by the Nazis. From their amazing stories and Weinstein’s mission to collect and restore the instruments comes the inspiration for this one-hour documentary. For more details on the documentary, view the fact sheet.
About the Violinmaker:
Amnon Weinstein, one of the most respected violinmakers in the world, has spent the last two decades locating and restoring violins that were played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust. His work began with locating violins that were silenced by the Holocaust and painstakingly piecing them back together so they could be brought to life again on the concert stage. Learn more about his journey here.
About ideastream:
ideastream is the consolidation of eight different programs and services that had previously been independently managed: WVIZ/PBS, with 4 channels of public TV service, and training for teachers and caregivers in the use of technology for education; 90.3 WCPN, Northeast Ohio’s NPR news and public affairs station; WCLV Classical 104.9, Civic Commons, a community engagement platform; management on behalf of Ohio’s public broadcasting stations of the Ohio Public Radio and Television Statehouse News Bureau and The Ohio Channel, a statewide public affairs television channel available by broadcast and on the web; management on behalf of a consortium of local K-12 school systems of NOTA (North Ohio Technology Association, a broadband interactive distance learning network for K-12 schools) and SMART (Science and Math Achievement Required for Tomorrow), a professional development program for teachers.