Sinfoniekonzert der Neuen Philharmonie Westfalen: An die Völker der Erde

Bohuslav Martinů was a Czech composer of Jewish origin who is an important representative of neoclassicism. During his exile in the United States, he composed “Memorial to Lidice” to commemorate the atrocities committed by occupying Nazi forces in the small Czech village of Lidice.

In 1880, Max Bruch was inspired by cellist Robert Hausmann to create “Kol Nidrei.” As the central lament during Jom Kippur, the highest Jewish holiday, it allows the lead celloist to a full range of expression that evokes deep emotions.

The Austrian-German composer Norbert Glanzberg, born in 1910, had to flee to Paris in 1933, where he faced incredible hardships as an unemployed Jewish musician. In the 1980s he set Bernd Jentzsch’s poetry to music, among them Holocaust songs.

Sergei Prokofiev’s Symphony no. 6 is one of the late works of the Soviet pianist and composer. Created in 1947, two years after the end of World War II, it is an opulent and melodic piece that presents a sharp contrast to his earlier harsh and sarcastic works.

Programme:

Bohuslav Martinů (1890–1959) Memorial to Lidice

Max Bruch (1838–1920) Kol Nodrei für Violoncello und Orchester op. 47

Norbert Glanzberg (1910–2001) Holocaust-Lieder (Auszüge): Ofen von Lublin, Die letzte Epiphanie, Versprich mir eins, Transport, An die Völker der Erde

Sergei Prokofjew (1891–1953) Sinfonie Nr. 6 es-moll op. 11