Wigmore Hall to repeat Anita’s Bundestag address

Wigmore Hall to repeat Anita’s Bundestag address

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norman lebrecht

April 22, 2018

press release:

 

Wigmore Hall Director John Gilhooly has invited Holocaust survivor and cellist Anita Lasker-Wallfisch to speak at a specially-programmed concert at Wigmore Hall following her recent address to the Bundestag in Berlin.

For this extraordinary event, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch – a survivor of Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen – will describe her life story and the importance of learning from one of history’s darkest chapters. She is joined on stage by her son, the acclaimed cellist Raphael Wallfisch and the pianist John York for music by Bloch, Ravel and Korngold.

The event will be filmed and live-streamed via Wigmore Hall’s website.

Gilhooly felt compelled to bring Anita Lasker-Wallfisch’s message to London saying:

“After I saw Anita Lasker-Wallfisch’s address to the Bundestag, I felt it had to be heard in London, so I invited her to give the address in English at Wigmore Hall. As a non-Jewish leader working in the arts, I feel it’s necessary to give a public platform wherever possible to highlight the dangers of anti-Semitism, and I am puzzled as to why other non-Jewish voices have yet to speak out. After all, the Jewish diaspora has done so much for this country, in the arts, sciences, politics, medicine and not least philanthropy. Anita’s words are so important to hear, as history has shown, time and again, that where anti-Semitism, racism and extreme views are on the rise, dark times are usually never far behind. Combined with powerful and appropriate music, this very special event is presented as a timely lesson for all generations and creeds.”

In her address to the Bundestag, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch said:

“Anti-Semitism is a virus which is two thousand years old and apparently incurable […] No other genocide is as comprehensively documented as the Holocaust. And yet there are still the deniers, people who claim that all the accounts are fabricated and that the Holocaust never happened […] There are no excuses and no explanations for what happened all those years ago. All that remains is hope: the hope that ultimately, one day, reason will prevail.”

Comments

  • Basia Jaworski says:

    A bit about Anita Lasker-Wallfisch and her sons:

    https://basiaconfuoco.com/2016/05/26/muziek-als-redding-voice-in-wildernis/

  • Malcolm Kottler says:

    There are several documentary movies including Anita Lasker, YouTube videos of her talks and interviews with her, and she has written her own book (“Inherit the Truth”) about her experience in Birkenau and Belsen.

    I have long hoped that Anita Lasker would come to the US to speak. Maybe she has already done so in the last 20 years, but maybe not.

    I am very much looking forward to watching online the Wigmore Hall concert/talk, and if Anita Lasker could do the same in the US, that would be wonderful.

    • Dave T says:

      Anita Lasker-Wallfisch was in the United States approximately 15 years ago (though perhaps a bit more). I do not know of all the places that she spoke, however.

  • Ellingtonia says:

    Let us hope that Jezza and the antisemites in the Labour Party have the balls to go to this event and listen to the testimony of a holocaust survivor. However, I suspect that Corbyn will have a “previous engagement” scheduled for that evening, probably having tea and sandwiches with representatives of hamas (yes, the ones who want to eradicate Israel from the map and murder all Jews).

    • Will Duffay says:

      This is pathetic nonsense. Corbyn is not anti-semitic. I’ll say no more here, as it really isn’t the place.

      • Saxon Broken says:

        No, he probably isn’t personally. But he presides over a culture within the labour party which is, and he seems to care little about this situation since these people are among his core supporters in the party.

  • Ringo says:

    Gotta see that!

  • Rob van der Hilst says:

    Well, thinking about antisemites just one thing is relevant: #MortAuxCons
    No more, no less.

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