ICC Jerusalem hosts Holocaust tribute concert

Following Holocaust Remembrance Day 27 January, the International Convention Center (ICC) in Jerusalem hosted a tribute concert on 15 April. The concert was led by world known Ashdod Symphony Orchestra, plus musicians from JNF UK (Britain’s oldest Israel charity), Bikurim Performing Arts School and Yerucham Conservatory. “As the State of Israel prepares to celebrate its 70th anniversary, the concert is a tribute to the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust, but also a timely reminder of the enduring defiance and hope of the Jewish people,” said Samuel Hayek, chairman JNF UK. During the holocaust musicians kept playing and secretly composing in the hope that someday, their music would be played again. For more than three decades, professor Francesco Lotoro (left with Mira Altman, CEO of ICC) scoured the world looking for the hidden manuscripts and memories of the holocaust survivors. The majority of the music is surprisingly joyful, despite the desperate circumstances in which it was composed and the likelihood that it would never be discovered. The concert invited holocaust survivors to join. One participated in the concert with a song she remembers from the concentration camp, a song that filled her with hope.