On Thursday, the National Symphony Orchestra spotlighted last century’s greatest forgotten musical voices, the Polish composer Mieczysław Weinberg (1919-1996).
The Kennedy Center Concert Hall performance follows nearly a decade of Pro Musica Hebraica’s successful efforts to champion the great Soviet Jewish composer works by bringing his masterpieces to the concert hall.
In our fall 2008 concert, Lost and Found: Jewish Musical Treasures from Eastern Europe, the ARC Ensemble of Toronto performed Weinberg’s rare wartime works. (See the full program and listen to the live concert recording here.)
Then, in our fall 2011 concert, The Last Romantics: Jewish Composers of Interwar Europe, Jascha Nemtsov & Friends played Weinberg’s famous and beloved “Piano Trio,” now widely regarded as a recovered classic of twentieth-century chamber music.
Weinberg is considered among great composers of the Soviet Union alongside Dmitri Shostakovich, whom became Weinberg’s close friend and artistic partner after recognizing the Polish émigré’s huge talent. When Weinberg was arrested by Soviet police, Shostakovich adopted Weinberg’s daughter and personally appealed to Stalin for his friend’s release. (Read more about Weinberg’s remarkable life here.)
Pro Musica Presents the ARC Ensemble of Toronto: “Lost and Found: Jewish Musical Treasures from Eastern Europe” — November 18th, 2008 [Click image to enlarge]
Pro Musica Hebraica 2008-2009 Season Brochure [Click image to enlarge]