Violin Stories

The Violins of Hope is a collection of Holocaust-related string instruments from Tel Aviv, Israel. The instruments serve to educate and memorialize the lives of prisoners in concentration camps through concerts, exhibitions, and other projects.

 

Here are the stories of two violins, a viola, and a cello that will be exhibited and played throughout the Fort Wayne community in March 2025.

The Wagner Violin

1936

This fine, high-quality instrument belonged to a member of the Palestine Orchestra, created in 1936 by Bronisław Huberman. Along with other violins in this collection, it played a key role in the formation of this historic ensemble, which in 1948 was renamed the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Most members of the Palestine Orchestra were first-rate European musicians who lost their jobs when the Nazis came to power in 1933 and began enforcing racial laws in Germany. 

When the war ended, there was a boycott of German goods in Israel—so much so that the word “Germany” was banned on the radio. Musicians then refused to play on German-made instruments and many approached Moshe Weinstein asking him to buy their violins. Many even threatened to break or burn their instruments. Weinstein bought every instrument because for him any violin transcended war and evil in value. Yet he knew he could never sell them; thus, these instruments have become part of the Violins of Hope. This story is told in greater detail in Chapter 1 of James A. Grymes’ book Violins of Hope. 

The Weichold Violin

Dresden, Germany, around 1910

Along with several others in the Violins of Hope collection, this fine, high-quality instrument belonged to a member of the Palestine Orchestra, created in 1936 by Bronisław Huberman. His vision to create an all-Jewish orchestra saved the lives of many musicians and their families because he was able to help them escape Europe during the rise of Nazism. 

These instruments tell the story of the musicians who, after 1948, would become the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO). Most members of the IPO were first-rate musicians who lost their positions in European orchestras when the Nazis came to power in 1933, and racial laws were enforced in Germany. Following the war, there was a general boycott of German goods in Israel, and even the word “Germany” was banned on the radio. Israeli musicians at this time refused to play on German-made instruments, and many came to Moshe Weinstein to ask that he buy their violins. 

“If you don’t buy my violin, I’ll break it,” some musicians said. Others threatened to burn their instruments. Weinstein bought every one because to him violins transcend war and evil. Yet he knew he would never be able to sell them. 

The Viola by Karl Zach

Vienna, 1896

This viola was made by Karl Zach in Vienna in 1896. It was bought by Moshe Weinstein from a player in the Palestine Orchestra who didn’t want to play it because of his memories playing it during the Holocaust. 

Karl Zach (1850 - 1918) was a well-known Viennese violin maker. He attended the Conservatory of Music in Vienna from 1872-1874 as a violin student. It is not known when and where he learned violinmaking. Until 1887 he worked in his father’s shop, then became owner in 1888. At the beginning, he and the shop enjoyed a fine reputation as a supplier for the royals in Vienna and Greece. In 1897, he founded another company to commercialize two inventions, but that firm went bankrupt in 1898. Later he lived in Brussels until 1902 and several other European locations until his death in London in 1918. Zach’s instruments were modeled after those of Stradivari. The scrolls are often adorned with black edges in the French style. His varnishes usually were orange-brown or red-brown tones, and the instruments varied widely in quality. 

Cello by Alfred Stelzner

Dresden, 1893

It is not clear how this cello came into the collection, or if it was used during the Holocaust, but it was owned by a member of the Palestine Orchestra.  

The maker of this cello was Alfred Stelzner (29 November 1852 – 9 July 1906), a German composer and luthier. Stelzner was born in Hamburg, Germany, and educated in music, physics and mathematics. He produced string instruments of his own design in Wiesbaden and then in Dresden.  

His instruments received praise and endorsements from major figures of the day, including impresario Alfred Schulz-Curtius, and the German composer Felix Draeseke composed his string quintet in A major, named the Stelzner Quintetto, specifically for Stelzner instruments.  

Stelzner began production of his new instruments in 1889 and continued to make them until 1900. He vigorously promoted his instruments through advertising and obtained endorsements from many famous musicians of the day, including Joseph Joachim, Eugène Ysaÿe, David Popper, and August Wilhelmj.  

In addition, he helped sponsor competitions in various categories such as symphonies, opera and chamber music. His own works included the operas Rübezahl (1902) and Swatowits Ende (1903), as well as the never performed Kinder des Todes and Cäcilie. Stelzner's company eventually failed and went bankrupt.  

Faced with overwhelming financial difficulties, Stelzner committed suicide at his home in Dresden in 1906. 

Please note: The photos included here are of a Stelzner Cello but not the instrument visiting Fort Wayne.