From a Vanished World, a program of the In the Salon series.
The superb Cassatt Quartet will be playing Gerald Cohen‘s “Playing for ourLives,” a tribute to the extraordinary story of the musicians and music of the Terezin concentration camp near Prague. The concert, at Symphony Space in Manhattan, will also include music by Viktor Ullmann and Dmitri Shostakovich.

Thursday, Dec. 6 at 7:30pm
Tickets: $30; Members $25 / 30 & Under (with I.D.) $15
Symphony Space | 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, New York, NY 10025-6990

This program of In the Salon features Terezin concentration camp composer Viktor Ullmann’s Quartet No. 3, and Shostakovich’s towering Quartet No. 8, dedicated to the victims of fascism and war, as well as a new work by Gerald Cohen, “Playing for Our Lives,” a contemporary tribute to the musical life of the camp.

As Cohen explains, “the story of the music and musicians of Terezin is an extraordinary testament to the power of art to inspire the human spirit in times of great suffering. In the string quartet “Playing for Our Lives,” I have used several important musical elements from Terezin – a Yiddish folk song, a children’s opera, and Verdi’s Requiem – as the foundation in weaving a musical memorial to the inmates of the camp.”

A conversation between Terezin survivor Ela Weissberger and Gerald Cohen illuminates this powerful music.

“…deeply considered, emotionally supple performance…” –Allan Kozinn, The New York Times