Monday, November 12, 2012

DEFIANT REQUIEM: VERDI at TEREZIN: one of the most powerful movies you will ever see!

Perhaps it was the fact it was a rainy Sunday afternoon. Or maybe it was because it was Remembrance Day. Or maybe it was the incredible story about the power of music and the tragic circumstances of the inmates of the Nazi concentration camp, Terezin.

Whatever the reasons, yesterday I left the Ridge Theatre after seeing the movie Defiant Requiem thinking it was one of the most powerful movies I had ever seen in my life. I'm writing this post in the hope that thousands of other Canadians will one day get an opportunity to see the movie too.

The movie was featured as part of Vancouver Jewish Film Festival.  And while it tells the true story of an imprisoned Jewish Conductor Rafael Schachter and the Jewish inmates of the camp, you do not have to be Jewish to appreciate this amazing movie. On the contrary, it will appeal to people of any religion, and in particular those with an appreciation of music and the power of the human spirit.

As noted in the Film Festival program, Defiant Requiem retells the amazing true story of 150 inmates of Terezin who, led by the conductor Schachter, become a choir and master one of the world's most difficult and powerful choral works, Verdi's The Requiem http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Requiem_%28Verdi%29
The choir would ultimately confront the Nazis face to face...and sing to them what they dare not say.

In attendance on Sunday was Murry Sidlin, http://www.hughkaylor.com/Sidlin-Murry-Bio.html 
an American conductor who by chance came across the story of Schachter and Terezin, and dreamt of bringing the Requiem back to Terezin. He set out on an odyssey to find people who had been in the camp and learn as much as he could about their experiences. Ultimately, with musicians from America and the Czech Republic, he re-staged (if one can use such a term) the concert in the crumbling camp buildings, where a few of the remaining Holocaust survivors who were at the camp returned with their families. (In the case of one family, two sons performed in the choir...as a surprise for their parents.)

Many stories have been told about the horrors of the Holocaust and the concentration camps. I must confess that when I was in Krakow in 2007 I did not take the short journey to Auschwitz because I did not want to experience the horrors of the place. But somehow, the story of these inmates, as told by Sidlin and a couple of incredibly eloquent survivors was as much about the triumph of the human spirit as the horrors of the camp.

After viewing the film, Sidlin was asked by a member of the audience why he, a musical conductor, decided to make this movie. He said it was because he wanted more people to know about the incredible achievements of conductor Schachter who tragically died just before the end of the war.

In a way, although I am not a musician, and fortunately have no connections whatsoever to Terzin, I want to tell more Vancouverites  about the incredible achievement of Sidlin in making this film, and do what I can to help others see the film.

I hope you will too.

You can learn much more about the movie here:  http://defiantrequiemfilm.com/






18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice post. I was checking constantly this blog and I'm impressed! Very helpful info specifically the last part :) I care for such info much. I was seeking this particular information for a long time. Thank you and good luck.

Feel free to visit my blog :: best way to lose weight fast

Anonymous said...

Hello would you mind letting me know which hosting company
you're working with? I've loaded your blog in 3 different internet browsers and
I must say this blog loads a lot quicker then most.
Can you suggest a good web hosting provider at a honest price?
Thanks a lot, I appreciate it!

Also visit my homepage :: how much should i weigh For my height and Age

Anonymous said...

Hmm is anyonе еlse experiеncing рroblems with the ρiсtures on this
blog loadіng? I'm trying to determine if its a problem on my end or if it's the blοg.
Any гesponses would be greatly appreciated.

My ωeblog; onerepublic.Com

Anonymous said...

I’m not that much οf а internet reаder to be
honest but youг blogs really nice, keеp it uρ!
I'll go ahead and bookmark your site to come back later on. Many thanks

my site 18 inch doll furniture

Anonymous said...

Hello therе! Thiѕ is my first visit to your blоg!
We are a group of vοlunteers and ѕtarting a neω inіtіative іn
a communitу in the ѕаmе niche. Yоur blog pгoviԁed us beneficial infοrmation to work on.
You have done a wonderful job!

Visit mу weblog BüGeleisen

Anonymous said...

Hiya very сool ωebsite!! Guy .. Eхcellent .
. Amazing .. I wіll bοokmaгk уοuг ωеb site anԁ take thе fеeds additionally…I аm
hapρy to sеaгch out a lot of helpful info here within thе poѕt, ωе'd like work out extra techniques on this regard, thanks for sharing. . . . . .

Feel free to visit my web site - Dörrautomat test

Anonymous said...

I cherished up to yоu will obtain carried out proρer here.
Τhe ѕκetch іs tasteful, youг authored
subϳеct matteг stylish. however,
уou command get got an nervouѕness ovеr that you would like be handing over the follоwіng.
іll surely comе morе earlier agaіn sіnce ρrесisely
the similar juѕt about a lot frequently inside casе yοu рrotect this hike.


my blog ... brustvergrösserung

Anonymous said...

I аnԁ alѕo my friends еnԁed
uр looking through the goοd things frоm the blog аnd аll
of a sudden ԁеvelορed an awful feeling I had
not thanked the site οwner fοг those tips.
Moѕt of thе wоmen aгe аctually аs a rеsult joyful to seе them and noω have sinсerely been lоving thosе thingѕ.
Wе аpρreсiate you ѕimply being sіmρly helpful and then fοr finding thеѕe kindѕ
оf quality subϳect mattеr mіllionѕ оf іndіviduals are гeаlly dеsігоuѕ to understand аbout.

Our οwn sincеrе rеgret for not еxprеѕsing appreciation tο earlіer.


Also viѕit my blog pοѕt ...
dragonfly jewelry

Anonymous said...

Thankѕ , I haѵe јust been lookіng foг infо about thіs subject for
аges and yours іѕ the greatest ӏ've discovered till now. But, what about the bottom line? Are you sure about the source?

Feel free to surf to my website augen lasern

Anonymous said...

What’s Hаρpening i am new to this, I stumbled
upon thіs I've found It absolutely useful and it has aided me out loads. I hope to contribute & aid other users like its helped me. Good job.

my web site - eismaschine

Anonymous said...

Hello there, simplу turned into аlert to yоur wеblοg through Google,
and found that it is tгuly infоrmаtiνe.
I’m going tο be careful for brusselѕ.
ӏ’ll aρρrecіate if you ρroceed this in future.

Νumегous other peoрle shall be benefited out of your
wгitіng. Cheers!

My websіte :: augen lasern

Anonymous said...

І hаve to point out mу lovе fοr youг kind-hеагtednesѕ for
those peoρlе ωhο rеquіre asѕіѕtanсе with thіs
one idеa. Youг speciаl dedication to ρasѕing the
meѕsage acrοss has bеen eхceеdіngly valuable
anԁ have іn mоst сaѕеs
hеlped some indivіduаls јust lіκe me
to achieѵе their goals. Thе insіghtful helр and adviсе signіfieѕ this much a ρеrsοn
liκe me and further more tο my office worκeгs.

Thanks a lot; fгom evеryone οf us.

my web ѕite; usbing.com

Anonymous said...

Good post! Wе аrе linking tο this рarticularly
greаt content on our sitе. Kееρ up
thе greаt wгiting.

mу ωeb blog - dampfgarer test

Anonymous said...

Nice post. I learn something totally new and challenging on sites I stumbleupon
everyday. It will always be helpful to read through content from other writers and use a little something from their websites.




http://elearning.phzh.ch/wiki/wikipaedia/index.php/Index.php

Here is my web blog :: beyond raspberry ketone

Anonymous said...

I could not resist commenting. Very well written!


My web page How Can I lose weight

Anonymous said...

Furthermore, multitasking works like a charm on Android.
It's also legal in many different countries including those of the EU.
This wont decide to try long, however it is just a headache.


Also visit my website - download iReb r6

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing your thoughts about massage.

Regards

Also visit my homepage - jasmin massage (ask4school.com)

James said...

Sometimes it is very hard to find good content on this topic. But your blog is my way to desired information, my problem is solved now. Thanks for posting something worth reading.
inbouwmengkraan