“Some days there won’t be a song in your heart. Sing anyway.” ~ Emory Austin
On CBS Sunday Morning there was a segment called Violins of Hope. These were no ordinary violins. They were played in concentration camps by Jewish prisoners, and they are being restored to be played again. The most striking moment from the piece for me was when the luthier said, “It was forbidden to the Jewish to pray (in the camps). The violin was praying for them.” To which the reporter replied, “So, it’s sacred.” Of course, music of all kinds is sacred to many people around the world, even those who don’t play an instrument. But if you do play, it is transcendent, no matter the instrument. Regardless of whether you play or not, music can carry all of us away from sadness, depression, pain, agony, and for the European Jews of the holocaust, it was their brief respite from unmentionable horrors. Can you image playing a violin in front a pile of corpses to find just a moment’s peace? I may never look at a violin the same way after seeing Violins of Hope. It is sacred, and it can create a sacred space for all those who hear the angels sing through it.
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