I love these concerts. They’re open to everyone, yet have a unique atmosphere and wonderful singers. Daniel Grossmann, the founder and conductor of the Jewish Chamber Orchestra Munich, is a perfect host. Since a considerable part of his audience isn’t Jewish, he always provides some information to guide you through the program. Whenever I listen to the cantors sing I’m reminded of what Amy Winehouse said in one of her interviews. She said she had been listening mainly to religious singing lately, because there’s an intensity there that you usually don’t find when people are singing other songs, including love songs. She was right.
During the previous concerts, the hall was always packed and I expected this one to be no different. On the evening though, a large number of seats remained empty. It seems that quite a few people preferred not to attend, or even buy a ticket, after the recent attack on a synagogue in Halle. The empty seats weren’t the only change either. As my neighbour pointed out to me, almost none of the men in the audience wore a yarmulke this time.
Reported anti-Semitic incidences like the son of a rabbi being spat on in Schwabing are happening in a city which is home to quite a few Holocaust survivors. Some of them gather once a week to have coffee and cake and chat. Tanja Cummings has made a documentary about one of the participants of these meetings. The film, “Linie 41”, is called after the tram line, used daily by Germans and Poles alike, that went right through the middle of the ghetto in Litzmannstadt/Lodz. Cumming’s film is worth watching for this historical curiousity alone. But her real strength is the sensitive portrayal of a Holocaust survivor returning to his former home town and retracing the past. His humanity, strength and vitality provide a stark contrast to the deadly inhumanity he revisits. (3)
- Eberhard Fechner’s book „Die Comedian Harmonists, sechs Lebensläufe“ (The Harmonists, six lives) is unfortunately only available in German. Fechner’s television documentary on the singers and the book sparked a renewed interest in the group and the commercially very successful film Comedian Harmonists followed. The film is available with English subtitles under the title The Harmonists. The songs of the Comedian Harmonists have become a staple for professional and amateur choirs all over Germany.
- Schwabing is an old quarter of Munich, close to the university
- Here’s the trailer for Linie 41 (with English subtitles). You can watch the complete film on vimeo.