Carnegie Hall will be filled with a powerful musical showcase on Wednesday, April 19 for "A Concert for Sugihara." This significant symphonic work pays tribute to the heroism of Chiune Sugihara, the Japanese Vice-Consul to Lithuania during WWII who saved thousands of Jewish refugees.
In her monumental work for solo cello, choir and orchestra, Symphony No. 6, “Vessels of Light,” Lera Auerbach weaves a multilayered tapestry of words and music with Yiddish poetry, the art of Japanese Kintsugi, the mystical Shevirat ha-kelim (“breaking of the vessels”), and the silent words of biblical Psalm 121. The New York City Opera Orchestra and Chorus will perform the work.
What makes this project even more poignant is that many of the participants have a personal connection to the narrative, with family members who were Jewish refugees. The project was conceived by world-renowned cellist Kristina Reiko Cooper, who was inspired to honor Sugihara when she discovered that her husband’s father, Irving Rosen, was the recipient of one of Sugihara’s visas and in turn is alive today because of his bravery.