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There
were several orchestras at Auschwitz during the camp’s
occupation made up entirely of inmates. They were forced to
play for the pleasure of the SS officers and as an accompaniment
to executions. Music was, in Primo Levi’s words, ‘the
perceptible expression of the camp’s madness.’ In
December 2004 I photographed the making of a ‘music memorial
film’ at Auschwitz: a tribute to the victims of the genocide
and a commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the liberation
of the camp. Leading international and local musicians played
and were recorded in Auschwitz for the first time since the
camp was operational. ‘Music is an abomination in the
wrong hands,’ said director James Kent, ‘but I think
it can now purify itself by returning to Auschwitz and be a
sort of requiem to the dead. |
