Orchestras at Auschwitz

The transcript of the podcast

The prisoners’ orchestra played for the first time at the German camp Auschwitz at the beginning of January 1941. Initially, there were seven musicians, but the ensemble grew very quickly. The main task was to play military marches and give rhythm, to which the prisoners marched, as they left for work and returned to the camp. The orchestra also gave concerts to the SS garrison members and prisoners. Later, other orchestras were also established at the men’s and women’s camps at Auschwitz-II Birkenau, as well as in some of the sub-camps. Dr. Jacek Lachendro of the Memorial Research Center talks about the history of orchestras at Auschwitz.

Where did the idea for orchestra to play at the concentration camp originate?

The beginnings of orchestras at Auschwitz date back to the autumn of 1940, when some prisoners came up with an idea, that they could play instruments at their free time. We must remember that the prisoners were forced to work every day, and practically most of the day was taken up by work. Nevertheless, in the evening, upon returning to camp, after a roll call, they had a few hours of free time, perhaps two or three, depending on the time of the year, so some of them, those who had played at the orchestras before the war or played instruments decided to fill this free time for themselves and the colleagues. They quarried the camp manager, Karl Fritzsch, whether they could send requests to their families for instruments, and he responded positively, so such letters were sent out. At about the same time, in December 1940, an announcement was made to the prisoners at roll call, that an orchestra would be created. According to the accounts, the initiators of the orchestra were the Lagerälteste, that is the camp elder, the highest prisoner in the camp hierarchy, Bruno Brodniewicz and the kitchen kapo, Franciszek Nierychło. Presumably, this idea by some prisoners to send their instruments to the camp for them contributed to their initiative to form an orchestra. We might say that the first of these unofficial concerts took place on January 6, 1941 with a small group of playing musicians. In the following weeks, new musicians joined the ensemble. At this point, we can assume that they had already received instruments from their homes and that rehearsals regularly took place. The level of playing of this initially small orchestra must have been so good, that camp Lagerälteste, Bruno Brodniewicz approached the camp manager with the request that he would come and listen to a concert of the band and, perhaps acknowledge the orchestra and officially accept its existence. As reported, such concert for Fritzsch took place on one of the Sundays of March 1941, and the performance must have been over such a high standard, that Karl Fritzsch consented to the existence of the orchestra and its playing for the working commandos. Subsequently, it also played concerts for the SS men and prisoners.

Those prisoners who started playing instruments, worked in other work groups?

These prisoners worked in different commandos, as separate orchestra commando was not created. They still had to work in their existing work groups, but playing at the orchestra was their additional task. They rehearsed in the evenings, and the mornings, and afternoons after work commando groups left the camp for work, and later returned. During this period, the commandos would return for the midday meal, so this orchestra had to play marching music for the commandos, because their main task was to play marches for the work groups leaving for work, and returning to the camp after work. According to accounts, the SS wanted to speed up the prisoners’ departure from the camp and their later return through the marching music. The second task of the orchestra was to play and entertain the SS men. The orchestra played for the SS men on Sundays, if the weather was fine, on a special elevation prepared for the orchestra, more or less opposite of the commandant office building, between the villa of camp commandant Rudolf Höss, and the crematorium at the main camp, which was a little farther away. As far as the playing for working commandos was concerned, above all marching music was played, while during the Sunday concerts, which lasted three hours, usually from 2 or 3pm to 5 or 6pm, classical music was played, mainly German, by German and Austrian composers. Each concert consisted of three parts: in the first part, classical music was played, in the second part there was lighter music, mainly opera music, and in the third part, much lighter music. The orchestra usually performed popular dance tunes, Hitz, which was very popular in Germany then. During these Sunday concerts, prisoners could also stand near the camp fence, inside the fence, because the place where the opera played for the SS men was outside the fence, and they could listen to the music played. However, the camp authorities also allowed the orchestra to play on Sundays, after the concert for the SS men was over, for the prisoners inside the camp. And they usually set up near the camp kitchen, by the roll call square. There, they played usually some lighter music for the prisoners. While the marching music played for the work commandos was received very negatively by the prisoners, mainly because it created a major dissonance, when the prisoners had to walk to the rhythm of lively, upbeat marching music, but on the other hand, extremely exhausted after a whole day’s work, that often included injuries and hunger, and sometimes carrying wounded colleagues or the bodies of murdered colleagues. So, it was for them another additional camp ordeal. Conversely, music played during the Sunday concerts received a more positive reaction from them, allowing them to escape from the camp’s routines and to recall these moments spend in freedom, with family and friends.

Were there other orchestras in the Auschwitz camp complex, or was the one at the main camp the only one that existed?

Many other orchestras and musical ensembles played at Auschwitz camp complex at different times and places. The one in the main camp played for the longest, it existed the longest, from the spring of 1941, with short break until the January of 1945. However, there were two larger orchestras in Birkenau: one in the men’s camp, which was formed in the August of 1942, and played until the autumn of 1944, and the other in the women’s camp, created in the spring of 1943, and also functioned until the autumn of 1944. The Auschwitz-III Monowitz camp also had an orchestra, a men’s orchestra, that existed from August of 1943 to January 1945. There were also smaller orchestras, usually consisting of a few or dozen musicians. They were, in many cases, small orchestras, that existed for a very short time, such as the orchestra at the section B2 of Theresienstadt family camp for Jews deported from this ghetto, which existed for a few months or at the transit camp for Jewish women transported from Hungary, which existed for about two months of summer 1944, or the other orchestra, associated with Theresienstadt ghetto, which was founded in autumn of 1944, and consisted of the musicians brought in September and October from the Theresienstadt ghetto. These orchestras were mainly set up on requests at the behest of camp authorities, to provide them with entertainment. On occasion, this music could be listened to by the prisoners. A small, but long-lasting orchestra also existed in so-called “the gypsy camp” in Birkenau, consisting of several musicians, however, the accounts here are dissected. It played for the Roma prisoners and the SS men, who sometimes came to visit the camp to listen to this music. Orchestras, or rather such musical ensembles, also operated in seven sub-camps, that is, in the larger sub-camps, where the number of prisoners exceeded one thousand: Goleschau, Jawischowitz, Fürstengrube, Janinagrube, Blechhammer and Gleiwitz-I. However, at these sub-camps, these bands were mainly formed at the request of the SS men, and played primarily to provide them with entertainment. It rarely happened, probably in only three of these sub-camps, and presumably for shorter periods of time, that these bands played for the prisoners leaving or returning from work.

How could one become a member of such orchestra, other than possessing an ability to play an instrument? Was there any procedure for recruiting musicians?

The basic requirement was to pass an exam before the managers of each of these orchestras, and demonstrate musical ability. There were different paths to the exam: during the registration, prisoners were asked about their professions. Those, who stated that they were musicians by profession, playing on such an instrument, were referred to an orchestra manager, the orchestra conductor, for an addition, as this information was recorded by registering prisoners, and passed on to the orchestra. Depending on their needs, these prisoners were either automatically accepted into the orchestra, or had to wait until a place in the orchestra to play a particular instrument, became vacant. Often, during the registration process, prisoners didn’t declare they knew how to play instruments. However, when they noticed, that the orchestras gave or increased their chances of surviving the camp, they tried themselves, or through their friends, for example, who knew the orchestra directors or conductors, to get into the orchestra. Sometimes, they mustered up the courage to come forward directly and inform that they had such and such musical skills and know how to play such and such instruments. Then, they were put to the test, and depending on the needs or situation, they were accepted into the orchestra.

Were there any nationality criteria for the admission into the orchestra?

Until the autumn of 1944, most of the orchestra’s members in the main camp were Poles. According to the survivors’ accounts, Jews were not allowed to play in it. We do not know of any order from the camp authorities, stating this prohibition, nevertheless, we can presume that such verbal prohibition was issued, and that Jews were not admitted into the orchestra in the main camp. As the matter of fact until the middle spring of 1942, without such a prohibition, they would not have joined the orchestra, because, firstly, at that time, relatively few Jews were deported to the camp, and secondly, those, who were deported, were automatically sent to the penal company, where they lost their lives very quickly, therefore, they had no chance to join the orchestra. In the later period, it can be assumed, that this con practice resulted in Jews not being admitted into the orchestra. In addition to Poles, several Czechs played in the band in the main camp, there were also several prisoners from the Soviet Union, some Germans, and one Roma from the Czech Republic, who appeared in many prisoners’ accounts, because of his outstanding skills, which everyone recalls. The situation was slightly different in Birkenau, in the men’s and women’s camps. The men’s orchestra at Birkenau was established in August of 1942, at the request of camp manager Johann Schwarzhuber. Several Polish musicians were sent there from the main camp, along with the other, selected from the orchestra in the men’s camp. Initially, Poles also made up a majority at Birkenau, nevertheless, due to high mortality rate in the later period, and following deportation of these Polish orchestra members to other German camps in March 1943, we can assume, that there was a shortage of prisoners, Poles, able to play instruments at an appropriate level, so they began admitting Jews to the orchestra. Over time, they constituted a vast majority. One of few surviving documents on orchestras from July of 1944 lists the orchestra members. Of the 34 prisoners, there were 28 Jews, 4 Poles and one Russian. The situation was similar in the men’s orchestra in Monowitz, where Poles also predominated at first. This orchestra was also formed at the request of the camp’s manager, and primarily consisted of Polish prisoners, transferred from the orchestra at the main camp. In time, however, Jewish prisoners were also admitted, and made up a significant part of the orchestra members. According to accounts, the orchestra in the women’s camp in Birkenau, that I mentioned, was initially supposed to be composed only of Aryan women. However, the orchestra director and conductor, Zofia Czajkowska, who was Polish, later began to accept Jewish women. It may have been to the lack of Aryan and Polish women, who could play instruments at an appropriate level, and this fact was later accepted by the authorities of the women’s camp. In time, when the outstanding Jewish violinist, Alma Rose became the director and conductor of the orchestra, Jewish women dominated the ensemble. The orchestra consisted of Jewish women, deported from various European countries, but it also included many Polish women, and the women from the Soviet Union. And to conclude, I would like to return to the orchestra in the men’s camp, because Polish domination of this orchestra ended in the autumn of 1944, when the vast majority of these Poles were deported to the other concentration camps. The orchestra basically ceased to exist for a short time on the orders of Franz Hessel, then the manager of the men’s camp. It was to be reactivated by the previous manager and conductor, Pole Adam Kopyciński, the only remaining Pole in the orchestra, and as a result of their recruitment, the vast majority of the prisoners and musicians were Jews. Jews also made up a majority of the members of orchestras playing in the sub-camps.

Did the members of the camp orchestras published any memoirs after the war? Could you recommend books related to the subject of the orchestra?

Some members of the orchestras published such memoirs. We can mention a book published by an Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, and written by a violinist in the women’s orchestra, Helena Dunicz-Niwińska. The book is titled “Paths of my life.” Another book, that is essentially untypical, because it is a record of conversation conducted by Ignacy Szczepański with several orchestra members in the men’s camp is entitled “Häftlingskapelle.” It contains a great deal on informations on functioning of this orchestra. Members of the orchestra, that played in the Birkenau or Monowitz, published memoirs after the war. One such book is Anita Lakser-Wallfisch memoir “Inherit the Truth”, Rachel Zellmanowich’s “Crime is forbidden here” or the memoirs of Hermann Sachnowitz, who played in the orchestra at Monowitz or Louis Banet, who played in the orchestra at Birkenau.