Melissa Müller - Reinhard PiechockiHow music provided hope in one of the world's darkest times―the inspirational life story of Alice Herz-Sommer, the oldest living Holocaust survivor.
Alice Herz-Sommer was born in Prague in 1903. A talented pianist from a very
early age, she became famous throughout Europe; but, as the Nazis rose to power,
her world crumbled. In 1942, her mother was deported to the Theresienstadt
concentration camp and vanished. In 1943, Alice, her husband and their six-year-old
son were sent there, too. In the midst of horror, music, especially Chopin's
Etudes, was Alice's salvation. Theresienstadt was a "show camp", a living
slice of Nazi propaganda created to convince outsiders that the Jews were being
treated humanely. In more than a hundred concerts, Alice gave her fellow
prisoners hope in a time of suffering. Written with the cooperation of Alice
Herz-Sommer, Melissa Müller and Reinhard Piechocki's Alice's Piano is the
first time her story has been told. At 107 years old, she continues to play her
piano in London and bring hope to many.