Esther Béjarano
Encyclopedia
Esther Béjarano Violette Jacquet, and Anita Lasker Wallfisch are among the last survivors of the Girl orchestra of Auschwitz
.
. In the orchestra, she played the accordion
. The orchestra had the task of playing for the daily march of the gangs by the camp gate. She survived Auschwitz after escaping in March, 1945.
She emigrated to Palestine
and returned later to Germany
. At the beginning of the 1980s, with her daughter Edna
and son Joram, she created the musical group Coincidence. They sing songs from the ghetto and Jewish as well as anti-fascist songs. Béjarano lives today in Hamburg. She is a co-founder and chairman of the International Auschwitz Committee
and honorary chaiman of the Union of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime
. She was awarded the Carl von Ossietzky
medal and holds the Cross of Merit, First class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
.
"The function of the girl orchestra in Auschwitz-Birkenau was to stand at the gate and play when the gangs marched out in the morning and in the evening, and when they returned to the camp. We all had a bad conscience, because we "helped", so to speak, that the prisoners had to march in step, had to march to our music.
But there was worse. The SS instructed us to stand at the gate and play when new transports arrived, in which innumerable Jewish people from all parts of Europe sat, trains that were led to the tracks that went right to the gas chambers
and where everyone was gassed. The people waved at us, they thought certainly, where music is played, it certainly can't be that bad. Those were the tactics of the Nazis. They wanted all the people to go to their deaths without a fight. But we knew where they were being led. We played with tears in our eyes. There was nothing we could do to resist because the SS henchmen were standing behind us with their rifles."
Girl orchestra of Auschwitz
The Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz or Girls' Orchestra of Auschwitz was a female orchestra at Auschwitz concentration camp created in June 1943 by a Polish music teacher, Mrs. Zofia Czajkowska, by order of the SS. The members were prisoner girls, whose membership in the orchestra protected them...
.
Biography
Béjarano was born as Esther Loewy as a daughter of the Head Cantor of a Jewish municipality. The father encouraged his daughter to get interested in music and Esther learned to play the piano. At age 15 she had to separate from her parents, in order to prepare for emigration to Palestine. This emigration was thrwarted by the Nazis. She carried out two years of hard labour in Neuendorf Labour Camp close to Fürstenwalde/Spree. On April 20, 1943 all members of the labour camp were deported to Auschwitz. There she had to drag stones until she joined the Girl orchestra of AuschwitzGirl orchestra of Auschwitz
The Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz or Girls' Orchestra of Auschwitz was a female orchestra at Auschwitz concentration camp created in June 1943 by a Polish music teacher, Mrs. Zofia Czajkowska, by order of the SS. The members were prisoner girls, whose membership in the orchestra protected them...
. In the orchestra, she played the accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
. The orchestra had the task of playing for the daily march of the gangs by the camp gate. She survived Auschwitz after escaping in March, 1945.
She emigrated to Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
and returned later to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. At the beginning of the 1980s, with her daughter Edna
Edna Béjarano
Edna Béjarano is a German singer. She was the lead singer for the German rock band The Rattles. She sang on their biggest selling record, the 1968 recorded song, "The Witch", which sold over one million copies globally....
and son Joram, she created the musical group Coincidence. They sing songs from the ghetto and Jewish as well as anti-fascist songs. Béjarano lives today in Hamburg. She is a co-founder and chairman of the International Auschwitz Committee
International Auschwitz Committee
The International Auschwitz Committee was formed by survivors of the Auschwitz death camp in 1952 for the support of the survivors and to fight racism and anti-Semitism...
and honorary chaiman of the Union of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime
Union of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime
The Society of People Persecuted by the Nazi Regime – Federation of Anti-Fascists is a political organization founded in 1947....
. She was awarded the Carl von Ossietzky
Carl von Ossietzky
Carl von Ossietzky was a German pacifist and the recipient of the 1935 Nobel Peace Prize. He was convicted of high treason and espionage in 1931 after publishing details of Germany's alleged violation of the Treaty of Versailles by rebuilding an air force, the predecessor of the Luftwaffe, and...
medal and holds the Cross of Merit, First class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Bundesverdienstkreuz
The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany is the only general state decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has existed since 7 September 1951, and between 3,000 and 5,200 awards are given every year across all classes...
.
Esther Béjarano "miracle" account
"I had great luck that in the block, in which I stayed overnight. One evening, Mrs. Tschaikowska, a Polish music teacher, was looking for women who could play an instrument. The SS had instructed her to set up a girl orchestra. I introduced myself, said that I could play piano. We do not have a piano here, said Mrs. Tschaikowska. If you can play accordion, I will audition you. I had never played an accordion before. I had to try, so I would not have to haul boulders any more. I said to her that I could play also accordion. She instructed me to play Du hast Glück bei den Frauen, Bel Ami, a popular German song. I knew this song, asked her for a few minutes of patience, so I could warm up. It was like a miracle. I played the song, even with accompaniment, and was accepted to the orchestra with two friends."The function of the girl orchestra in Auschwitz-Birkenau was to stand at the gate and play when the gangs marched out in the morning and in the evening, and when they returned to the camp. We all had a bad conscience, because we "helped", so to speak, that the prisoners had to march in step, had to march to our music.
But there was worse. The SS instructed us to stand at the gate and play when new transports arrived, in which innumerable Jewish people from all parts of Europe sat, trains that were led to the tracks that went right to the gas chambers
Gas Chambers
Gas Chambers is a fast, hollow and shallow point break type of wave. Being that it is a high performance wave it is well suited for the average to pro level surfer. Gas Chambers is located on the North Shore of Oahu about a 1/4 of a mile north of Ehukai Beach Park and 1/2 a mile west of Sunset...
and where everyone was gassed. The people waved at us, they thought certainly, where music is played, it certainly can't be that bad. Those were the tactics of the Nazis. They wanted all the people to go to their deaths without a fight. But we knew where they were being led. We played with tears in our eyes. There was nothing we could do to resist because the SS henchmen were standing behind us with their rifles."
Sources
- Esther Béjarano, Birgit Gärtner, Wir leben trotzdem: Esther Béjarano – vom Mädchenorchester in Auschwitz zur Künstlerin für den Frieden ("We live, nevertheless: Esther Béjarano – from Girl Orchestra in Auschwitz to artist for peace"), Pahl-Rugenstein, Bonn (2005). Third edition, corrected and expanded (2007) ISBN 3-89144-353-6
- Damit nie wieder geschehe, was damals geschah" in "Perlensau - Ausgewählte Gedichte ("So that that which once happened never happens again" from "Pig of Pearls – Selected Poems") Leander Sukov. ISBN 978-3-940274-06-9
External links
- Interview with Esther Béjarano 51:34 minutes in the discussion with Silke Behl. January 22, 2002
- Radio play, "The Wooden Shoes" Transmission excerpt from January 24, 2002]
- Speech given on Jan. 8, 2005 in Berlin
- We live nevertheless