Violins of Hope: Honoring Memory Through Music

Presented in partnership with the Minnesota JCC, this exhibition is a global initiative that showcases restored violins played by Jewish musicians before and during the Holocaust. The Minnesota JCC brings these unique violins to communities of the Twin Cities through exhibitions, concerts, film screenings, and storytelling.  

The collection was established by violin-maker Amnon Weinstein (1939-2024) and is now owned by his son Avshalom. In their small workshop in Tel Aviv, they restored 70 violins played by Jews in ghettos, forest hideouts and concentration camp orchestras. Since 2008, when the collection began its educational journey around the world, over thirty exhibitions, concerts, and other events were held in many countries on both sides of the Atlantic. The Museum of Russian Art is grateful to the collectors and partners in this unique and remarkable project for the opportunity to exhibit these historical violins that memorialize the unimaginable tragedy of the Holocaust. Special thanks go to Bruce Goodman for his support of the exhibition at TMORA.

On view in the Robert J. Brokop Gallery May 9 – June 28, 2026. Sponsored by Bruce Goodman.

Continue the experience through music
Concert - Sunday, June 7 and Sunday, June 14 at 7:00 PM. Presented in conjunction with Violins of Hope: Honoring Memory Through Music, this special concert reflects on the enduring power of music in the face of history’s darkest moments, with works by Mieczysław Weinberg and Dmitri Shostakovich alongside traditional klezmer music, performed by an outstanding ensemble of musicians.  LEARN MORE