At 109 years old, Alice Herz Sommer is not only the oldest Holocaust survivor, but also the oldest pianist in the world.
Alice Herz Sommer has been playing piano for over a century. Even today, outside her home in North London, people congregate on the street to listen to hear play piano. A new movie, The Lady in Number 6, chronicles Sommer’s life in music, and the struggles she experienced during her internment in the Theresienstadt concentration camp.
Born in former Austria-Hungary in 1903, Alice Herz Sommer grew up not just around music and musicians, but also around some of the most influential minds of the 20th century. Family friends included composer Gustav Mahler and author Franz Kafka. Artur Schnabel, one of the 20th century’s most influential pianists, taught Sommer how to play.
During her detention at the Theresienstadt concentration camp, Sommer played over 100 concerts for fellow detainees, camp guards, and other Nazi officials working at the camp. Playing some of the most complex musical scores completely from memory, like the entirety of Chopin’s Études.
Even though Sommer lived through one of the worst events in human history, her love life and optimism was never diminished. “I have never hated, I will never hate,” Sommer explains, “hatred brings only hatred.”
Find out more about Alice Herz Sommer and The Lady in Number 6 on the Bunbury Films website.
Holocaust survivor shares story of hope through music in new movie
More of Today's Solutions
Australia’s biggest gun reform in 30 years kicks off this November
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Eight months after a shooting at a Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach killed 15 people, Australia is following ...
Read MoreAre algae oil supplements worth taking? Here’s the evidence
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There's a pattern in the supplement industry that tends to repeat itself. Researchers find that people who eat ...
Read MoreMeet Jenny, the horse who takes a daily stroll alone through Frankfurt
The following story may not necessarily be a solution, but we hope it puts a smile on your face. In the city of Frankfurt, ...
Read MoreThe grass-eating mystery: why cats and dogs snack on greens
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM You’re out walking your dog or watching your cat in the backyard when, out of nowhere, they start ...
Read More
