VIOLINS OF HOPE

Violins of Hope Buy Saturday Nov 14, 2026 7:30 PM Buy Sunday Nov 15, 2026 3:00 PM Winston-Salem Symphony Sara Davis Buechner Piano Winston-Salem Symphony Chorus Michelle Merrill Conductor Felix Mendelssohn Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage Jared Miller Shattered Night John Williams Schindler’s List Jessie Montgomery Soul Force Leonard Bernstein Make Our Garden Grow In this program, we remember victims of the Holocaust in a deeply musical way: by performing on surviving instruments of the Holocaust, collectively known as the Violins of Hope, in music of Mendelssohn, Bernstein, John Williams, Jessie Montgomery, and others. Guest pianist Sara Davis Buechner also joins for UNCSA faculty composer Jared Miller’s poignant work Shattered Night in remembrance of the November anniversary of Kristallnacht. Pre-Concert Talk Saturday at 6:30 PM | Sunday at 2:00 PM All audience members are invited to join us in the Judy Voss Jones Fine Arts Center, directly behind Reynolds Auditorium on its west side, for a lively discussion about the music and surrounding context. Local musicologist Dr. Carol Reynolds is your guide—pre-concert talks are free to attend, and occur one hour before any Classics Series concert. Single tickets to this event go on sale June 1, but you can save your seat with a subscription! Subscribe now. Sat Nov 14 7:30 PM Sun Nov 15 3:00 PM Venue Reynolds Auditorium 301 N. Hawthorne Rd. Winston-Salem, NC 27104 Directions & Parking Rideshare and Dining What will my view be like? While Reynolds Auditorium’s sightlines and sound are best enjoyed in the Mezzanine, Orchestra-level seating also offers superb viewing and sound, especially in rows F through O. Please bear in mind that Reynolds Auditorium is a historic venue; there is no elevator, thus the Mezzanine and Balcony levels are only accessed via stairs. Accessible seating is available on the Orchestra level at the rear of the house and along the outside left and right. Michelle Merrill, conductor WSS Music Director Michelle Merrill served four years as the Assistant and then Associate Conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and also serves as the Music Director of the Coastal Symphony of Georgia, where she has ignited the growth and expansion of the orchestra’s offerings both on and off the stage. Ms. Merrill is a proud recipient of a 2016 Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award as well as the prestigious 2013 Ansbacher Conducting Fellowship as awarded by members of the Vienna Philharmonic and the American Austrian Foundation, which enabled her to be in residence at the world-renowned Salzburg Festival. Read more. |