Did you know that the great Polish violinist Bronislaw Huberman was the founder of a world-class Israeli orchestra? Huberman (1882-1947) was the prime mover behind the formation of the Palestine Symphony Orchestra, which in 1948 changed its name to the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.
Josh Aronson’s documentary, Orchestra of Exiles, explores Huberman’s career and his lasting contribution to culture in Israel. Now available on the streaming service Netflix, Aronson’s film is a portrait of a dreamer and a visionary who stood up to tyranny and racism and who used his influence to enrich the Jewish homeland.
Orchestra of Exiles, which unfolds through archival footage and dramatizations, starts as a doting father recognized and encouraged his son, a child prodigy, to tap into his immense talents. Huberman, preoccupied with music, achieved early fame as a soloist, but the carnage of World War I changed him, giving him a new perspective on life.
From that point onward, he developed a passion for politics as a vehicle to improve society. A resident of Berlin, he became a pan-European, believing that the concept would foster peace and cooperation among nations.
In 1929, he visited Palestine, where Jews were in the process of building the infrastructure of a future state. In particular, he was touched by the passion of local Jews for music.
After Adolf Hitler’s rise to power in 1933, Huberman settled in Vienna and cancelled all his performances in Germany. Wilhelm Furtwangler, the influential conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, offered him a position as lead violinist, but Huberman, an ardent foe of Nazism, declined.
In 1934, he returned to Palestine on a concert tour, and it was there that he conceived the idea for the Palestine Symphony Orchestra. On a fund-raising tour in the United States on behalf of the orchestra, he enlisted the assistance of Albert Einstein, who was glad to be of help.
During his travels in America, his Stradivarius violin was stolen, only to turn up 50 years later. Today, it’s played by the renowned violinist Joshua Bell, who appears in the film.
At Huberman’s request, Italian maestro Arturo Toscanini conducted the orchestra’s first concert in December 1936, which attracted an audience of 3,000. Its 73 musicians, who hailed from Germany, Austria, Hungary and Holland, were recruited by Huberman himself. Although conditions in Palestine were difficult, all but two of the musicians stayed. The pair who returned to Europe were murdered during the Holocaust.
Huberman died almost a year before the birth of Israel, but his legacy, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, lives on, brightening Israel’s musical scene.
Orchestra of Exiles is a tribute to the man who made it happen.