The Music for Everlasting Hope endowment fund was established with the aim of preserving and further developing the unique artistic heritage of Central European cultural values associated with the territory of today's Czech Republic, primarily in the form of a music festival. Creators of Czech and German nationality, Jewish and Christian, who worked during the first half of the 20th century, were suddenly and violently silenced by the events of World War II. We strive to remember and come to terms with the past, to prevent any violence, hatred, or other form of discrimination on the grounds of race, ethnicity, or simply cultural differences. This effort is reflected in the new creation and interpretation of live art and thus represents an arc connecting almost a century of history, beginning with the work of Gustav Mahler, embracing the works of the interwar and war generation of so-called Terezín authors, and culminating in contemporary composers such as Tigran Mansurjan.
The aim is to build a prestigious festival with an emphasis on exceptional artistic quality. The basis of the festival consists of neglected works by Terezín artists, composers such as Viktor Ullmann, Gideon Klein, Hans Krása, Pavel Haas and others, which were created in the conditions of World War II concentration camps and remain underappreciated today. The program is supplemented each year with works by other Czech and world music greats and responds to current anniversaries and events.
The mission of the festival is to bring extraordinary performing arts to the widest possible public. The festival is a prestigious social event based on the genius of loci and a great interpretation of the musical works of "our" festival authors. The festival is intended for all generations of listeners of classical music and of fans of theatre, cabaret, chanson, and jazz.
The spiritual wealth of the festival is the idea of everlasting hope. Hope that overcomes oppression, hatred, lack of freedom, and uprooting and gives space to beauty, faith, and a life of freedom.
