Using the medium of 360 video, By the Waters of Babylon takes viewers on an immersive journey into the world of composers silenced by the Holocaust and a contemporary string quartet’s mission to bring this music to a wider audience.
About the Project
In 2016, the Clarion Quartet, colleagues in the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, entered the grounds of Terezin to perform works by composers who were imprisoned in the camp by the Nazi regime during the Holocaust. To the quartet and its audience, this performance was profound and moving. As described by Tatjana Mead Chamis, “There were tears flowing freely, but instead of being a sad and dark event, there was a mood of joy and new energy at the possibility of being able, as musicians, to make sure these works are not forgotten, that their suffering has not been in vain, and that we can do what the composers had intended, to generate beauty out of the horrors.”
The Clarion Quartet
The Clarion Quartet gives a voice to great composers who have suffered the injustices of suppression and imposed silence. They restore to life, music by composers whose works were once banned. The force of political oppression denied these compositions their rightful place in the chamber music repertoire, but now their rediscovery serves as a clarion call, giving voice to works of genius.
KRISTEN LAUTH SHAEFFER
Kristen lives and creates in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she is Chair of the Arts, Design, & Communication department at Chatham University. Her projects vary from hand-drawn, participatory dance animation to 360 video documentary. Her short films have screened at the New Orleans Film Festival, Dance on Camera Film Festival and others.
ANDREW HALASZ
Andrew works creatively with sound and moving images. He worked as sound editor/mixer for motion pictures and television in NYC and is currently a professor in the Cinema Arts program at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA. His cur- rent creative work and research revolves around the use of immersive sound in storytelling.
The project can be watched in its original 360-video VR format at the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh exhibition space on the campus of Chatham University.
Previous Exhibitions
By the Waters of Babylon Preview Event
Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh – December 2019
By the Waters of Babylon Planetarium Dome Exhibition
Buhl Planetarium, Carnegie Science Center, Pittsburgh – May 2022
Project Support
