Cappella Amsterdam & Berlage Saxophone Quartet

Cappella Amsterdam presents, in collaboration with the Berlage Saxophone Quartet and writer Jan Brokken, 'De Rechtvaardigen'. The co-production came about when Jan Brokken, the author of the novel 'De Rechtvaardigen', and Peter Vigh, alto saxophonist and longtime arranger of the Berlage Saxophone Quartet, approached Cappella Amsterdam to perform the book together on stage. With 'De Rechtvaardigen', Cappella Amsterdam, the Berlage Saxophone Quartet and writer Jan Brokken perform the story of Dutch consul Jan Zwartendijk, who put his life on the line for the freedom of others.

Zwartendijk saved thousands of lives: Polish Jewish men, women, and children who fled to Lithuania and desperately sought a way to leave Europe. He issued visas allowing Jews to travel from Lithuania through the Soviet Union to Vladivostok, further to Japan, and onwards to America, Shanghai, and other countries, thus saving them from the Holocaust. An impressive story that will also delve into the rescued Leo Adler and his Bella Hamburg, who reached New York after six years of fleeing but still longed for their original continent and language.