Holocaust survivor reunited with father's cello more than 80 years after his death

  • ITV News Meridian's Juliette Fletcher reports on the remarkable reunion

A Holocaust survivor has been reunited with her father's cello more than 80 years after he was murdered by the Nazis.

Pál Hermann was a renowned Jewish composer but was sent to a death camp in 1944, aged just 42.

His instrument changed hands and disappeared. It was eventually traced to a music college in Düsseldorf in Germany.

The cello had been loaned to student Sam Lucas, who recently played an extract of Hermann's own concerto in London to his daughter Cornelia.

Cornelia was aged seven when her father died. Credit: Cornelia Hermann

Cornelia, who was aged seven when Hermann died, never lost hope of finding the cello.

She said: "It was a miraculous surprise. The Wigmore Hall is a venue where my father played concerts in 1930, almost 100 years ago. The same cello being played now makes the circle round."

The reunion is thanks to Dr Kate Kennedy, an author and musician based at the University of Oxford.

While writing her book, 'Cello: A Journey Through Silence to Sound', Kate came across Pál Hermann's story.

Dr Kate Kennedy is an author and musician based at the University of Oxford. Credit: ITV News Meridian

She searched for the instrument for four years, but the breakthrough came when her book, containing pictures, was published.

Kate said: "The critical clue, which meant I never gave up, I always knew that somehow it would turn up, was I learnt it had writing round its ribs, around the sides, burnt in.

"It read 'I am the soul of music'. It's Pál Hermann's soul, surviving, and that to me was too good a quest to give up and now here it is."

Sam Lucas played an extract of Pál Hermann's own concerto in London to his daughter Cornelia.

Sam Lucas, the student cellist who played to Pál's daughter Cornelia, said it was a privilege.

Sam said: "I'm honoured to be the cellist to bridge that gap between her childhood and what she grew up hearing from her father.

"Now 85 years later, it's a real blessing and honour. It's an emotional thing, and dedicating it to her and her son, the grandson of Hermann, I tried to drive my feelings about it as best I could."

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