In music and words, two Germans from different generations reflect on the Holocaust, German history, and what it means to be German in the 21st century.

*A discussion/question and answer period will follow the talk

ABOUT THE PERFORMERS

FRITZ OTTENHEIMER, as a Jewish boy growing up in Nazi Germany, escaped Nazi persecution by immigrating to the U.S. in 1939, and eventually fighting against Germany with the U.S. Army at the end of WWII. A retired engineer, Mr. Ottenheimer has documented his experiences surrounding the Holocaust and Post-War Germany in a memoir, “Escape and Return.” He resides in Pittsburgh, PA.

SUSANNE ORTNER-ROBERTS is a world-renowned clarinetist from Augsburg, Germany, who specializes in Jewish (Klezmer) music. As a representative of a new generation of Germans, she is committed to using words and music to promote cross-cultural understanding, and to educate others about how young Germans today deal with the atrocities of war and the Holocaust committed by their grandparents’ generation. She is the subject of the recent book “Living the Dream – Für die Musik nach Amerika” written by German Television journalist Helge Fuhst. Susanne also teaches German at the University of Pittsburgh.