The award-winning documentary film, How Saba Kept Singing, shares the story of Cantor, Holocaust Survivor, and Military Veteran, David S. Wisnia (93), who spends his later years travelling with his grandson and musical accompanist, Avi Wisnia, sharing the story of how he survived the Holocaust through music which the duo perform together. For years, Cantor Wisnia’s story centered around the belief that he survived Auschwitz mainly by using his beautiful singing voice to entertain his Nazi captors. These performances in the death camp gave him status as a ”privileged prisoner.” However, when David takes his family back to Poland for one last performance, Avi starts asking questions and they discover that someone else had a hand in Saba’s survival. An uplifting story about music, faith, family and resilience, proving love can grow and take hold in even the darkest of places. This film is directed by Sara Taksler (Tickling Giants), and Executive Produced by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton.
David’s story became an international sensation when featured in the New York Times and Buzzfeed. The film How Saba Kept Singing premiered at the HotDocs Toronto International Documentary Festival and made its national TV debut on PBS last year. The documentary was recently honored with the Audience Award at the Rutgers Jewish Film Festival and nominated for an EMMY Award.
Avi Wisnia is an award-winning singer, songwriter, storyteller, and educator based in Philadelphia. He performs in venues around the world including the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York and The Kennedy Center in DC, with concert tours in Japan, Poland, and Brazil. Avi Wisnia most recently released his latest album of original jazz/pop compositions, titled “Catching Leaves.” He has also given a TED Talk and performed with The Moth storytellers. In recent years, Avi traveled and performed with his grandfather, Holocaust Survivor Cantor David S. Wisnia.
Since his grandfather’s recent passing, Avi Wisnia continues to share his grandfather’s stories and songs of survival, tracing David’s harrowing life journey from young Polish singing star to Auschwitz prisoner to American liberator with the 101st Airborne. Through it all, Cantor Wisnia’s remarkable singing voice helped save his life, especially in the notorious Nazi concentration camp. The Wisnias most recently traveled together to Poland to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, as chronicled in the PBS feature documentary “How Saba Kept Singing.” Through sharing his grandfather’s story, Avi highlights the urgency of keeping the memory of the Holocaust alive and passing on this legacy from generation to generation.
(More information at www.aviwisnia.com)
Watch the movie trailer now: https://youtu.be/Bci5ofmK2FM
Read about the film and find educational resources: https://www.retroreport.org/education/resources/how-saba-kept-singing-film-screening/
Read about Avi’s travels with his grandfather and the music they made together: www.mypolishwisnia.com
