Its an honor to represent the Philippines at the Colburn School. If not for the Philippines, this school might never have existed. Referred to as the Julliard of the West, the Colburn School is a performing arts academy designed to refine the performance skills of emerging artists. I dedicated this performance to the memory of Dr. Herbert Zipper, co-founder of the Colburn School. Known to Filipinos as Berting, Zipper was born April 24, 1904 to a Jewish family in Vienna, Austria. In 1938, Zipper was arrested and sent to the concentration camp in Dachau. He was released the next year and escaped to Manila. The Philippines, at that time, was a haven for Jewish refugees. Zippers fiancee, the Viennese ballerina Trudl Dubsky, was living in Manila and recommended him to conduct the Manila Symphony Orchestra. After leading the orchestra for two years, Manila fell to the Japanese, and Zipper was then incarcerated for a second time as a civilian prisoner of war. In 1995, Herbert Zippers life was featured in a documentary film, Never Give Up: the 20th Century Odyssey of Herbert Zipper. It was nominated for an Oscar that same year.
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 07:27:43 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015