The power of MUSIC

How playing the cello helped Anita Lasker-Wallfisch survive in Auschwitz

- IAN MACEWAN

THE LAST MUSICIAN OF AUSCHWITZ NEW MONDAY, 9PM, BBC2 FACTUAL

To mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the extraordinary story of the last surviving member of the Nazi concentration camp's Women's Orchestra is recounted in a powerful new BBC2 documentary this week.

The Last Musician of Auschwitz centres around 99-year-old Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who reveals she was thrown an unexpected lifeline when it emerged that she could play the cello. Anita's reflections on her experiences during the Holocaust are told alongside the testimony of three fellow prisoners: Polish composer Szymon Laks, Czech songwriter Ilse Weber and Polish conductor Adam Kopyciński.

We also see her son, acclaimed cellist Raphael Wallfisch, perform music Anita would have played at Auschwitz. Here, in an exclusive interview, Raphael, 71, talks to TV Times about how music helped his mum to survive...