Vanderbilt University, ‘We Are Here’ Partner to Expand Holocaust Education through Music

Vanderbilt University and We Are Here: Songs from the Holocaust have announced a new multi-year partnership that will use music, education and public dialogue to expand Holocaust education and encourage conversations about memory, antisemitism and the responsibility to confront hatred. 

The partnership builds on Vanderbilt’s nearly five decades of Holocaust education through its Holocaust Lecture Series and reflects the university’s founding mission of using education to help repair a fractured nation. 

The collaboration begins Nov. 4 with a performance at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California. The concert is co-sponsored by Vanderbilt’s Holocaust Lecture Series and the Orange County Jewish Community Scholar Program. 

“We Are Here demonstrates how music, history and dialogue can preserve memory, deepen understanding and prepare future generations to confront difficult questions with humanity, courage and respect,” said Darren Reisberg, vice chancellor for Operations and the Campus Network at Vanderbilt. “This partnership reflects our belief that education remains one of society’s most powerful tools for building stronger communities.” 

According to Vanderbilt University, We Are Here features songs written in the ghettos and concentration camps in Nazi-occupied Europe, interwoven with the stories of the people who created them. Composer and music producer Ira Antelis developed the production following the death of Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel, drawing inspiration from collections of Yiddish music preserved by survivors and passed from generation to generation. 

The production has been shared at venues including Carnegie Hall, The Salt Shed in Chicago, and Vanderbilt University. In January 2025, Vanderbilt became the first university to co-present the concert. 

Vanderbilt alumnus David Mendelson, BA’88, an executive producer of We Are Here, helped develop the relationship between the university and the production, with conversations starting several years ago about the connection between Vanderbilt’s mission and the concert’s educational purpose. 

“From our earliest conversations, Vanderbilt stood apart because of its founding purpose and its belief that education can help bridge divides and strengthen communities,” said Rabbi Charles Savenor, executive producer of We Are Here and executive director of Civic Spirit. 

The Nov. 4 concert will begin at 7 p.m. at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa. 

The Southern California performance is the first under the new partnership. Vanderbilt and We Are Here expect to announce additional performances and educational initiatives as the collaboration develops.