Il Silenzio

[MtnMax/Magniac]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"The Silence"
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]About six miles from Maastricht , in the Netherlands , lie buried 8,301 American soldiers who died in "Operation Market Garden" in the battles to liberate Holland in the fall winter of 1944. Every one of the men buried in the cemetery, as well as those in the Canadian and British military cemeteries, has been adopted by a Dutch family who mind the grave, decorate it, and keep alive the memory of the soldier they have adopted. It is even the custom to keep a portrait of "their" American soldier in a place of honor in their home. Annually, on "Liberation Day," memorial services are held for "the men who died to liberate Holland ." The day concludes with a concert. The final piece is always "Il Silenzio," a memorial piece commissioned by the Dutch and first played in 1965 on the 20th anniversary of Holland 's liberation. It has been the concluding piece of the memorial concert ever since.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This year the soloist was a 13-year-old Dutch girl, Melissa Venema, backed by André Rieu and his orchestra (the Royal Orchestra of the Netherlands ). This beautiful concert piece is based upon the original version of taps and was composed by Italian composer Nino Rossi.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Watch at full screen, volume turned up.
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]http://www.flixxy.com/trumpet-solo-melissa-venema.htm[/FONT]
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[Traumahawk]

Thank you for posting.

 

[Tex85]

Beautiful tribute, thanks for posting.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[Miles Long]

My father landed with the Canadian 105th. Anti-tank battalion on the beaches of Normandy on D-day. Instead of the designated beach, Juno, he went ashore on Utah, with the Americans, after his LCM went off course due to the weather.
Like so many vets, he did not talk about this war experiences, but was left emotionally scarred for life.
He did talk about the liberation of Holland, when he got together with a few of his war buds. He mentioned how appreciative the Dutch were to the liberators, after so many years of German occupation.
Many years later, I travelled to the area as well, and was overwhelmed by the friendliness and hospitality of the Dutch, particularily when they knew I was a vet's son.
To paraphrase a popular saying, "Those who forget the evil lessons of history are bound to repeat them"
So true. Remembrances like those of the Dutch help perpetuate the legacy of all those that fought and the many that died for freedom.

 

[9.nub]

Thank you for sharing. The story and the tribute do much to explain the hospitality I felt when visiting.

 

[DMAN999]

That's Awesome !!!!

 

[jfeagins]

Thank you. Awesome!

 

[Bill Seward]

If you can listen to that and watch that little girl in that amazing performance with a dry eye, you have no heart....