Coast musician pays tribute to Holocaust victims after life-changing trip to Auschwitz
Hank Berumen’s newest project raising money to help tell the untold stories of Holocaust victims and survivors
By Tristan Ruppert
Published: Aug. 20, 2021 at 8:05 AM CDT
BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) - For years, visitors have toured concentration camps in Germany, Poland and other sites in Europe, seeing firsthand the devastating place where more than 2.7 million people died during World War II.
South Mississippi musician Hank Berumen had the chance to visit Auschwitz with his son before the pandemic, and the experience was one that had an indelible impact on him. That impact can be heard on his latest album, “Finale,” which was inspired by what he felt hearing and seeing the stories of the many Holocaust victims.
”We toured the camp and it just came to life, and I knew I had to do something about it. I knew I had to contribute something,” said Berumen.
Soon after, Berumen began writing.
”It was a slow, arduous process. It was not a quick thing,” he recalled.
In the months of quarantine, the project began to take shape. Berumen uses natural sounds throughout the album to try and put listeners in the shoes of those who were persecuted. Some of the music is told from the perspective of those who are to lose their lives. Other songs merely reflect on the evil acts that were committed by the Third Reich.
In writing the album, Berumen said the heart-wrenching tragedy weighed heavy on him as navigated the untold stories of the Holocaust victims and those who survived.
”My wife told me on numerous occasions to take a break because it was overwhelming. It would just weigh on me,” he said.
But Berumen pushed through the heaviness, all with the goal of completing the album and using the profits from it to give back to those victims and their families.
”I couldn’t take any money for it. It would just be wrong,” he said. “So I am contributing any moneys that are made from this to go to the Children’s Remembrance Fund at Yad Vashem, which is the Holocaust center in Jerusalem.”
The center emphasizes the importance of educating younger generations on the Holocaust, as well as telling the stories of the Jewish people.
“Finale” can be found on all major streaming platforms if you search Henry Berumen Jr. Every dollar raised from purchases or streaming will go towards telling the untold stories of the millions lost during the Holocaust. If you wish to just purchase the physical album, click here.
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