In the darkest of moments, somehow people will find a way to bring a bit of light to the world.

Even if that means stealing a bit of joy from the midst of a concentration camp during the Holocaust.

But that is exactly what Saul Dreier did. He learned to play the drums.

Dreier was separated from his parents and a sister, and put in the Krakow-Plaszow concentration camp in Poland when he was 16.

He was moved to another camp not long after that and put to work on automobiles.

At night, when he was back in his barracks, there was a man who would sing traditional Jewish songs. Each night, he and a few other prisoners would sing for the others.

But one night, Dreier commented, “You’re missing something.”

Dreier performs in Israel in 2019. He started the Holocaust Survivor Band in 2014. Photo courtesy of Justyna Kołaczek

Grabbing two metal soup spoons, he began hitting them together, creating a beat that the other men could sing along to.

That’s how I learned to play the drums,” said Dreier, now 98.

He said his father, who was a musician, bought Saul a clarinet when he was only 8 years old.

Drier said that the music helped him work past the fear that at any moment the Nazi’s could murder him.

“It helped me survive,” said Dreier, who was later sent to Mauthausen Concentration Camp in Nazi-occupied Austria in 1944, when he was 20. The following year, he was liberated by Americans.

Dreier immediately began thinking about his family. “I thought about my parents, my sister and my father, and how I could find them.” He discovered later that he never would – they had lost their lives at the concentration camps.

While in a displaced persons camp, following his liberation, Dreier got his first chance to play on a real set of drums.

“We played, and the young people used to dance,” he said.

Four years after his release, Dreier immigrated to Brooklyn, N.Y., where he worked in construction. He married Clara, who was also a survivor of the Holocaust. The couple had four children and were married until Clara’s death in 2016.

It had been more than 60 years since Dreier had played drums. But, about 10 years ago, all of that changed when he learned that Alice Herz-Sommer, a pianist and the oldest known Holocaust survivor, had died at 110 years old. She too, Dreier said, had played music during her time in the camps.

Dreier, center, and other Holocaust survivors meet President Biden at the 2023 White House Hanukkah party. Photo courtesy of Justyna Kołaczek

“I called my wife, Clara, and I said, ‘I would like to do something in her name,’” Dreier said. “I want to put together a Holocaust survivor band.”

“She told me I’m crazy,” Dreier said, smiling. His rabbi also had a similar reaction as his wife.

But Dreier was determined.

“I bought a brand-new set of drums, and I became a proud musician,” he said. “After this, the sky opened for me.”

He gathered an accordionist, a violinist, a guitarist, a saxophonist and a trumpet player — all of whom either survived the Holocaust or were children of survivors — and they formed The Holocaust Survivor Band.

In the decade since the band began performing, they have played more than 100 concerts around the world.

But Dreier said it’s not just about entertaining with music. It’s about promoting unity.

My goal is peace all over the world, and no antisemitism,” he said.

One of Dreier’s best moments, he said, was being able to perform for President Biden during the White House Hanukkah party, accompanied by the U.S. Marine Band.

“I loved that. You can’t imagine how much,” Dreier said.

Although Dreier is nearly 100, he said his musical career is only just beginning. With the recent war between Israel and Gaza, he wants to share his story of unity with everyone.

“We all have one heart,” he said. “We all have to live together in peace, and that’s what I’m trying to promote.”

Watch this amazing band perform below.

Sources: Washington Post | Forward