A violinist tells - About the forgotten antislavery pioneers. A hunchbacked prophet with dwarfism, an unassuming elementary school teacher, and a straight-laced theologian. At first, no one could have guessed that this huddle of oddballs would spark one of the greatest revolutions in human history. But so it did. At least, these three eighteenth-century men were the greatest pioneers. They lit the flame of “abolitionism,” the belief that the entire institution of slavery should be abolished.
Sascha Bergsma is graduating as a classical violinist and making his debut as a storyteller. He tells adapted stories by Rutger Bregman and lets them sink in with solo violin music by Bach, Ysaÿe, Bartók and Paganini.
Sascha takes you back to a time when it was considered perfectly normal that you could own and sell others, just as you could raise and trade chickens and pigs. It is tempting to see the abolition of slavery as the inevitable consequence of progress. But no, ‘A historical incident’ it actually was. 'An extraordinary event that might as well never have happened.' And that, of course, raises many questions. Who are these peculiar, radical instigators of this belief in progress? What did they see? How did they go about their work? And for the enthusiast, how do you follow in their footsteps?
The performance is free to attend, with free donation online or after. Sign up using this form: https://forms.office.com/e/6EE2EH6pev.
Sascha Bergsma also calls himself “the best violinist,” and in addition to playing the violin and storytelling, he has political ambitions. Take a look at his crowdfunding for this graduation performance: www.gofundme.com/f/degoedsteviolist.
