While the Music Played Audiobook By Nathaniel Lande cover art

While the Music Played

A Remarkable Story of Courage and Friendship in WWII

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

While the Music Played

By: Nathaniel Lande
Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $17.90

Buy for $17.90

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

Barnes & Noble Favorite Indie Book

"We were the dreamers of dreams, the singers of songs. We were the music makers. We would not hear nor play nor love without each other. This is a prelude to our experience, an overture to who we were and how we arrived on the shores of friendship."

Beginning in 1939 prewar Prague, While the Music Played focuses on the story of young Max Mueller, a curious bright romantic - a budding musician, piano tuner, and nascent journalist. Max is on the cusp of adolescence when the Nazi influence invades Prague’s tolerant spirit with alarming speed as he struggles to understand the changing world around him. When his father, noted German conductor Viktor Mueller, is conscripted into the German army and finds himself increasingly promoting the Nazi message, Viktor’s best friend, noted Czech composer Hans Krása, protests the occupation in every way he can.

As everyone Max loves is compromised by intolerable conditions, he becomes increasingly isolated and is forced to find his own way. With each step, Max’s journey grows more conflicted. Music is the one constant connecting him to both the lost childhood he cherishes and the man he still hopes to become. But will it be enough to sustain him against the relentless Nazi threat?

With a seamless blend of historical and fictional characters, told from multiple points of view, and sweeping across the capitals of Prague, London, and Berlin as World War II ravages Europe, this meticulously researched book is unique with its diverse and interweaving narratives, threaded with news accounts, and encompassing some of the most triumphant and devastating moments of the war - from the opera houses of Berlin to the music halls of London and the making of the famous children’s opera Brundibár.

While the Music Played is a lyrical, absorbing, and heartbreaking story of love and courage from the widely revered and best-selling author Nathaniel Lande.

©2020 Nathaniel Lande (P)2020 Blackstone Publishing
Fiction Opera England War
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about While the Music Played

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    7
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    8
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    6
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A must read

Like great music , this book deceptively starts out slow & a bit awkward ,not the polished prose I’ve grown used to lately , but if you’re fortunate to hang in there you’ll be rewarded with a magnificent crescendo towards the end that’s so rewarding . Yes another Holocaust book but different and will stay in your heart forever .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful