The Music Maker of Auschwitz

'This is a gripping story of a strong but simple man who found himself in two world wars, with two great passions: one for music that helped him survive; one for his wife who helped him live.’ — Cumbria’s Museum of Military Life

Captured at Dunkirk in 1940, accomplished musician Drum Major Henry Barnes Jackson promised his wife he would return home to serenade her again. Instead, he was marched through a brutal system of Nazi prison camps where survival was never guaranteed.

In 1942, Jackson was transferred to Auschwitz IV—part of the notorious concentration camp complex where Allied POWs were also imprisoned. There, he was ordered to become the camp’s Music Maker, leading performances for his captors.

But what began as an act of control became an act of quiet defiance.

Through music, Jackson lifted the spirits of fellow prisoners, created moments of hope in unimaginable conditions, and even helped conceal escape attempts. All the while, he risked everything to keep a secret diary—recording the truth of life inside the camps.

When liberation finally came in 1945, Jackson emerged gravely ill but alive. Hidden among his belongings was the diary that would bear witness to five years of courage, suffering and survival.

Written by his granddaughter, The Music Maker of Auschwitz is a powerful true story of resilience, love and the enduring strength of the human spirit in the face of darkness.

‘Byrne transforms her grandfather’s war diary into a powerful testament to the extraordinary strength of mind.’

‘What a story and what a moving book! … This is an outstanding book.’
Windscreen Magazine, The Military Trust