Yu: I've been very proud to bring this story to the world stage.

Shanghai is the biggest harbor for the refugees during the Second World War, and a lot of Jewish musician played in Shanghai Symphony Orchestra before.

This is a very big show about the historic story in Shanghai.

So it's important, and especially with New York Philharmonic.

It's such a great opportunity.

[ Choir singing indistinctly ] ♪ One place answers our every prayer ♪ ♪ Shanghai, beacon of light on a silent shore ♪ "Emigré," really, first and foremost is a story about how we are all part of one global community together, and people come together to help one another in their time of need.

And the people of Shanghai welcoming in the Jewish refugees in the 1930s is one example and one story, A not-well-known story about World War II that we felt was really important to share with the world.

There's nothing better than music to bring people's emotions to the surface, and we know our audiences are going to experience that.

The New York Philharmonic has a long history of being a cultural ambassador to the world.

I hope that our concert tonight allows people to just recognize the importance of working together to make the world a better place.

[ Singing indistinctly ] [ Singing indistinctly ] It must have been very difficult for them.

I mean, going to a foreign country they probably have never been to.

At that time, China was going through a very difficult time, was during the war with Japanese.

It is very special for me because I grew up in Shanghai and I, myself, I moved here when I was 19 years old.

My husband, who is from Ukraine, is also Jewish descent.

The music itself conveys this great message full of humanity, has so much tenderness.

Its combination of Jewish tunes, some places it's very dense, like, you know, shows glimpses of hope when people are in hardships.

Also, there has a lot of Chinese pentatonic themes.

And since it's a love story, there's also a lot of romantic, very lush texture.

♪♪♪ I primarily just focused on this oratorio and its conception with the long view in the beginning.

And for me, it's been such a journey.

And I knew a gentleman, he was a Shanghainese refugee also.

And that's when I first really learned about this kind of arcane piece of history that, it would be fair to say, not a tremendous amount of people know about.

It just all has come together in such a beautiful way.

And of course, you have to always go back to Long Yu.

It was his impetus.

It's just an incredible experience working with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and now here with the New York Philharmonic, which is the -- I mean, the history, right?

It's just beyond.

The main thing I wanted to achieve in this piece was to connect with people with complexity, but also indelible memory of also melody.

[ Singing indistinctly ] ♪♪♪ Birnbaum: Music is what allows us to reconcile harmoniously.

That this piece that's so much about division and separation can be told by musicians who are coming together in a room, powerfully connecting with each other, is beyond moving.

To think of China as an open port city that harbored 20,000 Jews during the Holocaust and actually wrote them visas to get out of Eastern Europe -- what an incredible model for our time.

[ Singing indistinctly ] ♪♪♪ Well, the story is about how the Jewish people came to Shanghai.

The Shanghai people protect them for quite a long time.

The music is actually giving the message of love.

It's combined of culture and, you know, music, everything.

The form of really the art.

So the message behind the music, you know, really, we are one world.

No matter what nation we are coming from, no matter where we are coming from.

But just remember, we are all here because of love.

[ Singing indistinctly ] ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ [ Cheers and applause ]