The Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra will hold its first concert as part of its American tour tonight, performing immediately after the end of the annual NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Dayton. The director of the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra, Vedran Tuce, also spoke to BHRT.
The tour is being held to mark the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement, and the Philharmonic Orchestra represents Bosnia and Herzegovina as the only artistic ensemble invited to participate in this significant international event.
The invitation to participate came two years ago, when US Congressman Mike Turner visited Sarajevo and became acquainted with the work of the ensemble.
“As you mentioned, this is the crowning achievement of several weeks, and perhaps even months, of work. 60 people, or rather 65 of us, flew halfway around the globe to be here tonight as the culmination of what we have been preparing for weeks,” said Vedran Tuce, director of the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra, on the eve of tonight’s concert.
This tour, as the ensemble points out, has a second highlight – the Concert for Peace, which will take place on May 29.
“If we look at it professionally, it is actually the finale of our visit to America. The concert consists of two parts – in the first we will present the works of Bosnian composers, inspired by the period leading up to Dayton itself, which is the concept of this performance. The second part of the concert brings a joint performance with the Dayton Philharmonic – about 150 artists on stage in one spectacular edition”, adds Tuce.
A special curiosity of the concert will be the conductor Marin Alsop, one of the most famous world conductors of today, who will lead the musicians through this symbolic performance.
The repertoire also includes works by Ludwig van Beethoven and Leonard Bernstein, and the concert carries a strong message of unity, the universality of art and cultural dialogue.
It is a great pleasure to be here in Dayton these days. The Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra brings together great artists, who are undoubtedly the best cultural ambassadors of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the world.
