We marked the presidency of the EU Council with a concert in Berlin

Croatia's assumption of the presidency of the Council of Europe was solemnly marked in Berlin with a concert by the Zagreb soloists. On Tuesday, January 14, the day before the international opening of the Croatian presidency, the Zagreb soloists held a concert in the Red Hall on Alexanderplatz, and the program included works by Boccherini, Papandopoulos and Beethoven.

Representatives of diplomatic, political, cultural, social and religious life from numerous European countries and cities gathered in a full ceremonial hall. Before the concert itself, welcoming speeches were held, and the speakers were the Ambassador of the Republic of Croatia in Germany, Gordan Bakota, Gerry Woop, State Secretary for Europe, Commissioner for Culture and Europe of the Berlin Senate, Michelle Müntefering, Minister for International Cultural Policy in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, and Zdravka Bušić, State secretary in the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia.

 

Everyone emphasized the importance and significance of the Croatian presidency of the EU Council, as well as the partnership between the two states of Croatia and Germany. After Croatia, it is Germany that takes over the role of EU Council President.

 

With Ambassador Gordan Bakot.

With Ambassador Gordan Bakot.

 

We also celebrated the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth with an exclusive performance.

 

The concert began with the performance of Luigi Boccherini’s “Andante sostenuto-Allegro assai” and ended with Ludwig van Beethoven’s “Finale. Adagio molto e vivace” by an artist whose 250th birth anniversary is celebrated in 2020. Thus, at the very beginning of Beethoven’s year in Berlin, the Zagreb soloists performed the First Symphony in C major, Opus 21, which he arranged for strings, as the first such project in the world concertmaster of the Zagreb soloists Sreten Krstić.

 

Among the large number of guests were the papal nuncio in FR Germany, Croatian Archbishop Dr. Nikola Eterović, Bishop Franjo Komarica of Banja Luka, parish priest of HKM Berlin Zvonko Tolić, Croatian ambassador in Berlin Gordan Bakota as host of the evening, State Secretary Zdravka Bušić, member of the German Bundestag Josip Juratović, Consuls General of the Republic of Croatia in FR Germany: Ivan Sablić (Stuttgart), Vladimir Duvnjak (Munich), Vedran Konjevod (Frankfurt), Ivan Bulić (Düsseldorf), Kristijan Tušek (Hamburg) and numerous Croatian businessmen.

 

We must especially point out that the audience included two of our great artists, opera singer Evelin Novak and Croatian pianist Martina Filjak.

 

See the entire program in Berlin, and the 1st part of the concert from 27:00:

 

 

The second part of the concert: