Consul General Powell Opens Musik- festspiele Saar at Industriekathedrale Alte Schmelz, St. Ingbert (Photo: Daniel Bittner, Presse- und Bilderdienst Rolf Ruppenthal

Consul General Powell Opens Musikfestspiele Saar
May 9, 2009. U.S. Consul General Jo Ellen Powell joined Saarland’s Minister President Peter Müller and festival director Prof. Robert Leonardy at the Industriekathedrale Alte Schmelz in St. Ingbert on May 9 in opening the Musikfestspiele Saar. The music festival, which runs until July 25 features American music under the motto ‘Welcome America!'. The extensive program under the artistic direction of Prof. Robert Leonardy is testament to the diversity and breadth of classical and modern American music. Tzimon Barto, one of America’s leading pianists of his generation, opened the evening with a performance of Gershwin's piano concert in F. It was followed by Bernstein’s “Kaddish” symphony, never heard in the Saarland before, interpreted by the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern under the direction of Christoph Poppen together with the National Chorus of Korea, the Ulsan Metropolitan Chorus, the Gwacheon Metropolitan Children’s Choir, soprano Juliane Banse and narrator August Zirner. The opening concert was broadcast live on SR2 KulturRadio and will be shown on ARTE on November 8, 2009. | Photo Gallery