AIT to Present an "Evening of American Music" Concert

PR-0954E | Date: 11/12/2009

The American Institute in Taiwan Kaohsiung Branch Office is pleased to present an "Evening of American Music" at the Kaohsiung City Cultural Center on Sunday, November 15, at 7:30pm.  The concert program will feature a wide array of music which reflects the spirit of diversity and dynamism of the American people.  The concert will be broadcast by the Public Television Service next spring.

As a prelude to the concert, AIT/Kaohsiung will host a press conference and gala reception on Friday, November 13, at 4:00pm, at the Ching Fu Shipbuilding headquarters, one of Kaohsiung's most innovative buildings, at No.1, Fusing 4th Road, Cianjhen District, Kaohsiung. 

AIT/Kaohsiung Branch Chief Christian Castro said "It is an honor that the concert will be performed by the talented musicians of the Kaohsiung Symphony Orchestra, which has contributed so much to Kaohsiung's flourishing cultural life.  AIT thanks Bank Sinopec for its sponsorship, which has enabled all of the spectators to enjoy this unique event free of charge.  Furthermore, AIT would like to express its sincere appreciation to Taiwan's Public Television Service, which will air taped broadcasts of the concert throughout Taiwan."

AIT is pleased to bring North Carolina Symphony Orchestra Resident Conductor William Henry Curry to Taiwan to conduct the "Evening of American Music" concert.  From November 10 to November 13, he will participate in master classes with hundreds of music students, teachers and aspiring conductors throughout southern Taiwan.  AIT has invited music students from several Kaohsiung high schools to attend the concert rehearsal sessions. 

In addition to well-known compositions by great American composers such as George Gershwin and John Williams, the concert includes the Taiwan premiere of Maestro Curry's own piece, "Eulogy for a Dream," which movingly evokes America's struggle for civil rights and justice for all through the eloquent words of Dr. Martin Luther King.  During the Kaohsiung performance of Maestro Curry's composition, Dr. King's words will be spoken by Mr. Bill Thissen, a popular, long-time anchor with International Community Radio Taipei (ICRT). 

AIT/Kaohsiung hopes that the "Evening of American Music" and Maestro Curry's master class program will help to share with Taiwan the depth, breadth and beauty of American music; to strengthen the cultural ties between Taiwan and the United States; and to provide an opportunity for the United States to thank the people of Kaohsiung and southern Taiwan for the great warmth and hospitality they have extended to AIT for more than three decades.