New York Philharmonic Orchestra Named Ambassadors For Peace

The New York Philharmonic Orchestra will make its guest appearance at Liberty Island Usedom on the Baltic Sea as "Ambassadors for Peace."

"To go to such a place in such a moment of the history through which we are living with this horrible war, leads us to realize how happy we have been for so long a time without all of these problems," said Music Director Jaap van Zweden on Thursday at a presentation in New York.

"I hope that the message which we are able to bring, will be that the only solution is to stop and listen to each other and to listen to music, for music can heal many wounds and I am certain that there are many wounded people," van Zweden continued. The renowned New York Philharmonic Orchestra is traveling in the midst of extreme tensions between Russia and the Western World as "Ambassadors for Peace", said orchestra head Deborah Borda.

The guest appearance under the motto of "Peace, Diversity and Freedom" is scheduled for May 20 through May 24 at the Usedom Music Festival. Due to the high demand for tickets the Festival has already been extended. Among other works on the program are pieces by André Previn and Bela Bartók, violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter will also perform. These are the first performances by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra outside of the United States since the outbreak of the Corona virus pandemic.