As part of Europe Day, May 9th celebration, the South Eastern Europe Symphony Orchestra held a gala classical music concert at Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Institutions Building in Sarajevo on the evening of May 11th. Representatives of BiH authorities, the international community, NGOs, religious and cultural associations, and the media attended.
The event was hosted by Ambassador Dimitris Kourkoulas, Head of the European Commission Delegation to BiH and Dr. Nikola Špirić, Chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers. Ambassador Kourkoulas addressed the guests before the concert. He reminded them that this year the European Union was celebrating a double-anniversary: the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Iron Curtain and the fifth anniversary of the latest enlargement bringing in 12 new Member States all together.
“2009 is a critical year in determining the pace in which Bosnia and Herzegovina will proceed towards European integration. This should be a year of renewed responsibility in Bosnia and Herzegovina, not a year of continued discord. Bosnia and Herzegovina leaders need to achieve the degree of political consensus that has delivered progress on EU integration elsewhere in the region, or risk to fall behind their neighbours. Constructive dialogue and a spirit of compromise are not only key for the accession process but also for the much needed reforms which are not needed to satisfy the European Union but for the benefits of this country and its citizens,” said Kourkoulas.
He also emphasized that “Together with the start of the visa liberalisation dialogue it was a clear signal to the people in Bosnia and Herzegovina that their future lies in the European Union.”
The Chair of BiH’s Council of Ministers, Nikola Špirić, reminded the audience that last year BiH has opened a new chapter with the signing of a Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU.
“Today, so many years after the final victory over fascism, with have an opportunity to enjoy the grandiose idea of ‘Europe from the Urals to the Atlantic,’ whose creators were French President Charles de Gaulle, his German colleague Konrad Adenauer, and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. This event is an opportunity for BiH to show that we intend to become EU member, and not just a country to celebrate occasions such as these. The European idea is more and more present in our society. A key period is ahead of BiH, and now we have an opportunity to prove our full commitment to this process and in this way enable the citizens of BiH to enjoy the same advantages as the citizens of EU member states. BiH is a part of European cultural and historic heritage. I would like to congratulate to you the Europe Day and the day of victory over fascism,” said Špirić.
For thirteen years in a row, this concert has gathered young musicians from the region and beyond, including those from London, Paris and Vienna. The Conductor is Maestro Siniša Marković, and the Orchestra performed the works of Franz Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
The performance reached its peak with the performance of soprano Bernarda Fink, who also is the winner of the Austrian medal for science and art.
All citizens of BiH had an opportunity to enjoy the concert, as it was broadcasted live and nation wide on public broadcast system. Prior to the Europe Day gala concert, BHT broadcasted a 30 minute TV debate with EC Delegation Head Mr. Kourkoulas, High Representative and EU Special Representative Valentin Inzko, and BiH Prime Minister Nikola Špirić on actual reform processes in BiH as well as on BiH’s progress on the EU’s reform agenda.
