Note to Correspondents

THE SILK ROAD PROJECT, UNITED NATIONS MESSENGER OF PEACE YO-YO MA

TO PERFORM ON OCCASION OF UNITED NATIONS DAY, 24 OCTOBER

 

A concert by the Silk Road Project will mark this year’s celebration of United Nations Day on Friday, 24 October 2008, at 7 p.m., in the General Assembly Hall.  The United Nations Day Concert is organized each year to mark the anniversary of the entry into force of the United Nations Charter, on 24 October 1945.

The Silk Road Project was founded in 1998 by acclaimed cellist and United Nations Messenger of Peace Yo-Yo Ma, to promote creative cross-cultural exchange and learning through the arts.  The project takes its inspiration from the historic Silk Road trading route, using it as a modern metaphor for multicultural and interdisciplinary collaboration.  The Silk Road Ensemble will feature internationally renowned musicians from Azerbaijan, Canada, China, India, Iran, Israel, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Lebanon, Spain, Switzerland and the United States.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, the President of the General Assembly, Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann, and the Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, Zhang Yesui, will make opening remarks.  The concert is organized by the United Nations Department of Public Information, and is sponsored by the Permanent Mission of China.

The Silk Road Project will hold a breakfast briefing at 9 a.m. at United Nations Headquarters to formally announce the launch of its tenth anniversary season, on the occasion of United Nations Day.  Remarks will highlight the collaborative partnership between the Silk Road Project and the United Nations, and their shared commitment to international relations and cultural exchange.  Following the press briefing, journalists will be invited to watch the start of the rehearsal.  Prior registration for the briefing is required.

To RSVP for the briefing, please contact Aoife Carlin at Ruder Finn at tel.:   212 715 1572, or e-mail:  carlina@ruderfinn.com.  United Nations accredited correspondents can obtain concert tickets through the Media Accreditation and Liaison Unit in Room S-250A.  For further information, please contact Graciela Hall at tel.:  212 963 2300, or e-mail: dhlweb2@un.org.

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For information media • not an official record