Lithuanian Prison Service Endorses Looking at the Stars to their European Union Counterparts
Lithuanian Prison Service has recommended Looking at the Stars to their European Union counterparts in Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, and Belgium.
Please view the letter from Virginijus Kulikauskas, Director General, below.
Letter2024 SPRING SERIES IN LITHUANIA
In May 2024, we will continue our program in the European Union with the gift of four classical music concerts to Lithuanian correctional institutions.
The series, delivered by an international team of performers – newcomers from Austria, Germany and Lithuania – will be unique. This is the first time since our inception in 2015, that we will include vocalists in the program – a soprano and a tenor.
S. Gordon Harwood, our Artist in Residence, will create paintings during each of the performances and will gift them to inmates as part of a Looking at the Stars tradition which originated with our Canadian concerts.
This will bring our Lithuanian prisons program count to 35 musical gifts in total.
Click the image below to view the upcoming musical programme.
Looking at the Stars – LITHUANIA – October 16-20
On October 16-20, 2023, we delivered our traditional Fall Series comprised of six interactive concerts to Lithuanian prisoners and general public.
The series opened with a meeting at the Canadian Embassy in Lithuania. Our team, led by Peter Lambert, Board member, met with Jeanette Sautner, the newly-appointed Ambassador who expressed her full support and excitement about our program.
Violinist Martynas Svegzda von Bekker and pianist Darius Mazintas delivered the program, consisting of the works of Franck, Chausson, Bach, Paganini, Svegzda von Bekker, and other composers to the audience of over 500 inmates in five prisons as well about 80 members of general public in Organum Piano Gallery in Vilnius, Lithuanian capital.
All events were moderated by Peter Lambert and Lauryna Einoryte, General manager of LATS, Lithuania.
Looking at the Stars in Nova Scotia
On November 6,7 and 8 Looking at the Stars delivered three classic music gifts to the residents of Northwood Long Term Care institution in three different locations – Chester, Halifax and Beaverbank, Nova Scotia.
Over 100 residents had a chance to relax and enjoy brilliant performances of the works by Bach, Chopin, Albeniz, and Ravel by unique Canadian pianist Walter Delahunt.
We hope to return to Nova Scotia in Spring 2024.
Human Rights Prize for Gidon Kremer
The 2023 Beethoven Prize for human rights has been awarded to the Latvian violinist and ensemble leader Gidon Kremer.
Kremer, 76, has been outspoken in his opposition to Russia’s wars of aggression in Chechnya and Ukraine. He has also played in jails and other places of despair.
The award, worth 10,000 Euros, is given by the Beethoven Academy in Bad Honnef.
Past winners include Maria João Pires (2021), Igor Levit (2019) and Gabriela Montero (2018).
Photo of Gidon Kremer taken during his performance of “Preludes to a Lost Time,” at Pacific Institution Regional Treatment Centre, Abbotsford, BC on January 29, 2020.
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