15 Years Philharmonia of Nations

In 2010 the Philharmonia of Nations celebrates its 15 years of life. This year also marks the 20th anniversary of the event that inspired Leonard Bernstein, Yehudi Menuhin and Justus Frantz to found the orchestra: the Reunification of Germany in the year after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The last 15 years were witness to great changes in Germany, Europe and the world.

The impulses for these changes were people’s longing for peace and freedom and their unbending will towards achieving them. Since 1995, the orchestra has carried the message of peace and freedom throughout the world. Young musicians from more than 40 nations and five continents come together in the Philharmonia of Nations. The secret of their peaceful coexistence is their common language – music.

Today, the orchestra is regarded as a world-class musical corpus that opens doors for talented musicians the world over, providing a wonderful opportunity for them to focus on the grand stage world wide, regardless of cultural and international boundaries. Just in the last few years, the musicians have performed more than 1,000 concerts all over the world.

Among their most noted performances was that given in 1998 in the UN General Assembly in New York at the special invitation of General Secretary Kofi Annan on the occasion of “United Nations Day”, as well as a private concert for Pope John Paul II at his summer residence Castel Gandolfo, which the Philharmonia of Nations gave in the summer of 2001 under the direction of Justus Frantz.