Europe Days

This is the fifth annual event of its kind organised by the Embassies of EU Member States, the Delegation of the European Commission and the European Cultural Institutes to mark the Europe Day which falls on May 9.

As a core programme activity of “Europe Days” 2008, the silent film concert will feature the silent film Der Müde Tod ‘literally Weary Death, known also as Behind the Wall and Destiny’ by well-known German Director Fritz Lang, accompanied by the life performance of the full symphony orchestra of the Hanoi Conservatory of Music under the baton of German composer Pierre Oser. The programme will take place on May 9 and 10 at the Hanoi Opera House and May 12 at the Ho Chi Minh Conservatory of Music.

Another concert, a Spanish, European Music Gala featuring the Philharmonic Orchestra of Vietnam led by world-acclaimed conductor Carlos Cuesta will be held on May 8 at the Hanoi Opera House. The concert will introduce some rare Spanish pieces, a Vietnamese piece “Memory of the Childhood” from composer Tran Manh Hung and a European masterpiece from the music genius Ludwig van Beethoven.

Another event which will surely attracts a lot of audiences, particularly the young people, is the fashion gala with designers from France, Italy, Spain and Vietnam. The fashion gala will be held on May 21 at the National Museum of Fine Arts. Particularly, the gala will be enhanced by three other fashion photo exhibitions named respectively Mediterranean Beauty on 10 May at Ly Thai To Square, A City in the Night on 19 May at Mosaique Livingroom, 23 Ngo Van So, and Paris and Milano on 22 May at L’Espace.

An indispensable event of the Europe Days in Vietnam as usual, the European film festival this year will focus especially on children and teenageners. With a rich selection of some of the best European animated and feature films, the festival will be organised from May 16-22 at the National Cinema Centre in Hanoi and from May 22 – 30 at the New Galaxy Cinema in Ho chi minh city

The event to open the wide variety of events of Europe Days in Vietnam is a photo installation entitled Hanoi Transformation. To be displayed at Goethe Institute in Hanoi from April 29, the exhibition is Berlin filmmakers Julia Albrecht and Busso von Müller’s the results of their research, presented in words and pictures in Hanoi in recent years.

The Europe Days in Vietnam will also include other events such as European food festival, children’s drawing competition, EU-Vietnam children’s football cup and seminars on EU-Vietnam trade relations.

Addressing at a press conference held in Hanoi this morning, Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Commission Sean Doyle said “The Europe Days has developed a lot over the years, reflecting the broad-based relationship between the EU and Vietnam and building bridges between the people of Vietnam and the European Union. While Ambassador of France Hervé Bolot, in his capacity of local EU President said Europe Days is a chance for them to share their experiences and achievements with others, as part of a commitment to a world of equal development and also giving much more depth and richness to EU-Vietnam relations.

(Source: Nhan Dan)