Other events in Baltic States

Latvian pianist Vestards Simkus will perform live at the "Salle Cortot" Concert Hall in Paris next week, February 6, which will open an extensive cultural program in France dedicated to Latvia as the presiding country of the Council of the European Union, as Anda Boluza, a representative of the organizers of the concert, told LETA.

Simkus will perform nine Johann Sebastian Bach's chorale preludes and his own composition, "Dreamscapes. Nine Preludes for Piano" that had its premiere in Sigulda last September.

The solo concert by Simkus will be followed by other concerts and exhibitions: an exhibition by the Art Academy of Latvia, accordionist Ksenija Sidorova's concert in Strasbourg, exhibition of Gints Gabrans' works in Paris, performance of Verdi's "Requiem" in Paris that will feature Maija Kovalevska, Egils Silins, conductor Andris Poga, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra and State Choir "Latvija", a concert by pianist Reinis Zarins in Strasbourg, and others. The cultural program has been planned so as to present the musical and artistic values of Latvia to international audiences.