The New York Philharmonic, the oldest symphony orchestra in the US and one of the oldest in the world, arrived in Taipei yesterday to begin its tour this year of five Asian cities.
The orchestra is staging two concerts at the National Concert Hall in Taipei, yesterday and today, and another concert tomorrow at the Kaohsiung Cultural Center before leaving for Hong Kong on Friday. It will also perform in Shanghai, Beijing and Pyongyang during the 11-concert tour, which will conclude on Feb. 24.
Since its first visit to Asia in 1961, the New York Philharmonic has returned 12 times, last visiting Taiwan in 1998. The current tour is sponsored by the Credit Suisse Group, a leading global financial services company headquartered in Zurich.
"The Philharmonic has a significant record of touring Asia, but this will be our most substantial tour of the region in our history," said the orchestra's president and executive director, Zarin Mehta.
"I am delighted to be returning to Asia with the Philharmonic. It is always a great honor to present this orchestra to audiences around the world," music director Lorin Maazel said.
Maazel, 78, became the music director of the orchestra in 2002. He has led more than 150 orchestras in more than 5,000 opera and concert performances over the course of his career.
Maazel will conduct the orchestra in playing works by Beethoven, Brahms, Dvorak, Elgar, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Rossini and Tchaikovsky. Soloists include Philharmonic concertmaster Glenn Dicterow, principal horn Philip Myers, and guest cellist Alisa Weilerstein.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
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The New Taipei Metro's Sanyin Line and the eastern extension of the Taipei Metro's Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Red Line) are scheduled to begin operations in June, the National Development Council said today. The Red Line, which terminates at Xiangshan Station, would be connected by the 1.4km extension to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, while the Sanyin Line would link New Taipei City's Tucheng and Yingge stations via Sanxia District (三峽). The council gave the updates at a council meeting reviewing progress on public construction projects for this year. Taiwan's annual public infrastructure budget would remain at NT$800 billion (US$25.08 billion), with NT$97.3
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