Dozens of expatriates, diplomats and local dignitaries were treated Tuesday to an evening of light classical music in the courtyard of the city’s Hotel Le Royal.
Performing in an elegant atmosphere enhanced by subdued lighting, Germany’s renowned Tuebingen Chamber Orchestra presented classical works composed by musicians including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Franz Schubert and Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
The event was the first of four performances by the group during a three-day tour of Cambodia, said Uwe Janitz, chief administrator at the German Embassy and organizer of the performances.
The orchestra is scheduled to perform at 4:30 pm today at the Elephant Bar at Hotel Le Royal, and at 7 tonight at the French Cultural Center.
The orchestra also will perform at 8:30 pm Thursday at the Grand Hotel d’Angkor in Siem Reap.
Janitz described the 16-member orchestra’s performance as ”a major event”—one in keeping with the German Embassy’s efforts to promote culture.
“But I must confess this was not entirely our inspiration,” he added.
“It’s actually one leg of an organized Southeast Asian tour that includes Laos, Thailand and Malaysia.”
Tuesday’s performance included solos by by celebrated German trumpeter Karl-Friedrich Schmidt and violinists Ara Gerard Malikian and Regine Schmitt.
Schmidt’s rendition of Tomaso Albinoni’s Trumpet Concerto in B-major underscored his reputation as one of Europe’s most acclaimed interpreters of Baroque trumpet compositions.
Conductor Gudni Emilsson, observing the surroundings between performances, said Tuesday: “As a venue, the hotel is of course really quite special. And I think I speak for everyone in the orchestra when I say that I’ve found the people quite warm, sympatique.”
Janitz noted that since its establishment in 1957, the Tuebingen Chamber Orchestra has performed in 90 countries at such events as the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City and the 1976 US Bicentennial Celebration.
