World-famous cellist Mstislav Rostropovich will conduct a concert for 1,000 cellos during a weeklong international cello convention in May in Kobe, which is currently commemorating the 10th anniversary of the devastating Great Hanshin Earthquake.
With music by Charles Davidoff, Shigeaki Saegusa and a specially commissioned new piece by Rodin Shchedrin, titled "Hamlet Ballad," the International Cello Congress in Kobe 2005 will also feature pieces by Beethoven, Bach, Elgar and others in a wide variety of concerts and chamber-music recitals as well as performances, lectures and masterclasses by cello virtuosos Bernard Greenhouse, Janos Starker and a galaxy of other top-class musicians.
The highlight of the event is a concert for 1,000 cellos -- both professional and amateur -- on May 22, the last day of the convention, at the World Hall arena.