World Wide Weimar
An international concert experience brings musical cultures from around the world to the stage
Virtuosity is found in all musical cultures: With this perspective, the University of Music Franz Liszt Weimar has been bringing musical cultures from around the world to the stage since 2023 under the title “World Wide Weimar,” thereby consciously expanding what can be heard in a concert hall. The university invites you to the fourth edition of this series on Monday, May 18, at 7:00 p.m. in the Festsaal Fürstenhaus. Admission is free!
The program brings together international students, staff, and scholarship recipients for a diverse evening at the intersection of classical and traditional concert music, transcultural encounters, and academic exchange. The American guitarist Veronica Eres will open the program with “Rondeña” by Regino Sainz de la Maza (1962). Following this, Dr. Jens Ewen, Vice President for Strategic University Development, will officially welcome the guests.
In a brief conversation, Veronica Eres, together with Ly Tran, Head of the International Office, will provide insights into her research topic: musicians’ health. Following this, Junpeng Huan, a student of elementary music education, will present the contemporary work “San”—a nine-minute piece for Chinese drums and performance. Additional performances will be given by Erasmus students from across Europe: Italian flutist Alice Paron, Spanish percussionist Samuel Queralt Verdecho, and a trombone quartet featuring students from Portugal and Spain.
A special highlight of the evening is the presentation of the 2026 DAAD Award to Maria Varnava, a student in the Master’s program in Arts Management, who is being honored for her outstanding social and intercultural commitment to the university community.
The evening concludes with a performance by the Aban Ensemble, led by Mitra Behpoori, research assistant and coordinator of the “UNESCO Chair on Transcultural Music Studies,” featuring a program of traditional Persian music and original arrangements, performed on the tar, kamancheh, and percussion.
[6 May 2026]