Stasera, la Filarmonica armena ha celebrato il suo centesimo anniversario a Persepolis, Heart of the Persian Empire. Ai sensi di 1.500, tra cui ambasciatori di 23 paesi e Nazioni Unite, ha segnato uno dei più grandi concerti internazionali di sempre in un sito antico-una pietra miliare storica per l’Iran-Armenia.

Ambassadors and diplomatic delegations included from Italy, Denmark, South Korea, Norway, Germany, Brazil, Spain, China, Sweden, India, Kenya, Philippines, Poland, Mexico, Uzbekistan, Serbia, Sri Lanka and Nigeria. Most Iranian and Armenian officials were at the ceremony. Representatives from the United Nations were also present. It marked one of the biggest international public concerts ever held at an ancient site.

Tickets for all available seats were sold out within minutes. The Orchestra performed both Persian and Armenian poetry, and the repertoire included works by Armenian composers alongside classical masterpieces. All the tickets were sold out almost immediately. The orchestra will perform in Tehran in the coming days, and possibly in Isfahan next, which is home to a significant Armenian community.

Persepolis has hosted several domestic concerts and events over the years, but this was its first-ever international public concert – and only the second international event since 1971, when the 2,500th anniversary of the Empire was celebrated during the Pahlavi era. Over half a century later after that, during the Iranian President’s visit to Armenia on August 18 of this year, it was agreed that Persepolis would host the 100th anniversary concert of the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra. The event marked a major cultural milestone for Iran and Armenia, two nations with deep historical ties.

Good. It’s a shame that we couldn’t find some ancient ruins in Armenia proper for this type of event.