“Europe, peace and culture” in the Pablo Casals Museum
This Saturday, May 11, on the occasion of the celebration of Europe Day (May 9th), an emotional meeting of people linked to the European institutions and admirers of Pau Casals and the values he defended was organized. The goal of this meeting was to express the involvement with the European project and remember the legacy of Casals and his life journey of commitment to the defense of peace in the world in what was his summer home on the beach of Sant Salvador.
Pau Casals is one of the most universal names in Catalan culture. Performer, conductor, composer and teacher, he was a great artist of international reference in 20th century music. But in addition to his talent and artistic excellence, he was a lifelong advocate for peace, democracy and human dignity. He said that music could not be separated from life, and that is why his artistic career was an expression of commitment to peace. Apart from the most important distinctions in the world of music, Casals was commissioned to compose a hymn for peace for the United Nations, and received the UN Peace Medal on October 24th, 1971.
As the President of the European Commission, Mrs. Ursula von der Leyen, quoted in her May 2022 speech in Barcelona, his legacy lives on. And that is why we have invited a group of personalities linked to the European institutions who have been able to visit his house at the beach of San Salvador (El Vendrell), today the Pau Casals Museum.
After the visit, a brief act has been programmed in which a statement has been read in favor of the project of the European Union, exalting the value of cultural diversity as a great heritage of the culture of Europe and of the whole of humanity, and of peace, as a fundamental priority to bring us closer to the better world that Pau Casals defended so strongly. Speakers included Philippe Laurette (President of the Jean Monnet Association), Airy Maragall (Catalunya Europa Foundation), Hannes Swoboda (Former Member of the European Parliament), Manuel Szapiro (Director of the European Commission Office in Barcelona) and Enrique Baron (Former President of the European Parliament). Cellist Guillem Vellvé performed a cello version of the Hymn of Europe and Song of the Birds.
This initiative aims to be a cry for peace in Europe and the fundamental role of culture.
The event was supported by the European Comission Office in Barcelona.
The statement was supported by:
Maria Badia (Trustee of the Pau Casals Foundation and Former Member of the European Parliament),
Enrique Barón (Former President of the European Parliament),
Sergi Barrera (Director of the European Parliament Office in Barcelona)
Laura Baeza (Former European Commission official),
Martí Carnicer (Trustee of the Pau Casals Foundation),
Teresa Carreras (Journalist),
Joan Colom (Former Member of the European Parliament),
Toni Comín (Member of the European Parliament),
Xavier Ferrer (Former President of the Catalan Council of the European Movement),
Santiago Fisas (Former Member of the European Parliament),
Ada Font (Young European Federalists),
Joan Fuster (Co-director of the UNESCO Pau Casals Chair),
Cristina Gallach (Trustee of the Pau Casals Foundation and Special Commissioner for the Alliance for the New Language Economy of the Government of Spain.),
Jordi Guixé (European Observatory on Historical Memory)
Philippe Laurette (President of the Jean Monnet Association),
Airy Maragall (President of the Catalunya Europa Foundation),
Ernest Maragall (Former Member of the European Parliament),
Raimon Obiols (Former Member of the European Parliament),
Diana Riba (Member of the European Parliament),
European Observatory on Memories – EUROM.
Teresa Riera (Former Member of the European Parliament),
Antoni Segura (Professor of Contemporary History at the University of Barcelona),
Narcís Serra (Vice President of the Board of Trustees of the Pau Casals Foundation),
Albert Solé (Trustee of the Pau Casals Foundation),
Jordi Solé (Former Member of the European Parliament),
Hannes Swoboda (President of the International Institute for Peace, Vienna, and former Member of the European Parliament),
Manuel Szapiro (director of the European Commission’s office in Barcelona)
Anna Terrón (Former Member of the European Parliament),
Josep Andreu (Former Mayor of Montblanc),
Federico Mayor Zaragoza (Culture of Peace Foundation, and former Director General of UNESCO)
Paula Vázquez (Young European Federalists)
Jordi Xuclà (Catalan Council of the European Movement)