Join us for a very special retrospective of the 25th anniversary of the end of the Cold War. The program will begin with a brief performance by Sinfonietta Leipzig, a group of Gewandhaus musicians composed of Volker Hemken, Bass Clarinet; Yun-Jin Cho and Karl Heinrich Niebuhr, Violins; Tahlia Petrosian, Viola; and Matthias Schreiber, Violoncello. An excerpt of “The Miracle of Leipzig,” will follow, a film highlighting the peaceful protest of more than 70,000 people in Leipzig, Germany, whose chants of “We are the people!” and nonviolent demands for freedom paved the way for the fall of the Berlin Wall one month later on Nov. 9, 1989. After the film a panel of contemporary witnesses and experts will discuss this historic demonstration and the impact of the end of the Cold War. After a question-and-answer session, the evening will conclude with a reception.
This event is a prelude to a Nov. 3, 2014, performance by the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra at the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, presented by the Houston Symphony and the Houston-Leipzig Sister City Association in conjunction with the City of Houston and the German Consulate General in Houston. The concert marks the first performance of a five-city tour of the United States to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany. Former President George H.W. Bush and former Secretary of State James A. Baker, III, are the honorary chairs for the Houston performance. For tickets and more information about the concert, please visit www.houstonsymphony.org or call 713.224.7575.
There is no charge for this event. RSVP by Friday, Oct. 31 on the Baker Institute website http://bakerinstitute.org/events/1671/ by clicking the RSVP button in the left column of the site.
Panelists
Todd Becker
Former Consul General of the United States in Leipzig
Peter C. Caldwell, Ph.D.
Samuel G. McCann Professor of History, Rice University
Rainer Eckert, Ph.D.
Director, Leipzig Forum of Contemporary History
Opening Remarks
The Honorable J.D. Bindenagel
Former Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy in East Berlin
Moderator
Allen Matusow, Ph.D.
Director of Academic Affairs, Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy
William Gaines Twyman Professor of History, Rice University