Cultural exchange – Choirs from the Bruck region sang at the City Festival in Split

Good relations in conductor Giuseppe Tirza's homeland allowed the Maria Elend and Vishamand choirs to recently perform in Split, Croatia. There they were received by the nuns of the Sisters of the Cross of Kamin.

On the evening before the actual concert, there was a sampling of the extensive choral repertoire in the religious community's banquet hall of the mayor of Split, Ivica Poljak, and the Austrian ambassador to Croatia, Josef Markus Wokitic, who was represented by Julia Tiefengraber. Pieces of Viennese classical music were played, as well as the European anthem “Ode to Joy” conducted by Giuseppe Tirza and accompanied by Lithuanian pianist Kamilė Zaveckaitė.

The highlight of the trip was the evening concert held in the monastery church, “Sistara Ansilla”. The singers demonstrated their skills by performing the German Mass D 872 by Franz Schubert. The song “Misao svijeta” performed together in Croatian will be remembered by the choir members for a long time. The men's choir “Pučki pjevači Kamen” also impressed the audience with its old church songs.

He added: “The concert was very well received by the audience, and spread an atmosphere of joy and warm friendship. “The harmony between the choirs from different countries was clearly noticeable and demonstrated the universal language of music,” says El Hadi Grabek, secretary of the “pro musica Haslau-Maria Ellend” choir, stressing that the successful event and warm reception emphasized the importance of cultural exchange and cooperation between countries.