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Celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome in Washington DC

Washington DC, March 22, 2017 – On March 22, 2017 the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hon. Angelino Alfano, inaugurated the event commemorating the 60th Anniversary of the signature of the Treaties of Rome hosted at the Embassy of Italy in Washington. The anniversary was celebrated with the concert “In Dreams Awake” with symphonies written for the occasion by Maestro Gabriele Ciampi, featuring also the Ode to Joy from Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, the official anthem of the European Union.
Maestro Ciampi directed a group of Italian musicians who played with the Eclipse Chamber Orchestra, composed of members of the National Symphony Orchestra – a historic musical institution founded in 1931 in Washington DC.

“The European Union is a success story: what unites us prevails over our differences, and the eagerness to be together is stronger than any disagreement,” said Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Hon. Angelino Alfano.

“It is particularly significant to celebrate here in Washington DC the 60th Anniversary of the Treaties of Rome and the start of the European project,” said the Ambassador of Italy to the United States Armando Varricchio. “The US contribution has been fundamental to the European integration process, with the launch, ten years earlier, of the Marshall Plan and by providing a constant support to Europe’s path towards peace, security, and prosperity.”

“The concert In Dreams Awake – commented Maestro Ciampi – was conceived as an instrumental and emotional crescendo, from the sound of a sole instrument (the piano) to the symphonic parts, which involve the whole orchestra. I want to present the Quartet in E minor, which I composed for the 60th Anniversary of the Treaties of Rome. It is a piece arranged for four different instruments with great emotional force and which aims, through the common melody, to unify their different sound characteristics. The search for this unity is at the basis of this piece, much like it is the mission of the European Union today.”

On March 25, 1957, in the Hall of Orazi and Curiazi in the Capitoline Museums in Rome, the founding fathers of the European Union – Italy, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg –signed the Treaties of Rome. Signing the Treaties the six countries decided to embark on an unprecedented and historic common path, establishing the European Economic Community and EURATOM (European Atomic Energy community). This important event will be commemorated in Rome on march 25th with the Summit of Heads of State and Government of the European Union.