June 19, 2003—The thundering chords of Rachmaninov and a Debussy-composed flute solo were among the sounds filling the IFC’s auditorium Monday evening as high-ranking officials from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bank staff, ambassadors, and others gathered for an "Evening of Culture and Art from Bosnia and Herzegovina." The concert by five young artists from Bosnia and Herzegovina capped a nearly week-long celebration of Bosnian heritage, sponsored by the Bank and the America-Bosnia Cultural Foundation.

Over 250 guests filled the IFC lobby Monday, where an exhibit highlighted Bosnia and Herzegovina’s needs in rehabilitating cultural and historical monuments destroyed or damaged in the war. Those include mosques in the towns of Stolac and Dabrica, a Franciscan Monastery in Kreševo, and the Temple of Mithras in Jajce, where a cult once worshiped an invincible sun god in the days of the Roman empire.

The celebration then moved downstairs to the auditorium where the young Bosnian musicians, led by pianist and President of the America-Bosnia Cultural Foundation Sasha Toperich, performed classical music by Bosnian, European, and American composers. The concert featured soprano singer Adema Pljevljak, clarinetist Vedran Tuce, pianist Dragan Opancic, and flautist Suncica Loncar.

An art exhibition, entitled "Bridges of Understanding: America-Bosnia and Herzegovina Contemporary Art," opened June 11 in the MC 12th floor art gallery. The show, sponsored by the World Bank Art Program, featured paintings, prints and mixed media pieces by 17 artists from cities across Bosnia and Herzegovina, along with selections by three American artists. The exhibition will be moved July 20 to the H building lobby, where it will remain until September 26.

The exhibition was developed as an initiative of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Mission of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the United Nations, with the cooperation of the America-Bosnia Cultural Foundation.

At the concert—an idea hatched by President Wolfensohn in a meeting last December with Toperich—Wolfensohn highlighted "the role that the arts play in the life of all of us and also particularly for reconciliation. The youth of this country has made a huge difference in the reconstruction period."

Mirza Kusljugic, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Permanent Representative to the UN, emceed the event. Prime Minister Adnan Terzic and High Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina Lord Paddy Ashdown also attended.

"Bosnia is changing," Foreign Minister Mladen Ivanic told the audience. "Instead of being a symbol of destruction, wars, conflicts, Bosnia is a symbol of cooperation. The main message that can come from Bosnia is that there is a future for this country, and I believe that the young generation of this country, especially the artists … the future belongs to them."

Toperich, a gregarious 31-year-old with a mane of wavy hair, said he persisted for months in getting a meeting with President Wolfensohn to enlist his support for the America-Bosnia Cultural Foundation. At the two’s first encounter last December, Wolfensohn sprung the idea of a concert at the Bank.

"Cultural diplomacy is a unique tool," Toperich said. "Not just in representing a country but, in this rapidly changing world of globalization, it can bring together three important elements: culture, high politics and economics."

The musicians who performed Monday night also held a show last weekend at the Masonic Temple in New York City. As part of its ongoing activities, the America-Bosnia Cultural Foundation will host a concert July 10 in Sarajevo to commemorate the Srebrenica massacre.

The young Bosnian musicians who performed, from left to right, pianist Dragan Opancic, soprano Adema Pljevljak, clarinetist Vedran Tuce, and flautist Suncica Loncar.

 

Sasha Toperich, pianist, President of the America-Bosnia Cultural Foundation and a driving force behind Monday's concert.

 

President Wolfensohn, Toperich, and Amb. Mirza Kusljugic, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Permanent Representative to the UN.

 

 

A speech during the reception in the IFC lobby, where an exhibit highlighted rehabilitation needs for Bosnia and Herzegovina’s historic monuments.