Great public participation and fun last Sunday night in Pristina for the final stage of the “Sanremo Giovani World Tour”.
More than 2,000 people, mostly teenagers, welcomed the Italian talents Martina Beltrami, Fiat 131, Noor and Maninni in the heart of the Kosovar capital, in George W. Bush square. Under the skillful artistic direction of Maurizio Filardo, they alternated new songs with immortal Italian melodies. Conducted by the acclaimed Italian-Albanian singer-songwriter Marsela Çibukaj, the evening was also enriched by the hits of MC Kresha, an icon of Kosovan hip-hop.
The event – organized by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Italian Embassy in Pristina and the Italian Institute of Culture in Tirana – had an extraordinary media coverage, thanks also to the live broadcast provided by the Kosovar public TV, both on the Albanian (RTK1) and Serbian (RTK2) language channels.
«Music has always been a powerful instrument of dialogue and peace. In this regard, we like to think that “Sanremo Giovani World Tour”, in a moment of renewed tensions, has been able to bring together different ethnic groups who, in Kosovo as well and in the rest of the Balkans, deserve to leave the past behind», Italian Ambassador in Pristina Antonello De Riu said.
The Kosovo leg of the tour, initially scheduled for 24 September, was postponed to 1 October due to the events in the northern Kosovo on that day. A similar postponement applied to the Belgrade leg, moved from 27 to 28 October.
«The extraordinary success of the Pristina concert confirms the popularity and prestige of Italian culture in Kosovo in its various forms. The effort secured by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs Farnesina for the rescheduling of the concert, in particular by the Directorate for Public and Cultural Diplomacy, was amply repaid by the response of hundreds of young and very young people, who highly appreciate the Italian contribution of our cultural diplomacy», Ambassador added.
The audience in Pristina also included members of the Italian community, representatives of the international community, of artistic institutions and local authorities, including the Mayor of Pristina, Përparim Rama, who suported the event.
