Deutsche Welle presents the Beethovenfest to the world

As the main media partner at the Beethovenfest Bonn, Deutsche Welle will report on its outstanding concerts and projects while supporting the event with DW's expertise in international cultural and media affairs.

"The significance of music in our programming is also evident in our role at the Beethovenfest: As one of its partners, we provide access to the festival to people around the world - with TV reports, dedicated pages online, concert recordings and podcasts," said DW Director General Peter Limbourg.

Audiences can expect coverage that includes reports from the festival and portraits of musicians in many of DW's 30 languages. Additionally, DW will distribute recordings of the concerts to rebroadcasting partners, including stations in the US, Russia, Turkey and South America.

Orchestra Campus "Beethoven ile bulusma - Encounter with Beethoven"

Turkey returns as the partner country in this year's Orchestra Campus project, organized jointly by Deutsche Welle and the Beethovenfest Bonn. Concerts, workshops and discussions are planned under the motto "Beethoven ile bulusma - Encounter with Beethoven." DW's Turkish Department will help bring that motto to life on its website, www.dw.de/turkish.

The partner orchestra for this year's project is the Bilkent Youth Symphony Orchestra (BGSO) under Artistic Director Isin Metin. A highlight will be their September 23 performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony together with a German choir convened from musicians in the Bonn area. Their joint presentation of the Beethoven masterpiece, which includes the message "All men will be brothers," represents the culmination of a three-year partnership with Turkey for the Orchestra Campus project. At a further concert in Berlin on September 25, the focus will be on the music of Turkish composers.

Composition commissioned from Turkish musician

Each year, DW commissions a new composition from a young musician hailing from the partner country for the Orchestra Campus project. Specifications for the composer include that the new work should creatively take up the influences of the partner country's music culture as well as draw on the language of Western classical music. The commission, which pays 5,000 euros, went this year to Turkish composer Dr. Tolga Yayalar (*1973). Performances of his work will take place on September 23 in Bonn and on September 25 in Berlin under conductor Isin Metin.

DW will follow the world premiere with extensive coverage, including a televised portrait of the composer. Partner broadcasters in Turkey will also present the concert.

As part of the Orchestra Campus, an outstanding youth orchestra is invited each year from a selected region in the world. Turkey has been the project's partner country since 2012. Two Turkish youth and university orchestras have been invited to Bonn: the Turkish National Youth Philharmonic Orchestra with conductor Cem Mansur in 2012, and the Istanbul University State Conservatory Symphony Orchestra under conductor Ramiz Malik Aslanov in 2013.

In Bonn, DW will take part in the festival's public viewing at the central market square. A moderated stage program followed by a live concert transmission is slated for September 7. The concert features the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.