News & Events

The Bank of Latvia’s latest report looks at recent economic indicators as well as the budget outlook.

On the economic performance front, unemployment continues to decline. Now at 11.4%, it may well be closer to 10% in the second half of 2012. 

On the fiscal policy front the Bank notes that:

„As a result of focused work during the last two months of 2011, the Budget 2012 was prepared in due time for its adoption and before the completion of the European Commission and IMF review mission. In a concerted effort of the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Latvia, the international lenders and other stakeholders, differences were resolved and a budget aiming to contain the budget deficit under the Maastricht threshold of 3% of GDP was agreed.

The sizeable adjustments in the Budget 2012 amounting to nearly 1% of GDP are even more impressive as they top the 17% of GDP consolidation measures implemented since November 2008. The commitment of the government to go through with a series of austerity measures in order to bring the public finances on a sustainable path has been truly remarkable and the success achieved has earned praise from economic observers, international financial institutions and heads of state.

In a slightly longer-term view, prudent management of public finances and adherence to publicly declared commitments is crucial to tangibly demonstrate fiscal sustainability, considering the need to refinance the sizeable public debt maturing in a 3–4 years time. Sound public finances and Latvia confidently remaining on the path towards sustainability will provide benefits in the form of easier access to credit on better terms.

Having prepared the Budget 2012 that complies with the Maastricht criterion is not the end but just the beginning of a journey that Latvia has undertaken towards sustainable public finances of our own design and in our own interest. To minimise the imminent and longer-term risks to the implementation of the sound budget plans the government has to stand ready to mitigate any adverse impact of unfavourable economic developments on the budget balance.”

For more information, please see attached document or visit www.bank.lv.

To see the full article/note, please download here

Attached is a list of polling stations in the United States where Latvian citizens will be able to vote on Saturday February 18, 2012 from 7:00 am to 10:00 pm, local time.

In New York, the polling location will be located at:

The Latvian Mission to the United Nations

333 East 50th Street

New York, NY 10022

To see the full article/note, please download here

Please visit the Latvia part of this website to learn more about the important referendum to be held for all Latvians on February 18, 2012.

Postal voting is accepted for Latvian citizens who reside in the United States but this form must be submiited no later than February 4, 2012 and mailed to the Embassy of Latvia in Washington D.C. 

Locations of polling stations in the New York area will be available in due course.

To learn more about this referendum please visit the Central Election Commission website www.cvk.lv.

Please see attached the Bank of Latvia's latest monhtly report for December 2011.

Some of the highlights include: upward revisions to Q3 GDP growth for 2011; ongoing moderation in the inflation rate; and still rapid growth in exports, notwithstanding the financial markets headwinds now facing many European economies.

The report also looks at Latvia’s economic performance since the crisis compared with that of Iceland which also suffered a sharp recession in 2008-2009.

For further information please also visit www.bank.lv

If you are a Latvian citizen who had an account at „Latvijas Krājbanka”, this information may be of assistance to you.

See attached PDF document.

If you have any questions or complaints about the recovery of your monies held in „Latvijas Krājbanka”, you are asked to contact the Financial and Capital Market Commission, FKTK, tel +371-67774800 or +371-67774801. You can also email them at fktk@fktk.lv, or in wrtiing: FKTK, Kungu iela 1, Rīga, LV-1050, fax +371-67225755.

To see the full article/note, please download here

The Bank of Latvia’s latest monthly report for November 2011 looks at recent trends in GDP growth, inflation and manufacturing production as well as the budget outlook.

Although yearly growth in GDP is estimated at +5.6% in Q3 2011 (+1.3%/qtr) which is one of the fastest in Europe today, current trends in the EU economy suggest that a slowdown in inevitable going into 2012. Likewise, the pace of inflation (currently +4.4%/yr) and pace of manufacturing growth (+12.4%/yr for the first nine months of 2011) are both expected to ease.

As a result, the Bank says that is curcial for the current fiscal consolidation process to continue and to be reinforced with a balanced budget target for 2013.

Moreover, the lesson learned during the crisis, i.e. the rule to save when the economy is growing should be incorporated in the Constitution and the Law of Fiscal Discipline as well as real three-year budgeting should be introduced.

The Bank notes in its commentary:

"Given the short time that the new government has had at its disposal for drafting the budget, what has been accomplished is commendable. The government has been aware that it is not just a regular budget but one with far-reaching consequences: it will determine how we live for the next ten years and not just next year. It will likewise determine whether we live with the euro or without it.

We appreciate the fact that there is no longer any disagreement between the international donors and the government and that the consolidation amount is close to 150 million lats, a figure proposed by the central bank.

Unfortunately, this contains no safety margin! We should take into account the fact that we are witnessing an exacerbation of the sovereign debt crisis in the world and particularly in Europe. The second wave of the crisis has already begun to roll, resulting in substantial downward revisions of the growth forecasts. New important developments are taking place every day, not just every week or month.

In November, the Vice-President of the European Commission for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro, Olli Rehn, warned of a possibility of a "new recession", i.e. a renewed contraction in production and services output. The EC autumn forecasts also point to an expected growth deceleration. The latest statistics indicate a drop in industrial production already in the remaining months of this year. The recent ECB Survey of Professional Forecasters also suggests that the short-term euro area GDP growth will be low (0.8% in 2012). Moreover, it predicts slow growth for the next five years. The economies of many European countries, including the core economies, are stagnating.

Recent experience shows that under such circumstances it is the countries with sound public finances that are the most successful. There is still much to be done in improving Latvia's public finances: next year the state will continue to spend a million of borrowed lats a day and public expenditure remains at the level of 2007. Should the downturn risks in Europe materialise, Latvia may have to implement additional consolidation measures in the middle of next year.”

For more information see attached report or visit www.bank.lv

Looking Back in Time

by Rihards Kalniņš

Public Relations Specialist, Latvian Institute, Riga

The week between November 11 and November 18 is a special time in Latvia. 92 years ago last Friday, on November 11, 1919, the Latvian army defeated the combined German-Russian forces of General Pavel Bermondt-Avalov in Rīga, liberating the capital city from occupying troops after fierce months of fighting. This date, henceforth known as Lāčplēša Diena, or Bearslayer’s Day, in honor of the Latvian national epic, marked a decisive battle in the long struggle for Latvian statehood, which had officially been proclaimed one year before, on November 18, 1918.

During the calendar week that falls between the two dates, we have the chance to look back in time, recalling the events that followed the proclamation of independence. In our thoughts, we first experience the struggles of the Latvian army, the many lives lost in bloody battles on the embankments of the Daugava River and elsewhere in the newly proclaimed state. And only at the end of the week do we celebrate the joys of independence, immortalized on the day the Latvian state was established.

In reality, however, the sequence of the two dates was reversed: first came the brave, bold decision to proclaim national independence, on November 18, 1918; then came the difficult struggles of battle, which culminated in the decisive battle on November 11, 1919, against Bermondt-Avalov’s army. But thanks to the random vagaries of numbers – eleven comes before eighteen – we can recall the events in a more natural sequence: first the painful struggles for victory, then the joyous elation of statehood.

In effect, we can rewrite history, presenting the sequence of events in a more traditional narrative: a difficult struggle followed by a historic decision.

Last Friday, heads of state attended a memorial service at Dome Cathedral in the morning, laid wreaths at the Brethren Cemetery at noon, watched a parade of military troops at the Freedom Monument in the afternoon, and then, at night, lit candles by the walls of the Rīga Castle, beside the Daugava River. The day was spent recalling the soldiers who fought and died in the name of Latvian independence, as well as the soldiers who ensure the safety and freedom of our nation today.

This week, the remembrance will continue. All government employees will wear red-white-and-red ribbons on their lapels, commemorating the difficult struggles following the proclamation of independence. Special events will be organized (such as the exhibit Born in Rīga – World Famous at the Splendid Palace cinema in Rīga, and the annual Staro Rīga festival of light). Latvia’s embassies and consulates around the world will host special exhibits and festivals dedicated to Latvia, like the Latvian Music Festival in Tokyo. People throughout Latvia will light candles, bundle up against the incoming cold weather, and reflect on the sacrifices made by our soldiers to achieve victory over the armies threatening our country’s existence.

Then, on Friday, a national holiday in Latvia, we will once again hoist the Latvian flags outside every building in the country. People will gather to feast with friends and family, celebrating this special day. Others will attend military parades honoring our servicemen. All of us will devote our thoughts to the blessings of independence – the joy of living in a free nation unencumbered by occupying armies, a nation not threatened by foreign troops. The day of independence makes us give thanks once again for the miracle of this fact – the fact of freedom and independence.

However, if we remember that the real sequence of events in 1918-1919 initially began with the bold, brave decision by the Latvian People’s Council, headed by Prime Minister Kārlis Ulmanis, to proclaim independence, followed by a long year of struggles against occupying forces, we realize that the decision came first, then the struggle. And only then came the victory.

Similarly, our national decisions today are often followed by difficult struggles. After the start of the global financial crisis of 2008, the brave decision by the Latvian government to impose a strict round of austerity measures, expenditure cuts, and an internal devaluation policy, as well as to apply for a loan from international lenders to save the national economy, has not been without its hardships. But after only a couple years of belt-tightening, the Latvian economy began to experience upward growth.

Today, the Latvian economy is well on the way to recovery, growing for the sixth consecutive quarter. And the world has certainly taken notice. As recently reported in The Economist, Latvia now boasts one of the highest real GDP growth rate estimates in the European Union – 3.3 % – with exports up 6.9% in 2011. Likewise, as described in a recent report on the Latvian economy by the European Commission, the manufacturing and tourism sectors reported record rates of expansion in the first half of 2001 – 14.7% and 25%, respectively. Furthermore, the unemployment rate has decreased from a peak of 17.3% in March of 2010 to just under 12% today.

Though bold decisions in Latvia are often followed by hardships, history has proven that victory is never far behind. In the 1920s, after the Latvia state was established and foreign armies had been driven from Latvian soil, the Latvian economy became one of the strongest in the region, exporting goods throughout Europe. Today, after a couple years of tough fiscal policies, the Latvian economy has once again regained momentum, serving as a success story for all of Europe. Now Latvia is well on its way to assuming its status as the presiding nation of the Council of the European Union, in 2015.   

Of course, as in 1919, there are still a few struggles ahead of us. Latvia must work to reduce the ongoing emigration of citizens abroad, continue to implement reforms in almost every sector here at home, and once again consolidate the budget for 2012, by about 120 million lats. But the sense of 2011 marking a serious turning point for Latvia and for the Latvian economy – of a decisive battle won, an important summit reached – is more than palpable. It is clear as day.

This week, as Latvians recall the struggles of their forefathers following the decision to proclaim Latvian independence, we can also recall the struggles of the past couple years. And we can rest assured in the knowledge that, then as now, bold and brave decisions will only lead to bold and brave new beginnings. All we have to do is look back in time.

On November 10, 2011, the Latvian Parliament voted to review changes to the citizenship act. These will be discussed again in early 2012 and potentially put into law during 2012.

These changes will allow the following people to apply for Latvian citizenship: a) descendants of Latvian citizens who, because of the Soviet occupation, were forced to leave Latvia between June 17, 1940 and May 4, 1990; b) children of Latvian citizens who were born outside Latvia; c) adopted children who have parents who are Latvian citizens; d) Latvians who have taken up the citizenship of another country (with the proviso that their current country of citizenship permits dual nationality with Latvia)

Please visit our the Consular website in the near-future to read about updates to these potential legislative changes.

In this newsletter the Latvian Investment and Development Agency (LIAA) discusses the latest interesting business developments and investment opportunities in Latvia. This information could be of interest for all those interested in doing business in Latvia.

For further information please see attached document below (PDF) or visit the LIAA website http://www.liaa.gov.lv/eng/home/news/

To see the full article/note, please download here

Mr. Valdis Dombrovskis was confirmed on October 25, 2011 by a vote in the Saeima (Latvia’s Parliament) to be the next Prime Minister of Latvia following the recent general elections on September 17, 2011.

The legislature voted 57-38 to approve the government, which consists of three parties plus six independent members of parliament. The government will have 56 seats in the 100-member chamber.

Mr. Dombrovskis will head the Cabinet for a third time since first taking the job in March 2009.

The coalition is made up of Mr. Dombrovskis’ Unity party, ex- President Valdis Zatlers’ Reform Party and the National Alliance. Six deputies that split off from Zatlers party before parliament had its first meeting will support the administration.

The Foreign Minister in Mr. Dombrovski's Cabinet will now be Mr. Edgars Rinkevics. Mr. Rinkevics was formerly the Head of the Chancery for President Valdis Zatlers.

This government is the 16th to hold office since Latvia regained its freedom in 1991.

One of the new government’s immediate tasks will be to approve additional austerity measures in the 2012 budget to narrow the deficit to 2.5 percent of gross domestic product next year to prepare for euro adoption on January 1, 2014 and to meet the requirements laid down by the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund as part of a 7.5 billion-euro ($10.4 billion) loan in 2008.

The Bank of Latvia's latest newsletter highlights the following developments in the Latvian economy:

Exports grow, structure becomes more complicated –

The foreign trade data for August indicate a rise in export volumes, reaching a new export volume record. Over a month, goods exports grew by 13.4% while imports shrank by 1.1%. A positive development is the fact that the Latvian businesses have expanded their export market shares not only on account of the major groups of export commodities but also because the export structure has become more complicated: new groups of commodities have appeared and the small ones have expanded. In spite of global developments, Latvian business confidence indicators for the third quarter improved, both in regard to export order volumes and competitiveness. This is a clear sign that the exporters are ready to maintain their existing markets even under less favourable external developments.

Registered unemployment down –

Annual inflation falls –

A seasonal rise in prices is usually observed in September and this year was no exception: the average prices went up 0.4% month-on-month. The annual inflation, however, dropped slightly to 4.6%. Fuel prices were 0.2% lower than in August, reflecting the stabilization of oil prices. The global price developments found their reflection also in food prices: the prices of bread, fresh fish and oil went down month-on-month. Inflation can be expected to decline next year. The extent of the decline, however, will depend on the economic growth achieved in European and other countries as well as on the developments in the world commodity markets where uncertainty continues to reign.

For further information please visit www.bank.lv.

On Tuesday September 27, 2011, the Governor of the Bank of Latvia, Mr. Ilmars Rimsevics, was asked to ring the Closing Bell at NASDAQ in Time Square. The Governor was in New York following his visit to Washington D.C. where he attended the IMF and World Bank meetings.

Photo: courtesy of NASDAQ OMX, with Mr. Ilmars Rimsevics, centre.

Here are two key commentaries from the latest Bank of Latvia economic review for September 2011. To read the report in full please visit www.bank.lv

GDP growth solid, but uncertainties abound …

In the second quarter of 2011, Latvia's GDP grew by 2.0% quarter- on-quarter with annual growth reaching 5.6% according to the updated information by the CSB. Analyzing by sector, trade, transport and manufacturing remained the largest contributors to growth, the same as in the previous quarter.

Currently, Latvia ranks one of the first in Europe in terms of the GDP growth (the first in terms of the second quarter growth). Manufacturing and transport sectors are almost back to their pre-crisis levels, and their share in total economic activity in Latvia is growing.

At the same time, the external environment background is negative, as already confirmed not only by the leading indicators (confidence indicators, PMI etc.), but also by real economic data. Nevertheless, although Latvia will feel the negative impact of the global developments, it is possible that growth will continue, albeit at a slower pace.

However, if the current EU fiscal crisis is not resolved, and EU falls into recession, then Latvia’s growth prospects will come under a darker and more challenging cloud. The next weeks will be important in this respect in terms of how 2012 turns out.

… Latvia to set constitutional limits on public deficit and debt … on the agenda for the next Parliament ...

In Europe and elsewhere in the world investors, lenders and businessmen are preoccupied with the issue of growing debt. If Latvia manages to cure this illness faster and better than others, it will fare much better – this has been the reasoning guiding Latvia's economic policy makers in recent years. The correctness of this approach is confirmed by the data on growing gross domestic product, exports, manufacturing and dropping unemployment.

Similarly, setting constitutional limits on the country's public deficit and debt should also assist us both in the near future as the country gears up for the euro introduction in 2014 and in the longer run, remaining a lesson learned or legacy of sorts left by the current financial crisis to the future Latvian policy makers. This month the relevant amendments to the Constitution and an accompanying ancillary law were submitted to the Parliament for scrutiny and approval.

When to expect the entry of the new provisions into force and what is the content of the proposed legislative amendments?

Most probably the new legislation will be in place in time for the passing of the 2013 budget next autumn. This does not rule out the possibility of a speedier passing of the new provisions stipulating a countercyclical fiscal policy which represents the only stable strategy towards sustainable growth: thriftiness in good times in order to be able to stimulate growth when the going gets tougher.

During the growth years following the EU accession in 2004, the pro-cyclical fiscal expansion acted to step up the overheating of the Latvian economy, dealing a devastating blow to the export competitiveness of the economy. The competitiveness has now been regained but only through painful budget cuts and structural reforms. To begin with, the proposed changes suggest sticking to medium-term budgeting covering a period of three years, which should help both planners and investors get a better sense of perspective.

The draft ancillary law accompanying the amendments to the constitution states: when the year-on-year growth of gross domestic product at constant prices does not exceed 2%, the general government consolidated budget (i.e. including local governments) has to be balanced or in surplus, whereas deficit is acceptable only during the years of economic decline. It also sets a ceiling for the general government debt at 60% of GDP.

While these principles of good economic governance are turned into statutory provisions in this country, a step-by-step compressing of the deficit from 7.7% of GDP in 2010 to 4.5% planned for 2011 and then to 2.5% of GDP in 2012 will already mean a gradual return to income-based spending. For the improved resilience of Latvia to any potential second wave of the global crisis and the euro changeover in 2014, the 2012 budget remains decisive: passed in a timely manner this year (despite the extraordinary elections on 17 September) without increasing taxes and keeping the budget deficit safely below the Maastricht criterion of 3%.

September 19-25, 2011 the President of Latvia, H.E. Mr. Andris Berzins, was on his inaugural working visit to the United States. This was his first visit to the U.S. after assuming office on July 8, 2011.

President Berzins visited Washington D.C. and New York. In Washington D.C. he met with the Managing Director of the IMF, Christine Lagarde. In New York the President attended the opening of the annual United Nations General Assembly meeting, addressed the Assembly and meet with foreign heads of state, including U.S. President Barrack Obama. The President met also with members of New York's Latvian community.

Seen here: President Andris Berzins (right) after meeting with the Hon. Consul for Latvia in New York, Daris Delins (left).               

On July 8, 2011 Mr. Andris Berzins assumed office as Latvia's President following the end of the term served by Dr. Valdis Zatlers. 

Mr. Berzins is Latvia's 4th President following renewal of independance in 1991.

For more information on President Andris Berzins please visit the President's home page.

Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis concluded a successful 9 day business trip to the United States by visiting New York on July 20-22.

A highlight of the PM’s visit to New York was a business breakfast roundtable organized by the Latvian Consulate. This was attended by more than 40 people, amongst whom  were representatives of leading banks, credit rating agencies, fund managers, private investors, foundations, NY State financial regulators, political and economic analysts, all of whom have either an interest in Latvia, the Baltics or Emerging Markets and wanted to hear about Latvia’s recovery from its severe 2008-2009 financial criisis and the outlook going forward.

The PM also visied the IBM Research Center in upstate NY, spoke at the Center for Foreign Relations in Manhattan, visited the offices of Bloomberg News and Forbes Magazine, met with NYSE senior management on Wall Street and rang the NASDAQ closing bell at Times Square on Friday July 22nd.

Photo: courtesy of the NASDAQ Press Office

The Bank of Latvia has just released its latest monthly newsletter.

This month the report reviews the latest economic indicators and also looks at recent trends in public debt growth. With respect to the latter, further fiscal consolidation will be required in the upcoming 2012 budget. If that is the case, Latvia still appears on track to meet the Maastricht debt criteria with respect to the 2014 Euro entry target requirements.

For more details please see attached report or visit the Bank's website www.bank.lv

Latvian film “Family Instinct” by director Andris Gauja has just won this year’s Sterling Award for Best World Feature at the 2011 Silverdocs Film Festival. 

“Family Instinct” is a unique chronicle of family gone awry, an unsparing exploration of a Latvian household built on the incestuous relationship between Zanda and her imprisoned brother Valdis, whose pending homecoming creates tremendous frisson.  The prize is accompanied by a $5,000 cash award.

Social justice is a key theme at the 9th annual Silverdocs Documentary Festival, a collaborative effort of the American Film Institute and the Discovery Channel. Regarded as one of the most important film festivals in the country, the event takes place just outside Washington D.C.

More than 100 films are selected to be screened, out of more than 2,000 submissions from around the world. This year, Silverdocs presented 108 documentaries from more than 50 countries. A series of films explores social justice.

For more information about “Family Instinct” (original Latvian title: “Gimenes lietas”) and to see a trailer on the film please visit http://arsenals.lv/en/a/9285

On May 28, 2011 in a televised address to the nation, President Valdis Zatlers requested that a national referendum take place asking whether Latvian voters would like to dissolve the Saeima (Latvian Parliament). The President made this request in the light of recent decisions by the Saeima that the President did not feel were fully in the interests of Latvian voters and not respectful of the Saeima's role as a legisative body representing the people.

This referendum will take place on July 23, 2011. Eligible to vote will be all Latvian citizens of voting age. Polling booths will be open from 7am to 10 pm in Latvia and in selected cities outside Latvia, including here in New York.

If a majority of voters on July 23 say "yes" for the dissolution of the Saiema, then new national election for the Saeima must be held no later than by September 23, 2011.

To read the President's address to the nation on May 28, 2011, please visit his website.

Please see attached the May 2011 newsletter from the Bank of Latvia.

This month's report highlights that although the pace of economic growth in Q1 2011 has slowed a little, it remains positive and exports continue to reach new highs.

Headline inflation continues to tick a little higher, the main drivers being higher commodity prices and tax increases. Excluding food and energy, inflation still remains negative.

The unemployment rate continues to decline, now down to 13.9%. However, even though unemployment remains high skill shortages are becoming more apparent highlighting the need for increased investment in training and education.

For more information please visit the Bank of Latvia's website.

Latvia stands out as the East European country hardest hit by the global financial crisis; it lost approximately 25 percent of its GDP between 2008 and 2010. It was also the most overheated economy before the crisis. But in the second half of 2010, Latvia returned to economic growth. How did this happen so quickly? Current Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis, who shepherded Latvia through the crisis, and renowned author Anders Åslund discuss why the Latvian economy became so overheated; why an IMF and European Union stabilization program was needed; what the Latvian government did to resolve the financial crisis and why it made these choices; and what the outcome has been. This book offers a rare insider's look at how a national government responded to a global financial crisis, made tough choices, and led the country back to economic growth.

Published by The Peterson Institute for International Economics - a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research institution devoted to the study of international economic policy.

To buy this book please visit the Peterson Institute website. or see other online book sellers.

The Bank of Latvia has just published its April 2011 monthly newsletter. See attached.

This report gives an up-to-date perspective of key trends in the Latvian economy, looking at trends in GDP growth, inflation, employment and related macroeconomic data.

Key trends to note: Latvia's GDP growth continues to improve, the unemployment rate continues to edge lower, the government fiscal position continues to improve, and the current account balance has swung back into surplus. Manufacturing output is recovering well - and in some areas is now running up against capacity utilization limits unless new investments are made. Export demand is the key reason behind the manufacturing recovery, with Germany's strong growth rate helping export demand as well as that from countries like Estonia, Lithuania, Sweden and Russia.

For 2011, the Bank notes that the EU Commission is forecasting 3.1% GDP growth for Latvia - one of the fastest growth rates expected amongst the EU economies this year.

For further information please visit the Bank of Latvia's website.

Latvian tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko returned to New York again on Friday April 15, 2011 to perform in Verdi's "Otello", with distinguished conductor Riccardo Muti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Despite suffering from a stomach ailment, Antonenko was outstanding and received a standing ovation by the sell-out audience. After the performance, Mr. Antonenko was greeted by well-wishers, including famed opera star Ms. Marilyn Horne, as well as representatives of the Consulate of Latvia in New York and Latvia's Mission to the United Nations in New York.

Please read here below the NY Times review of this opera concert at New York's Carnegie Hall.

Verdi, Nuanced and Empowered

By ANTHONY TOMMASINI

The conductor Riccardo Muti has always had a big following in New York. So it was no surprise that Carnegie Hall was sold out for Friday night’s concert performance of Verdi’s “Otello,” the first of Mr. Muti’s three programs with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. His hugely anticipated first season as this historic orchestra’s music director has been twice interrupted for extended periods in recent months by serious health crises. But worries about his health vanished on Friday as Mr. Muti, looking calm, fit and rather self-satisfied, conducted an emphatic and insightful account of this challenging Verdi opera, drawing incisive and beautiful playing from the orchestra.

Mr. Muti certainly milked the moment. Only after the roster of strong singers for this performance (headed by the tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko as Otello and the soprano Krassimira Stoyanova as Desdemona) took their places on stage did Mr. Muti walk out alone, to a thunderous ovation peppered with cries of “Bravo, Muti!” The same business took place twice more, since this four-act opera was presented with two intermissions.

I dwell on this because the Chicago Symphony “Otello” came across so strongly as a Muti performance. A major musician, Mr. Muti has a deserved reputation as a perfectionist and an authoritarian, though at this stage of his career he is an assuring and professorial authoritarian. The Chicago players have been vocal in their enthusiasm for him. On this night they played like musicians who seemed empowered, not controlled.

Still, I found elements of Mr. Muti’s performance calculated and clinical, though given the ecstatic ovations, I was in a minority. Mr. Muti is immersed in the Verdi style like few conductors before the public, and his insights came through continually. In a recent interview with The New York Times he said that what he does not like in Italian opera is “all this tears and heart.” His performance allowed no obviousness and excess. Yet even during some of the most impassioned episodes there was a sense of the music being coolly managed.

In the opening storm scene, as the people of Cyprus see the ship that carries Otello, general of the Venetian forces, struggling to dock, Mr. Muti took a slightly slower tempo than what most conductors choose. This allowed details you seldom hear to come through. The orchestra played with crackling precision; the impressive and sizeable Chicago Symphony Chorus sang with unforced yet robust sound and clear enunciation of the text. For all the grave terror Mr. Muti summoned, this frenzied scene had a curiously reined-in quality.

Throughout the performance there were wondrous moments. During the “Drinking Chorus,” when the villainous Iago gets the youthful Cassio drunk, Mr. Muti drew bustling, transparent playing from the orchestra. Yet when the chorus broke into a round of “ha-ha” laughing (which Verdi notates with specific notes and rhythms), it was odd to see the choristers executing the laughter with such straight-faced discipline.

In Act III, when the Venetian ambassador Lodovico (the fine bass-baritone Eric Owens) arrives from Venice with instructions for Otello, the chorus, portraying the jubilant Cyprian throngs, broke into cries of “Viva! “Evviva!” The enveloping power of the choral sound, fortified by the opulent orchestra, was overwhelming. But it did not fit the dramatic moment to see the choristers, utterly focused on Mr. Muti, looking as if they were determined to get it right.

It was announced before the performance that Mr. Antonenko was on medication for a stomach ailment and had requested the audience’s indulgence. Sounding anything but ailing, he sang splendidly, with tenorial ping and exciting top notes. He conveyed Otello’s volatile swings from fury to anguish, especially in the poignant soliloquy when Otello faces the unbearable humiliation of believing that his wife is false. Ms. Stoyanova brought warmth, richness and vulnerability to her exquisite Desdemona. The veteran baritone Carlo Guelfi, a late addition to the cast, was a vocally strong and wily Iago. The young tenor Juan Francisco Gatell made an earnest Cassio.

To Mr. Muti, a concert performance of an opera is a concert; he does not believe in semistaged productions. Clearly, he considered it essential to have the singers standing in two narrow rows right in front of him, as they did, rather than to the sides of the podium, as often happens in concert performances. But this placement impeded contact between the singers and the audience. And it was disconcerting to see Mr. Muti waving his baton in the face of Mr. Guelfi, an experienced Iago (who was blocked from my view), and hovering over Ms. Stoyanova as she sang the wistful, unaccompanied refrains of “Salce! Salce!” in the “Willow Song.”

It was a privilege, however, to hear this work performed in concert by this superb orchestra. The nuances of the playing came through vividly: the quartet of plush solo cellos during the love duet; the beautiful interplay of woodwinds in the mournful orchestral opening of Act IV; and much more.

Evidence of a lively choral music tradition flourishing among the Baltic nations has been with us for some time now: in splendid recordings the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir has made for Harmonia Mundi and ECM, and in ravishing performances by the Latvian National Choir at Lincoln Center last year.

Add to their ranks Kamer ..., a celebrated youth chorus from Riga, Latvia, which made its New York debut on Thursday evening with a brief but thrilling concert in the Jerome Robbins Theater at the Baryshnikov Arts Center.

Founded in 1990 at Riga State High School No. 1 by the conductor Maris Sirmais, who led most of this concert, Kamer ... (Latvian for “while”) is made up of 70 vocalists from 16 to 30 years old. About half that many fresh-faced young men and women sang here. But their sound was substantial, as you would expect from an organization with a formidable tally of international competition awards to its credit.

The program, “The Madrigals of Love,” consisted chiefly of well-made, euphonious modern Latvian love songs, including selections by Rihards Dubra, Juris Vaivods, Margeris Zarins and Arturs Maskats. A clutch of minor but attractive Western European madrigals from the 16th through 19th centuries — led by Janis Liepins, a chorister and Kamer ...’s tousle-haired second conductor — showed the group’s estimable command of English, German and French.

But on hearing Kamer ...’s bright sound, clear diction and sumptuous blend, you understood immediately what prompted substantial contemporary composers like Arvo Pärt, Peteris Vasks and John Luther Adams to create new works for it. (Some will be featured in Kamer ...’s second New York concert on Saturday.)

“Zlies Zina” (“The Message of the Titmouse”), a work by Mr. Vasks inserted early in the program, showed how confidently Kamer ... handles more challenging fare. Backs turned to the audience at first, the singers whispered, cooed and murmured droning tones through sealed lips. Lines delivered in an urgent near-whisper cut through a dissonant haze, punctuated with shouts and eerie glissandos.

The program opened with “O Salutaris,” by Eriks Esenvalds, an inventive Latvian composer with an ear for a good hook and a knack for evocative effects. Singers surrounded the audience on three sides, nestling listeners in a shimmering cocoon as two soprano soloists, Gita Rebeka Dirveika and Tereze Upatniece, sang with crystalline purity.

Three more works by Mr. Esenvalds ended the program: “My Picture Frame,” a poplike romantic ballad; “A Drop in the Ocean,” an emphatic, stagy tribute to Mother Teresa; and “Long Road,” which conjured a lover’s separation pangs with singers divided into two groups, one on the stage and the other in a balcony, with the second group adding a starry shimmer of tingling triangles.

A hearty standing ovation prompted two encores: “Riga Dimd,” a Latvian folk standard, and “Put Vejini,” a treasured ballad with nationalist associations, as set by Imants Ramins.

Source: NY Times, March 19.2011

Latvia’s leading opera stars return to the Metropolitan Opera for its 2011-12 season.

At the opening of the season on September 26, 2011, renowned mezzo-soprano Elena Garanca will star in Donizetti’s Anna Bolena as Jane Seymour (together with Anna Netrebko who plays Anna Bolena)

Soprano Marina Rebeka will make her debut performance at the Met in Mozart’s Don Giovanni on October 13, 2011 playing the role of Donna Anna.

Acclaimed tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko will perform the role of Cavaradossi in Pucini’s Tosca in January 2012.

For further details about the 2011-12 season and for tickets please visit the Met Opera website.

The new Latvian film "Hong Kong Confidential" (Latvian title "Amaya") had its premiere pre-Oscars screening in New York on Wednesday January 12, 2011. The film is Latvia's official entry in the "Best Foreign Language Film" category at the 2011 Academy Awards.

Notwithstanding the snow storn that hit New York the previous evening, around 80 people attended the preview screening arranged by the Consulate of Latvia at Robert DeNiro's Tribeca Cinemas. The invitee list included representatives of the film industry, media, and diplomatic communities in New York.

Following the screening the Q & A was led by the film's director Maris Martinsons, producer Linda Krukle, and lead actress Japanese star Karoi Momoi.

The film was also shown this week in Los Angeles, on January 13, 2011, to voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

On January 25, 2011 the Academy will announce the 5 nominations for "Best Foreign Language Film" and on February 27, 2011 the Oscar winners.

For more information about "Hong Kong Confidential" please see IMBD website.

Shown above, from the left: Honorary Consul for Latvia in New York, Daris Delins, Latvia's Ambassador to the UN, Normans Penke, Latvia's Ambassador to the U.S. Andrejs Pildegovics, actress Karoi Momoi, director Maris Martinsons, and producer Linda Krukle.

The Parliament of the Republic of Latvia in 2010 passed amendments to the Law on Immigration providing additional possibilities of obtaining a temporary residence permit (TRP) in the Republic of Latvia. The new laws took effect as of July 1^st, 2010.

To be eligible for this new TRP, an investor must fulfill one of the following criteria:

Place in a Latvian bank a minimum of LVL 200,000 (EUR 300,000) in the way of a subordinated deposit for the term of at least 5 years.

Purchase real estate in Latvia at the minimum price of LVL 100,000 (EUR 143,000) in Riga or big cities or at the minimum price of LVL 50,000 (EUR 71,500) in other regions of the country.

Invest at least LVL 25,000 (EUR 36,000) in a capital of a Latvian enterprise and pay taxes as a result of business activities in Latvia in the minimum amount of LVL 20,000 (EUR 28,000) a year.

The investor must have made one of the above investments and/or set up a qualifying business after July 1, 2010.

Having fulfilled one of the above criteria an investor may apply for the residence permit valid for the period of 5 years.  A TRP will be available both for investors and their family members – spouses, underage children and persons that are under the surveillance/official care of such investors. Upon expiry of the term of residence permit investors and their family members are eligible to apply for the renewal.

The TRP of the Republic of Latvia automatically guarantees free movement of persons within the Schengen area, currently consisting of 25 European countries. Visa is still required for travelling to the United Kingdom and Ireland which are outside the Schengen area, as well as to Romania, Cyprus and Bulgaria, which have not yet joined the mentioned area.

For further details about the new TRP, please see the websites of leading banks, law firms and accounting offices in Latvia who are now providing advice on these matters to interested investors.

The National Film Center of Latvia has selected “Hong Kong Confidential” (aka Amaya) to be Latvia’s official entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the upcoming 83^rd Academy Awards (Oscars) due for announcement on February 27, 2011.

On January 13th, 2011 “Hong Kong Confidential” will be officially screened in Los Angeles for Academy members for their consideration.

SYNOPSIS:  Hong Kong: one week in one of the most exotic and picturesque cities of the world.  The movie follows six characters whose lives are all connected in one way or another.  The day of changes comes when Amaya (played by the world famous, multiple award winning Kaori Momoi) meets a charming Englishman, Paul. Their encounter dramatically changes Amaya's perception of her cultural and personal identity. Their lives change forever. But one thing remains universal…love.

STARRING Kaori Momoi, Andrius Mamontovas, Lau Dan, Monie Tung, Dexter Fletcher,  Kristine Nevarauska

DIRECTOR Maris Martinsons / DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Gints Berzins, LGC / COMPOSER Andrius Mamontovas / PRODUCTION DESIGNER Ho Chi Hang / PRODUCER Linda Krukle, Maris Martinsons, Chu Chen On

GENRE Drama / Comedy / Romance

LENGTH / LANGUAGE 92 minutes  / English, Cantonese, Japanese

PRODUCTION Krukfilms (Latvia) / October Pictures (Hong Kong)

SALES House of Film, LLC (USA)

President Obama called Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis of Latvia today (October 12,2010) to congratulate the Prime Minister on his re-election and as part of his ongoing consultations with our NATO allies.  The President thanked the Prime Minister for his leadership on a broad range of issues, particularly his role helping the Latvian economy rebound from the severe shock it faced before he took office.  He also thanked the Prime Minister for Latvia’s contributions to the International Security Assistance Force mission in Afghanistan and its role in the Northern Distribution Network.

Source: The White House Press Office.

Latvians defy conventional wisdom by re-electing an austerity government 

Oct 7th 2010

LATVIA’S recent history has seen off several axioms of modern political economy. One is that maintaining a fixed exchange rate in the midst of a slump is suicidal. Latvia kept its currency peg to the euro and has regained competitiveness through an “internal devaluation”, with large cuts in wages and public spending: a fiscal adjustment equivalent to some 14% of GDP.

Another axiom is that voters punish governments that impose tough austerity programmes. But the coalition headed by Valdis Dombrovskis, the prime minister, won the parliamentary election on October 2nd with 58.6% of the vote, despite presiding over a record 18% drop in GDP in 2009. Mr Dombrovskis’s Unity party almost doubled its seats in parliament, to 33 (out of 100).

Voters have also disproved another proposition: that money inevitably distorts the political process, particularly in poor countries. The main oligarch-backed party, For a Good Latvia, collapsed to just eight seats (from 33 before), despite showering money on the campaign and buying the country’s best-known independent newspaper. Voters appear to have blamed it, with justice, for reckless policies in the boom years.

Foreigners who bailed out Latvia with a €7.5 billion ($10.9 billion) loan in late 2008 are relieved. The economy is returning to growth, with sharp rises in exports and industrial production (though unemployment remains high). But Mr Dombrovskis is facing a new problem. The runner-up in the election was Harmony Centre, a centre-left party backed by most of the country’s ethnic Russians, and also by ethnic Latvians fed up with the established parties. It has won 29 seats in the new parliament.

With this showing Harmony Centre could try to tempt away Mr Dombrovskis’s main coalition partner, the Greens and Farmers Union, which won 22 seats. To avert that, Mr Dombrovskis could offer Harmony Centre a deal, perhaps in place of the smallest coalition party, a new ultra-nationalist alliance which has eight seats and an unpleasant fringe.

Harmony Centre is already in power in the capital, Riga. But bringing a “pro-Russian” party into the national government, even in a minor role, would be a big political risk, and Mr Dombrovskis may prefer to stick to his existing partners. The new government must be formed by November 2nd—and start work on next year’s budget. That will mean yet more spending cuts and tax rises to meet the deficit target of 6% of GDP set by international lenders. Meeting the conditions to adopt the euro in 2014, the government’s aim, will be more demanding still.

Source: The Economist magazine

NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Latvian President Valdis Zatlers Tuesday (9/21) dismissed concerns that a change in government in the upcoming election could jeopardize the country's loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund.

"I'm more or less confident there will be continuity" in economic and foreign policy regardless of who controls the government after the Oct. 2 election, Zatlers said Tuesday in New York at a gathering organized by the Latvian Consulate.

He added that opposition parties to the current government have become less vocal about their disapproval for sticking with the IMF program as the election nears. That, he said, is a sign that political opponents understand the importance of the program.

Zatlers' comments are in line with those made by Fitch Ratings earlier this month as the ratings agency revised up its outlook on Latvia to stable from negative. Fitch said the government's substantial fiscal consolidation measures look set to continue regardless of the upcoming elections.

Latvia implemented tough austerity measures to meet guidelines under a EUR7.5 billion, IMF-led bailout package that was agreed upon in 2008. Budget cutbacks have been a hot political issue as officials debate over further spending cuts versus stimulus for a country where unemployment remains near 14%.

The government is looking to slash its fiscal deficit to 6% in 2011 from more than 8% currently.

"Austerity first, stimulus second," is the motto that Zatlers said he still supports.

The Latvian economy continues to stand at a pivotal point as it realigns itself following years of surging, credit-fueled growth. The Baltic state felt the brunt of the global financial crisis, suffering an 18% economic contraction during 2009, the largest seen throughout the European Union.

The country has, however, posted slight growth during the first two quarters of 2010, as rebounding exports offset the effects of weak domestic demand.

Statistics Latvia reported in early September second-quarter gross domestic product expanded 0.8% compared with the first quarter. GDP still shrank 2.1% compared with the same period a year ago.

-By Kejal Vyas, Dow Jones Newswires; 212 416 2185; kejal.vyas@dowjones.com

The new Latvian passports now being issued contain biometric information, which requires passport applicants to appear before consular personnel.

To facilitate the process for Latvian citizens living abroad Latvian government representatives will visit cities in the USA and Canada including New York on July 27, 28 and 29, 2010  during which time mobile passport workstations will be used to accept passport applications outside of the usual consular location.

In New York the mobile passport workstations will operate at the following times and locations:

Tuesday July 27 from 09:00 to 13:00 and from 14:00 to 18:00 - at the Long Island Church Parsonage (35 Beaumont Drive. Melville, New York 11747. Tel. 631-643-5297).

Wednesday July 28 from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 15:00 to 19:00 - at the Yonkers Church (254 Valentine Lane (pie Leighton Ave), Yonkers, New York  10705. Tel: 914-476-4787).

Thursday July 29 from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 15:00 to19:00 - at the Brooklyn parsonage (564 Second St , Brooklyn, New York 11215).

The Embassy of Latvia in the United States requests that any Latvian citizens wishing to apply for a passport or to renew they passport during these days submit the required passport information in advance to the Embassy. For further details please visit the Embassy’s website or by contacting them direct on +1-202-328-2840; email:  consulate.usa@mfa.gov.lv  

Hillary Rodham Clinton

Secretary of State

Washington, DC

May 3, 2010

Congratulations, Latvia, on 20 years of restored independence!

Two decades ago, in the face of uncertainty and danger, your legislature voted to restore Latvia’s sovereignty, breaking the Soviet Union’s hold over your country. That brave decision was backed by the will of the Latvian people, many of whom risked their lives to make sure that they defended independence.

Today, your vibrant democracy is an inspiration to countries around the world that are now struggling themselves toward freedom. Your efforts to bring peace and stability to places torn by conflict and devastated by disaster are a testament to the spirit of the Latvian people.

Rebuilding a nation after five decades of occupation is not easy, but you can be proud of what you have achieved in the last twenty years. Membership in NATO and the European Union took patience and persistence, and they were richly deserved.

The United States is honored to call you a strategic ally and a close friend and we look forward to working with you to meet the challenges of this, the 21st century.

So again, I offer you the congratulations and best wishes of the American people – for all of your past accomplishments and for all the promise that your future holds.  

Please click here to see Secretary Clinton's video of this announcement.

New York’s  Metropolitan Opera  on February 22^nd announced its 2010/2011 season plans which again will feature many Latvian performers.

Acclaimed German director Peter Stein will make his Met debut with a new production of Mussorgsky’s opera "Boris Godunov", in which the role of Dmitry will be performed by Latvian tenor Alexander Antonenko. The October 23^rd performance, featuring Alexander Antonenko will be broadcast worldwide via the Met Opera’s HD simulcast.

In November and December, Elina Garanca will return enabling the public to once again experience her magnetic Carmen performance.

In October and November, Maija Kovalevska will return to sing the role of Mimi in "La Boheme".

After an outstanding debut this season with “Turandot”, Latvian conductor Andris Nelsons will return in March for Tchaikovsky's opera "The Queen of Spades" .

For further details on the Met’s 2010-2011 season please visit www.metopera.org

The former President of Latvia, H.E. Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga will be the keynote speaker at the LIFE (Lutheran Social Services of New York) Annual Dinner on March 4th.

The event will take place 6 pm - 9 pm at Terrace on the Park, 52-11 111th Street, Flushing Meadows Park, NY 11368.

For more details and tickets, please contact Susan Lewin, Event Coordinator: email slewin@lssny.org or tel 1-212-870-1113.

A Dutch Orchestra Plumbing the Depths

When Mariss Jansons took over the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam in 2004, he quickly set about muting the bright sound cultivated by his predecessor, Riccardo Chailly, and restoring the warmth and depth for which this great Dutch orchestra has long been revered. When he visited New York with the ensemble in 2006 and 2008, that restoration seemed just about complete.

But an orchestra’s sound is never static, nor is the chemistry between a conductor and his players. When Mr. Jansons brought his orchestra to Carnegie Hall on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, it appeared to be changing still. It sounded so different in each of the three works it performed — the Sibelius Violin Concerto and the Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2 on Tuesday, the Mahler Symphony No. 3 on Wednesday — that it was hard at first to get a clear idea of its current state. Not until the Mahler performance was it evident beyond doubt that the orchestra is in magnificent shape.

The Mahler Third, a 100-minute work that demands a huge ensemble (with a mezzo-soprano soloist and boys’ and women’s choirs added to the mix), may be an ideal measure of an orchestra. Mahler meant it as a glorification of existence, beginning with paeans to nature and making its way to an overpowering slow movement, intended as an evocation of heaven. A performance led with the passion, energy and sense of mystical otherworldliness the score demands will inevitably push the musicians to their limits.

Everything about the shape, pacing and grandeur of Mr. Jansons’s account suggested that he and his players took Mahler’s grand design to heart. While individual details may seem beside the point, it was hard not to be awed by the solidity of the horn playing in the expansive, exposed line that introduces the work. And the shapely offstage posthorn solos in the third movement, to say nothing of the solo string and woodwind lines that emerge throughout the score, provided an appealing counterweight to the high-impact full ensemble playing.

The strings, particularly in Mr. Jansons’s plangent reading of the finale, were rich-toned and supple, qualities matched by the remarkably focused woodwind and brass sections. And given Mahler’s penchant for explosive climactic writing (as often in midmovement as in his endings), the ensemble’s percussionists were in their element.

Jill Grove, the mezzo-soprano, singing from behind the violins, brought a smooth, rounded tone to her readings of “O Mensch! Gib acht!” (“Oh Man! Take heed!”) and the solo passages in “Es sungen drei Engel” (“Three angels were singing”), with the American Boychoir and the women of the New York Choral Artists contributing a polished, transparent account of the angels’ chorus.

Mr. Jansons’s Mahler made the Sibelius and Rachmaninoff works on the Tuesday program seem like curtain raisers, although on their own those performances had considerable strengths. The Sibelius was puzzling: though the orchestra’s very first notes — the silvery, pianissimo string shimmer that opens the Violin Concerto — offered great promise, the ensemble seemed almost to disappear self-effacingly behind the soloist, Janine Jansen.

Soloists are always the focus in a concerto, of course, and Ms. Jansen was not playing in a vacuum. But the nuanced orchestral writing in this work is too good to be swept aside, as it was in all but a handful of passages here.

That said, Ms. Jansen wrested enough drama from Sibelius’s violin line to make up for the orchestra’s reticence. She animated the music with a fluid, subtle approach to dynamics and an organic sense of tempo. And she expanded her coloristic palette considerably as the work unfolded, moving seamlessly between sweet-toned lyricism, menacingly dark timbres and a gritty, textured sound that gave the solo line an unusual urgency and even, at times, fierceness. As an encore she collaborated with the orchestra’s concertmaster, Vesko Eschkenazy, on a movement from Prokofiev’s Sonata for Two Violins.

The Rachmaninoff Second is an unwieldy score, rich in ear-catching themes but sprawling even in the best hands. Mr. Jansons, always an eloquent interpreter of Russian music, kept the spotlight on Rachmaninoff’s lyrical inventiveness, but it remained a parade of appealing episodes rather than an exciting whole. The playing was beyond reproach, but even so, it barely hinted at what was to come with Mahler the next night.

Source: NY Times, February 19, 2010

The astronautts in the space capsule circling earth, are spinning an inflatable globe and wherever their finger lands, CBS sends a news crew to explore that part of the world. Last week it was about a family living in India. On Monday, Riga will be featured. Usually this item is featured just before the end  of the telecast at around 6:50 pr so.

More details about CBS Evening News can be found here.

New York Times

January 2, 2010

That Daring Gypsy Strikes Again, and Anew

We all know Bizet’s “Carmen,” or think we do.

Its familiarity is the greatest challenge to any company presenting it. The acclaimed English director Richard Eyre made this point repeatedly in interviews before the opening of his new Metropolitan Opera production of “Carmen.” Without resorting to gratuitous touches and provocative changes to the opera, he said, he wanted to subvert the familiarity so that audiences would leave shocked and awed yet also touched by this 1875 masterpiece.

That is easy to say, but Mr. Eyre, in his Met debut, has actually done it. With this gripping new “Carmen,” the company rang out 2009 on Thursday evening with a solid success, replacing Franco Zeffirelli’s clueless and clunky production of 1996. Other than updating the Seville setting of the opera to the 1930s from the 1830s, to invoke the brutally repressive period of the Spanish Civil War, Mr. Eyre has created an essentially traditional “Carmen.” Yet, by flushing out details that show the characters bucking against civic and sexual constraints, he uncovers the rawness and daring at the opera’s core.

In the naturalness of the performances, from that of the Latvian mezzo-soprano Elina Garanca in the title role to those of the children in the chorus who scamper into the town square to watch the changing of the guard, it is clear that Mr. Eyre has lavished attention on everyone. The singers benefited immensely from the work of the rising 34-year-old Canadian conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin, in his Met debut, who led a bracing, fleet and fresh account of the score, although he started the rousing prelude at a breakneck, frenetic tempo.

The production’s success is something of a surprise because the advance buzz had not been encouraging. The Met conceived this as a vehicle for the soprano Angela Gheorghiu, singing the mezzo-soprano title role for the first time, and her husband, the tenor Roberto Alagna, an experienced Don José. But in August Ms. Gheorghiu withdrew from the first six of eight scheduled performances, citing “personal reasons,” which were later revealed to be marital troubles. (She and Mr. Alagna are in the process of divorce.) So the Met brought in Ms. Garanca, best known for her vocally lustrous and agile performances of Rossini. The production provides an ideal context for Ms. Garanca’s nuanced, sexy and cagey portrayal.

The sets and costumes by Rob Howell, in his Met debut, are crucial to the dramatic impact of Mr. Eyre’s concept. During the orchestral prelude, an ominous gray brick wall, sliced through with a blood-red slash, separates to reveal the circular arena that becomes the central scenic element of the staging. The arena’s earthen walls are crumbling in places. Rotating on a turntable, the set suggests, successively, a town square; the tavern where the Gypsies mingle with soldiers; the smugglers’ hideout in the mountains; and the area outside the bullring.

In the opening scene Mr. Eyre uses the set effectively to depict the tensions between the townspeople and the menacing soldiers. A chain-link fence surrounds the arena. On the outside, we see the soldiers in their barracks: bored, playing card games, shaving, reading newspapers. Inside, through the fence, we see the gathering crowd. When the set rotates, the square is revealed, and people stream in. We first see Mr. Alagna’s Don José, an obedient corporal, marching in step with the other solders.

The female choristers who play the Gypsies in a cigarette factory look poignantly real when they first appear (from an underground work area), wearing beige dresses and dusty factory aprons. Only Carmen wears a lacy black dress under her apron. And during the Habanera, when Carmen decides to ensnare the shy and attractive Don José, instead of prancing about the stage doing the typical Carmen dance, Ms. Garanca rinses out her sweaty apron in an open basin in the square, then coyly washes her bare legs.

Ms. Garanca does not have the sort of big, smoldering voice that many opera buffs want in a Carmen. But she sings with rich sound, an unerring feel for the nuance and subtext of a phrase, and alluring sensuality. The clarity in her singing makes this Carmen seem intelligent and wily. A lovely blonde, Ms. Garanca, 33, is captivating in her curly black wig.

Whether Mr. Alagna has made the most of his abundant vocal gifts during his career is a constant topic of discussion in opera circles. And struggling with a cold, he had to skip the final act of the dress rehearsal on Monday. On Thursday he sounded congested at times.

Yet Don José remains one of his strongest roles. The grainy texture of his sound mingles well with the nasal colors of the French language. He sings with an involving blend of intensity and refinement. To his credit, even when under the weather, he tried to sing the climactic B flat in the “Flower Song” pianissimo, as written, something few tenors do. He cracked a little but nearly pulled it off. And he gives himself over to this complex role, conveying the pitiable anguish of the weak-willed Don José, who is overcome with desire for Carmen yet disgusted with himself for abandoning his responsibilities, both to his regiment and to his forgiving mother back home.

The soprano Barbara Frittoli is wonderful as the good-hearted and constant Micaëla, an emissary from Don José’s mother. Her vibrato is sometimes overly throbbing, but the Italianate richness of her voice makes her Micaëla seem a young woman of courage and determination. And she appears achingly vulnerable with her sensible wool coat and brown satchel.

The baritone Mariusz Kwiecien absolutely looks the part of the dashing, cocky toreador Escamillo, a role that straddles the bass-baritone divide. After an uneven “Toreador Song,” music that takes him to the weaker, lower register of his voice, he sang with robust sound and panache. The bass Keith Miller was a standout as the wily officer Zuniga.

The choreographer Christopher Wheeldon has created fetching dances for this production, especially in the tavern scene, in which the Gypsies for once refrain from generic, exotic twirling and do some nifty, rhythmically intricate tapped steps.

But this is Mr. Eyre’s triumph. In only his third opera, he knew what he wanted. I have never seen the final scene, in which the crazed Don José stabs the fatalistically defiant Carmen, executed with such stunning realism, a dangerous mingling of sex, rebellion and violence: the very essence of “Carmen.”

The President of Latvia, H.E. Dr Valdis Zatlers is visiting New York again September 20-25 to participate in the U.N. sponsored Summit on Climate Change, the annual U.N. General Assembly meeting, and the Clinton Global Initiative meeting. During his stay President Zatlers and Mrs. Lilita Zatlere will also visit Yale University and meet with members of New York’s Latvian community. The President will also chair a business roundtable organized by the Consulate of Latvia titled “Emerging from the Crisis” for economists, bankers, fund managers, and the press to discuss recent developments in Latvia and the surrounding Baltic region.

Pictured at here the meeting on Sunday September 20 with the Latvian community in New York are from the left: Hon. Consul for Latvia in New York, Daris G. Delins (holding Matiss Delins), Rev. Laris Salins, Mrs. Lilita Zatlere, H.E. President Dr. Valdis Zatlers, Mrs. Lucine Delins (holding Luna Delins)

The Consulate of Latvia in New York unfortunately cannot issue visas or passports. Because of new technological and security requirements all of this is now done by the Embassy of Latvia in Washington D.C. To renew a passport you will have to make an appointment with the Embassy and go there to have the special passport photo taken. For more detailed information, please see the Consular Information section of our website.

U.S. citizens do not require a visa to enter Latvia. If you hold a valid Schengen Visa you do not require a visa to enter Latvia. A full list of third countries whose citizens also do not require a visa is available here. 

If you are not a passport holder of a country that does not require a visa, then you will need to apply for a Schengen Visa through the Embassy of Latvia in Washington. The application form for the visa can be found here. The Embassy's website also provides details of the application process and what documents you will need together with a completed visa application form.

If you are U.S. Green Card holder you will need a Schengen Visa to enter Latvia unless you are a passport holder of a country that does not require a visa. A full list of those countries is listed here.

If you need a Transit Visa for Latvia, you will need to secure that before arriving in Latvia. Transit visas are not issued at Riga Airport. A transit visa can be applied for through the Embassy of Latvia in Washington D.C..

If you need to renew your Latvian passport, then this can only be done through the Embassy of Latvia in Washington. D.C. Passport applicants need to make an appointment with the Embassy for their passport renewal visit. At this visit, personal bimetric data will be recorded you will be mailed your new passort once it is ready. It can take up to 2 months for a new passport to be sent from Riga. Note, the Embassy will only issue a new passport to Latvian citizens who are legally in the United States (i.e. are legal residents, Green Card holders or hold a valid visa). For further information about renewing your passport, please visit the Embassy's Consular Information website pages. 

If you are traveling in Latvia, you can also renew your passport there. In some cases, for a special rush processing fee payment, new passports can be issued in 2-4 business days in Riga. Visit the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs website for more details and office location information.

If you are traveliing to Latvia and wish to enter Latvia with your Latvian passport, please check that the passport is still valid as the Latvian passport regulations have changed. If you have a passport that was issued before July 1, 2002, then you will need to renew your passport. You will not be allowed onto your plane with a Latvian passport which has been issued before July 1, 2002.

If you are traveling to Latvia with a Schengen visa, then your passport must be valid for at least 3 months after entering Latvia.

If your parents or grandparents emigrated from Latvia and you wish to apply for a Latvian passport, the deadline for such applications was in 1995. As a result, any application for a Latvian passport now need to go through the usual Latvian citizenship application process. However, this law is subject to ongoing review in Latvia and may change at some point in the future. On November 10, 2011, the Latvian Parliament voted to review changes to the citizenship act. These will be discussed again in early 2012 and potentially put into law during 2012. These changes will allow the following people to apply for Latvian citizenship: a) descendants of Latvian citizens who, because of the Soviet occupation, were forced to leave Latvia between June 17, 1940 and May 4, 1990; b) children of Latvian citizens who were born outside Latvia; c) adopted children who have parents who are Latvian citizens; d) Latvians who have taken up the citizenship of another country (with the proviso that their current country of citizenship permits dual nationality with Latvia) Please visit our the Consular website in the near-future to read about updates to these potential legislative changes.

If you have recently lost your passport, then you will need to get a police report detailing where and when the passport was lost. You will then have to contact the Embassy of Latvia in Washington D.C. to arrange for a new passport to be issued to you. The Embassy can also issue Latvian citizens with a one-way return document that will allow you to fly from the U.S. to Latvia (where you can then get a replacement passport issued).

Following on from her outstanding performance in Rossini's "La Cenerentola" ("Cinderella") at the New York’s Metropolitan Opera (the Met) on Friday May 1^st, Latvia’s world-renowned mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča attended a packed reception at the Latvian Consulate in New York on Saturday May 2nd. At the reception co-hosted with the Latvian National Opera Guild, guests were able to meet with the artist, have their photo taken with her and get a signed copy of Elīna’s latest CD recording – Bel Canto – which was released by Deutsche Grammophon on April 28.

Associated Press wrote on Elīna’s performance on May 1st (where she played the lead role of Angelina): „Garanca, who debuted last year in another Rossini opera, "Il Barbiere di Siviglia," has a gorgeous voice that she uses with exceptional skill. Much of Cinderella's music is soft and plaintive, and Garanca sings those phrases with melting tenderness. But when the part calls for coloratura fireworks, as in her final aria, "Non piu mesta," she unleashes impressive technique and ringing high notes. It doesn't hurt that she looks great on stage and conveys a touching sense of vulnerability”. (Garanca and Brownlee shine as Rossini's 'Cinderella' and her prince at Met opera - Mike Silverman, Arts & Living, AP News).

Elīna Garanča will again appear in "La Cenerentola" at the Met on May 6 and May 9. The final performance on May 9, which is the closing event for the 2008-2009 Met Opera Season ,will be transmitted live in HD to movie theaters throughout the country and around the world.

On May 5, 2009, Deutsche Grammophon releases a new recording of Bellini’s “I Capuleti e Montecchi” with Elīna Garanča together with Russian soprano Anna Netrebko.  Netrebko and Garanča just performed in this opera together this spring at the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden in London.

To read more about Elīna Garanča, please visit www.elinagaranca.com. To learn more about the HD simulcast of the performance on May 9, 2009, please visit www.metopera.org.

Pictured here: mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča and reception host  Daris G. Delins, Honorary Consul for Latvia in New York.

2009.gada 6.jūnijā Latvijā notiks Eiropas Parlamenta vēlēšanas. Eiropas Parlamenta vēlēšanās tiesības piedalīties ir arī tiem Latvijas pilsoņiem, kuri dzīvo ārvalstīs.

Vēlētāji ārvalstīs var piedalīties Eiropas Parlamenta vēlēšanās, balsojot pa pastu. Pieteikties balsošanai pa pastu var līdz 2009.gada 25.aprīlim. Latvijas vēstniecībā ASV (2306 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20008).

Pieteikties balsošanai pa pastu varēs gan personiski, gan nosūtot attiecīgu pieteikumu pa pastu. Pieteikumā vēlētājs norāda savu vārdu, uzvārdu, personas kodu, dzīvesvietas adresi un adresi ārvalstī, uz kuru nosūtāmi balsošanas materiāli (pieteikuma formu skatīt šeit).

Saņemtos pieteikumus pārstāvniecība nosūtīs pasta balsošanas vēlēšanu iecirknim Rīgā. Visiem pasta balsošanai reģistrētajiem vēlētājiem pasta balsošanas vēlēšanu iecirkņa komisija no 2009.gada 8.maija līdz 13.maijam ierakstītā vēstulē no Rīgas izsūtīs balsošanas materiālus uz norādīto adresi ārvalstī.

Līdz 2009. gada 7. maijam pieteikumus balsošanai pa pastu vēlētājs varēs nosūtīt pa pastu vai nodot personīgi arī vēlēšanu iecirknī balsošanai pa pastu – Ārlietu ministrijas Konsulārajā departamentā, Elizabetes ielā 57, Rīgā, Latvijā, LV – 1050.

Vēlētāji, kuri uzturas ārvalstīs, nevar piedalīties Latvijas pašvaldību vēlēšanās, kas notiks vienlaicīgi ar Eiropas Parlamenta vēlēšanām.

Informējam, ka ar papildus informāciju par Eiropas Parlamenta vēlēšanām ir iespējams iepazīties Latvijas Centrālās vēlēšanu komisijas mājas lapā.

Latvijas vēstniecība laipni aicina Jūs jautājumu gadījumā kontaktēties ar vēstniecības Konsulāro nodaļu pa tālruni (202) 328-2840 vai izmantojot e-pastu embassy.usa@mfa.gov.lv.

Latvijas vēstniecība ASV 
www.latvia-usa.org

Latvia’s outstanding tenor, Aleksandrs Antonenko, had his debut performance at the Metropolitan Opera in New York on Monday March 9^th in Dvorak`s ‘Rusalka’, accompanying the famous American soprano Renée Fleming.

The New York Times wrote of the performance:

“Aleksandrs Antonenko, a Latvian tenor, had a remarkable outing in his Met debut as the Prince. A handsome, virile stage presence, Mr. Antonenko moved with a winning confidence and ease. His ardent lyricism and powerful sound marked him as a performer of considerable promise.”

Aleksandrs Antoņenko is scheduled to perform in Rusalka on March 14, 17 and 21.

For further details of the upcoming performance, please visit The Met Opera website.

For more details about Aleksandrs Antonenko read here.

On January 26, 2009 at the Embassy of Latvia Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics hosted a reception in honor of the 88th anniversary of Latvia's "de jure" recognition and the unveiling of a portrait gallery of Latvia's former Amdassadors. The portrait gallery contains photographs of all heads of Latvia's Missions to the United States since 1922, the year the United States officially recognized the Republic of Latvia.

During the event Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics presented awards of recognition from the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia Maris Riektins to Daina Block, Principal of the Washington DC area Latvian school; Daris Delins, Latvia's Honorary Consul in New York, and Edgars Trumpkalms, 1st Secretary at the Embassy of Latvia.

By Patrick Kevin Day

December 22, 2008

"Defenders of Riga," a post- World War I drama on a large scale, is Latvia's submission for this year's best foreign film Oscar. It's the biggest film to be released in the Baltic nation, surpassing "Titanic," the previous record holder, at the box office.

The film tells the story of the crucial battle for Latvian independence that took place against the Germans and Russians on Nov. 11, 1919. But how did an American actress (and one-time Golden Globe and BAFTA nominee) get involved with the film to the degree that she was credited with her first co-screenplay and co-producing credit?

Lisa Eichhorn, who got her start opposite Richard Gere in the 1979 movie "Yanks," explains:

Q: How did you go from acting to producing Latvia's biggest film?

A: In 2003 I moved back to England from New York City. I had decided I wanted to write and produce and I had an idea for a series. About a year later, I was asked to go to Latvia by a colleague to see how easy it would be to film some Western films there. I wasn't working at the time in acting. I had taken time off from my script. In so doing, I met a lot of the producers and directors and a few of the actors. I was invited back in May 2004, to work with the actors on "Defenders of Riga."

Their story precedes me by two years. They had a script and it was a story of obvious national importance to them. [Co-producer and co-writer] Andrejs Ekis had shot 30 % of the film and he asked me to look at what he had so far. He asked me to tell him what I thought and be brutally honest. I told him the shortcomings I felt the film had and they were many. He said, "I don't care how long it takes, this is a very important movie for me, for Latvia, how would you fix it?" I told him what I would do and I left. I was called to Latvia five months later to work with the actors who were on the film. I was hired as a method coach.

The largest and most glaring shortcoming in the footage I saw was that the actors didn't talk to each other. There was no depth. And a couple of the leading actors weren't even getting along. They asked me if I could fix that. We worked and made great progress.

Latvia had a very vibrant film industry during the Soviets' time, but when the Soviets left, everything fell apart. The skills that were a natural part of the system -- designers, cameramen, film acting -- all got lost in the subsequent 10 or 12 years. There were actors acting in a film who had no idea how to film-act.

Q: How long were they filming?

They started in 2003 ,and then they took a break and tried to address their problems. I came on board, and they still had difficulty. It was the most amazing thing. One of the things I said to Andrejs in 2005 [when we were still shooting] was that in Los Angeles you would never be able to start something over to get it right. You would probably never get another opportunity. There was a lot of money riding on it. I think it's the most expensive movie ever made in Latvia ($2.4 million). We were absolutely determined to make a movie that people would want to see. Over 300,000 Latvians have seen the movie in a country of 2.3 million people.

Q: We know what the pressures would be like making the most expensive movie in Hollywood. What were the pressures like making the most expensive movie in Latvia?

There was a group of people who were very fearful that the movie would never get made and that all the money would be lost and all the people who had an emotional need to tell the story would be lost. Whoever could mount that again having had such a failure? On the other side, there was Ekis and his fervent belief that he would make the movie. But he was using the movie as a learning tool. He was really learning on his feet. The thing about making a film in Latvia is, during Soviet time, if a movie took six months, if somebody had to go away to work at the Moscow Theatre and return six months later, that was OK. Time is just a totally different thing in Latvia. In terms of pressure, there are no unions so an actor could be called at 6 a.m. and not be used until 10 p.m. and go home at 2 a.m., but be asked to come back at 6 a.m. There's no structure as there is in the U.S. in terms of SAG or teamster rules or normal limits of human endurance. If everybody is available, they get together and shoot like mad. I think that's why the film took so long. It wasn't just the steep learning curve, but also the availability of the actors.

Q: Did you try to impose order or did you adapt to their method of filmmaking?

What I told them, and I was very firm, I came at it from the actors' point of view. I told them they were responsible for everything they could do to make their characters better. The director had only done one film. It was a popular film, but he was also learning on the job. You have to know who your characters are. If you admire anything in Western film, that's your homework. If your costume needs to have a pocket and six buttons you have to make sure they've got it because at the moment there's no agency, no departmental structure. If your character needs brown gloves, you have to make sure you've got them.

The soldiers were coming back from war and every single actor's costume was brand new. That's a kind of fundamental example. I have to say, when I first came, they mistrusted me and they weren't sure about my ability to help them. They came to trust me over the next 18 months or two years. They learned I didn't come to take something away from them.

Q: Did you know anything about Latvian culture going into this?

I had never been to Latvia. I have no Latvian relatives. I had no Latvian friends at that time. But I have a willingness to travel. It's absolutely astounding when you speak to someone about good acting, no matter the language, and they demonstrate it to you, they can see the difference. I think that's the amazing thing about film -- it transcends language.

Q: Did the actors teach you anything?

A: The older actors, who had lived through Soviet times and worked in Soviet films, were the most mistrustful to begin with. But they came around gangbusters with alacrity and joy. They got what I was trying to help them with.

Q: Did you feel overwhelmed producing your first film at this scale?

No. I believe if we're lucky, we take the opportunities that are offered. Sometimes as you get older as an actor, the gifts and skills and knowledge that you have aren't necessarily required. Everybody knows how the business works. And here were people who needed my expertise. I was like this big well that was an unending source. I had this experience, this career, time. I guess maybe I'm a workhorse or I love the challenge.

Q: Were you happy with your acting roles at this time?

No. As an actor, I love to act. I was always taught the story was the thing. I've had a very peripatetic career. I've lived in Los Angeles and London and New York and back and forth between all of them a couple of times. I think that I used to think if I got a job somewhere, I had to move there. That didn't help people to know where I was.

I think it was a common feeling for me that I had failed in some way early on in my career. I think I had come to terms with the fact that I'd had this colossally large beginning. I didn't have the education or emotional equipment to understand the business of show business. In my 30s and 40s I had to mourn my own lack of understanding. I had to let go and forgive myself. One reviewer said I didn't live up to my early promise. But how did he know what my early promise was?

I think if you fall away from the main stage or if you suddenly find yourself doing different kinds of parts -- I've always been grateful for every part I've been given. Did I wish I'd been re-remembered on the scale I began with? Yeah, I probably did. I think that was for all the wrong reasons. I think I wanted to show that person who said I didn't live up to my early promise that I wasn't a failure. But that's like living in the present with one foot in the past. When I have an opportunity to act, I am grateful. I have lots of acting left inside of me.

I used to not know who I was when I wasn't playing a character. Now I think I'm comfortable being myself and a character. I had to learn to accept all of myself and not look back.

Now I look forward to directing my first film and getting my first script off the ground. When your attitude changes, your life changes.

Q: Have you been back to Latvia since the film opened? Have you experienced its success in person?

No, but I don't need to go there to see it to know that it is and that it was. I feel very grateful to have been in the right place at the right time. It was as much a gift for me as it was a gift for them. A lot of people in my shoes wouldn't care. The gift to me is that they've allowed me to express another part of my artistic self. I'm really grateful to them for that. 

See LA Times for full article

November 18, 2008

Dear Friends,

It is a pleasure to welcome everyone to the independence celebrations hosted by the Latvian Consulate in New York City.

Shortly after the First World War, Latvian men and women declared their nation’s independence from Russian and Bolshevik rule.  Here in New York, our City’s Latvian community was already growing by leaps and bounds; families had been immigrating to the Big Apple since the turn of the 20^th century, and their contributions to our economic, cultural, and civic life had already begun to have a significant impact on our great City.  Today, that impact remains stronger than ever, and I am proud to join everyone gathered at this National Day celebration to recognize the committed hard work and indomitable spirit of our City’s Latvian community.

On behalf of the City of New York, I commend Honorary Consul Daris G. Delins and everyone involved with today’s celebration for sharing Latvian history and culture with all New Yorkers. Please accept my best wished for an enjoyable celebration and continued success.

Sincerely,

Michael R. Bloomberg

Mayor

The City of New York, Office of the Mayor, New York, NY 10007

Seen here from the right, Mayor Michael R Bloomberg, Daris G. Delins, Honorary Consul for Latvia in New York, and Marjorie B Tiven, Commissioner, Office of the Mayor, Commission for the UN, Consular Corps and Protocol, at Gracie Mansion, New York City, October 22, 2008

To see the full article/note, please download here

On October 25 and 26, "Defenders of Riga" screened at the 23rd annual Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. The film was seen by close to 200 festival attendees. Attending at the premiere screenings, seen here in the picture were from the left, Daris G. Delins, Hon. Consul for Latvia in New York, the film's director Aigars Grauba, the film's producer Andrejs Ekis, and Barry Mowell, Hon. Consul for Latvia in Florida.

The film will next screen at the AFI European Film Showcase in Silver Spring, Maryland on November 16 and 18, 2008 http://www.afi.com/silver/new/nowplaying/EUshowcase/riga.aspx. Further screenings of the film are planned for Los Angeles, California.

Between November 11 and November 18, 2008 the film will be screened at over 200 locations in Latvia as part of Latvia's 90th Anniversary National Day celebrations.

By the end of 2008, the film will have been seen by close to 300,000 people around the world, cementing its position as Latvia's most successful film release ever.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on October 17 that "Defenders of Riga" (Rīgas sargi) has been nominated as Latvia's official entry in the Foreign Language Film category for the 81st Academy Awards® (www.oscars.org).

Released in November 2007, "Defenders of Riga" is not only the most ambitious feature-length production in the history of Latvian cinema but also the highest grossing box office film to be released in Latvia, seen already by close to 300,000 viewers.  To date in 2008, the film has been seen by over 2,000 viewers in the U.S.

On October 25 and 26 the film will premiere at the 2008 Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (www.fliff.com) and on November 16 and 18 it will premiere at the 2008 AFI European Film Showcase in Silver Spring, Maryland http://www.afi.com/silver/new/nowplaying/EUshowcase/riga.aspx.

Nominations for the 81st Academy Awards will be announced on Thursday, January 22, 2009, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2008 will be presented on Sunday, February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

On Friday, October 17 President George W. Bush invited ambassadors of the 13 candidate countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, South Korea, Greece, Cyprus and Malta) of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to a White House ceremony to announce the US Administration’s decision to admit seven of these 13 countries to the Visa Waiver Program. Latvia was represented by Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics (see here in the picture being congratulated by President George W.Bush).

President Bush officially announced the addition of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and South Korea to the Visa Waiver Program. Most likely in approximately one month, travelers from these countries will no longer require a visa to enter the United States.

The program currently includes 27 countries. The President stated that the seven countries agreed to share information about security threats to the U.S. and that their citizens would use a new system that requires travelers to register online ahead of their visits to the United States.

President Bush emphasized that Latvia and the other 6 countries have fulfilled all requirements related to admission into the US VWP. Admission to the VWP will open new possibilities for interpersonal contacts, tourism and business development. The removal of US visa requirements is yet another example of the dynamic development of the Latvia-US strategic partnership.

Latvia’s admission to the VWP was due to the successful cooperation with the National Security Council, the US Department of State, the Department of Homeland Security, Congress, and various research institutes. The American Latvian Association has also played a significant role for Latvia to reach this goal.

Link to President George W. Bush's White House announcement

On March 12, 2008 in Riga, Maris Riekstins, Acting Minister for the Interior, and Michael Chertoff, US Secretary of Homeland Security, signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of the Interior of Latvia and the Department of Homeland Security of US regarding the US Visa Waiver Program and related enhanced security measures.

Latvia has now fulfilled all of the technical requirements regarding the VWP.

12.03.08	Maija Kovalevska performs at the Met Season 2008-2009   Latvian soprano Maija Kovalevska, winner of the 2006 Domingo Operalia competition, returns to the Metropolitain Opera this season in the role of Mimi in Puccini's La Boheme. In Franco Zeffirelli’s production of the Puccini favorite, Maija Kovalevska sings the consumptive heroine, and Ramón Vargas and Massimo Giordano share the role of her poet-lover, with Mariusz Kwiecien as Marcello, in what may be the world’s most popular opera.   Maija Kovalevska is scheduled to appear on December 15, 18, 22, 26 and 29 and January 3, 6, and 10.   For further details visit: MetOpera   For more information on Maija Kovalevska, please visit her website or IMG Artists
12.07.08	Mariss Jansons to perform at Carnegie Hall - March 13, 14 and 15, 2009 World renowned Latvian conductor Mariss Jansons returns to New York Carnegie Hall on March 13, 14 and 15, 2009 to conduct the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.   March 13, 2009: Jorg Widmann, Mozart, and Tchaikovsky.   March 14, 2009: Hadyn and Beethoven (with Ricarda Merbeth, Soprano, Michelle Breedt, Mezzo-Soprano, Michael Schade, Michael Volle, Bass, and the Westminster Symphonic Choir).   March 15, 2009: Shchedrin, Prokofiev, and Brahms   For further programme details and ticketing, visit Carnegie Hall.
12.07.08	Elīna Garanča returns to the Met Opera in May 2009   Latvia's world-renowned mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča returns to the Met Opera in May 2009.   Hot on the heels of her triumphant Met debut as Rosina in last season’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Elina Garanca portrays another Rossini charmer in this bel canto Cinderella story. Lawrence Brownlee is her Prince Charming. Veteran baritone Alessandro Corbelli demonstrates his impeccable comic timing to match the gravitas of Met favorite John Relye   Elina Garanca is scheduled to perform on May 1, 6 and 9, 2009.   For ticketing information please visit MetOpera.   For more information on Elina Garanca visit her website.
1.12.09	Visit Latvia at the 2009 New York Times Travel Show - February 6-8, 2009 Latvia will again be on show at the 2009 New York Times Travel Show.    Come and learn about Latvia's exciting tourism locations and opportunities. Visit Latvia as a destination or visit Latvia as part of your next trip to Europe.   You will find Latvia at booth #376, "Welcome to the Baltics: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania".   Show hours are: Friday, February 6, 2pm-7pm (trade only) Saturday, February 7, 10am-6pm Sunday, February 8, 10am-4pm   Literature and other promotional materials will be available for distribution. There will also be Baltic cultural exhibits.   The NYT Travel Show runs February 6 to 8, 2009 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.   For further details about the show and visiting times, please visit: www.nyttravelshow.com
3.12.09	Aleksandrs Antonenko to perform at special benefit concert - Monday, March 16, 2009   Latvian tenor and opera singer Aleksandrs Antonenko, currently starting in 'Rusalka' at The Met, will perform in a special benefit concert in New York on Monday March 16 at 7pm with pianist Reinis Zarins.   Monday, March 16 at 7pm.   Latvian Lutheran Church, 254 Valentine Lane, Yonkers, NY.   The programme will include selected opera pieces and works by Latvian composers.   After the performance there will be a reception with the performers.   Entry: donations starting at $50.00, students: $25.00, children free. Donations of $100 or more will have their name in the sponsors list.   Checks payable to “Latvian National Opera Guild” and can be sent to Juris Padegs, 22 Minturn Street, Hastings un Hudson, NY 10706-1133.    More information: J. Padegs 914-478-0134 or A. Pelše 516-319-9491     To read more about Aleksandrs Antonenko, please click here.
4.07.09	Meet renowned Latvian opera singer Elīna Garanča - Saturday, May 2nd, 2009   The Consulate of Latvia in New York together with the Latvian National Opera Guild (LNOG) is honored to be hosting a reception for Latvia’s renowned opera singer, Elīna Garanča.   Described by the UK’s ‘The Independent’ newspaper as having a voice as „one of a million”, Elīna Garanča is perfoming again this season in New York at the Metropolitan Opera in Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Cinderella) on May 1, 6, and 9.   At the reception on Saturday May 2nd, Ms. Garanča will be signing copies of her newly released CD, Bel Canto. Released by Deutsche Grammophon in April, on this disc Latvia’s famous vocalist performs some of her most favorite bel canto masterpieces – both popular hits and lesser-known arias from earlier 18th century Italian operas (Donizetti, Bellini, Rossini).   Proceeds from the reception will assist the LNOG’s work to support the Latvian National Opera.   When:  Saturday, May 2nd, 2009, 5 pm to 6:30 pm   Where:  Consulate of Latvia in New York, 155 Perry Street, Suite 1B New York, NY 10014. Tel: 1-646-230-0590. (in the West Village; nearest cross street is Perry & Washington)   Parking: parking garages can be found on the corner of Perry and Greenwich Streets and on the corner of Charles & Washington Streets. Subway: on the 1 line, nearest stop is Christopher/Sheridan Square or 14th Street on the 1, 2 and 3 lines   RSVP:  By Monday, April 27 if you will attend. Email: info@latvia-newyork.org or tel 1-646-230-0590.   Donations: $30 per person (includes a signed CD). Checks made payable to ‘Latvian National Opera Guild’.
5.25.09	"Songs cross the oceans and link businesses" - joint concert: RTU Riga Business School Choir & Japanese Choral Society of New York - Thursday, June 25, at 7:30 pm   The Consulate of Latvia in New York invites you to a unique concert featuring two outstanding and unique „business” choirs – one from Riga, Latvia, the other from New York’s Japanese business community.   The RTU Riga Business School Choir, under Conductor Einārs Verro, brings together more than 40 successful business professionals. The majority of singers are middle and top level managers, entrepreneurs and company owners. At the same time most of the singers bring significant choral experience which has helped the Choir to reach its high level of performance. (see www.rbs.lv for more information about RBS).   The New York Men's Choir (NYMC) is an amateur choral group consists of Japanese businessmen work in NY. It is a successor of The NY Men's Glee Club, which was originally founded in 1991. In 2004, it evolved once again, welcoming women’s voices to become both men’s and mixed chorus, forming Japanese Choral Society of New York (JCSNY) with Kousuke Iwasaki as the current conductor. Some highlights include singing the National Anthem at NY Yankees Stadium in 2004 and its performance at Carnegie Hall in 2005. A documentary film about the choir, 'Shall We Sing?' by Ms. Higashitani, won several awards in 2008 and was broadcasted nationwide on PBS network. (see www.nymc.net for more information about the Choir).   Both choirs will perform selections from their native repertoires. Come, enjoy, and let’s connect !   When:   Thursday, June 25th, 2009, at 7:30 pm   Where:  Immanuel Lutheran Church122 East 88 Street · New York, NY 10128 (corner of Lexington Avene and 88th Street) Directions: Immanuel is located at the corner of Lexington Avenue and 88th Street on Manhattan's Upper East Side, convenient from the M101, M102, and M86 bus lines and by Subway, #4, #5, and #6 line, 86th Street stop.   Tickets:  $10 adults; $7 children (tickets at the door).
12.13.09	Elīna Garanča returns to the Met as Carmen - December 2009 and January 2010   Following on from her outstanding performance in Rossini's "La Cenerentola" ("Cinderella") in May 2009, Latvia’s world-renowned mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča returns to the New York’s Metropolitan Opera (the Met) in December 2009 and January 2010 to play Carmen in George Bizet’s “Carmen”.   "Carmen is about sex, violence, and racism—and its corollary: freedom,” says Olivier Award-winning director Richard Eyre. “It is one of the inalienably great works of art. It’s sexy, in every sense. And I think it should be shocking.”   Elīna Garanča will be appearing in this role on December 31 (New Year's Eve Gala), January 5, 8, 12, 16, and 21 (2010). Her performance in Carmen on January 16 will also be will be transmitted live in HD to movie theaters throughout the United States (and repeated on February 3, 2010). Audiences outside the United States will also be able to see this HD screening.   To learn more about Elīna Garančas appearances at the Met and these HD screening dates and venues please visit www.metopera.org   Elīna Garanča was the ECHO Klassik 2009 Award - Singer of the Year - for the solo CD "Bel Canto" - awarded by the Deutsche Phono-Akademie (Germany)   Following her starring role in Carmen at London’s Convent Garden in October 2009, the UK press noted:   “Singing Carmen for the first time in the UK, Elina Garanca immediately surprised us by her physical appearance; dark-haired, tanned and sweaty. Fears about how her Baltic precision and coolness would cope portraying the sultry Spanish gypsy melted as she smouldered from the off, teasing and pouting her way through Act I, doing extremely suggestive things up her skirt with the flower in the Habanera before flinging it with precision at José... She has a truly beautiful voice...” - Mark Pullinger – Opera Britannia, October 5, 2009.   “One-woman show... Matching Garanca is no easy task... The Latvian mezzo is naturally blonde, but her Carmen wig suits her. Arms and legs akimbo, skirts lifted dangerously high, she exudes a hair-trigger sexuality that is balanced by mischievous wit. Her voice is in superb shape, light and sensuous but with ample power to ride over the orchestra...the precision of her singing and of her acting makes every detail clear. There are moments when this Carmen becomes a one-woman show; but what a woman” – Nick Kimberly – London Evening Standard, October 6, 2009.   “Elina Garanca is a revelation in the role of Carmen...” - Jim Pritchard (MusicWeb International's Worldwide Concert and Opera Reviews) October 6, 2009   To read more about Elīna Garanča, please visit www.elinagaranca.com.
12.16.09	Soprano Maija Kovalevska returns to the Met in January 2010 Renowned Latvian soprano Maija Kovalevska  returns to the New York’s Metropolitan Opera (the Met) in January 2010 to play Micaela in George Bizet’s “Carmen”.   "Carmen is about sex, violence, and racism—and its corollary: freedom,” says Olivier Award-winning director Richard Eyre. “It is one of the inalienably great works of art. It’s sexy, in every sense. And I think it should be shocking.”   Maija Kovalevska will be appearing in her role on January 30, February 1, 5, 9, 13, April 28 and May 1 2010. To learn more about Maija Kovalevska’s appearances at the Met please visit www.metopera.org .   To read more about Maija Kovalevska please visit her website www.maija-kovalevska.com
12.20.09	Mariss Jansons returns to Carnegie Hall - February 16 and 17, 2010 World renowned Latvian conductor Mariss Jansons returns to New York's Carnegie Hall on February 16 and 17, 2010 to conduct the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.   February 16, 2010:  SIBELIUS, Violin Concerto; RACHMANINOFF, Symphony No. 2 in E Minor (with Janine Jansen, Violin).   February 17, 2010: MAHLER, Symphony No. 3 (with Jill Grove, Mezzo-Soprano, New York Choral Artists, The American Boychoir). For further programme details and ticketing, visit Carnegie Hall.
2.09.10	RIGA - business briefing and investment seminar - March 1, 2010 The Consulate of Latvia in New York and Embassy of Latvia in Washington D.C. invite you to attend a special breakfast seminar focused on Riga, Latvia’s capital city.   Learn more about the business opportunities Riga offers as a key starting point for tourism, investment, finance, trade and logistics in the Baltics, Northern Europe and surrounding region. Hear the latest about the outlook for Riga and the Baltics in 2010   Keynote speakers will include:   Ainars Slesers – Deputy Chairman of the Riga City Council & Chairman of the Board of the Freeport of Riga ( www.riga.lv and www.freeportofriga.lv )   Bertolt Flick - President and CEO, Air Baltic ( www.airbaltic.com )   Nils Melngailis – Chairman of the Board, Parex Bank ( www.parex.lv )   When:   Monday, March 1st, 2010, 8:00 am - 9:30 am (registration begins at 7:45 am) Where:   Harvard Club of New York, 35 West 44th Street, between 5th and 6th Ave, New York, NY 10036 (www.hcny.com) How to attend:   please email (info @ latvia-newyork . org) including your name, title, company name, tel number, and your area of interest in Latvia/Riga. You will be sent an invitation and registration confirmation number. Registration closes 2/24.
2.09.10	Visit Riga and the Baltics at the 2010 New York Times Travel Show   The 2010 New York Times Travel Show is New York's premiere travel event. A must for anyone plannning a vacation this year.   Get to know more about Riga, Latvia and the Baltics at the Travel Show this year. Learn about Live Riga !   Attending on Saturday 2/27 at 12:00 pm at the Latvian exhibition will be Ainars Slesers, Deputy Chairman of Riga City Council and Bertolt Flick, Chairman and CEO of Air Baltic. On Sunday 2/28, at 2-3:30 pm, there will be a special presentations featuring Latvia.   For more information on the NY Times Travel Show click here.   For more information about Riga, click here.   For more information about Air Baltic, click here.   If you are a travel professional and wish to receive an invitation to the event on Saturday, please contact us by email: info  @  latvia-newyork  . org. Include your name, title, company name, and tel number.
5.12.10	Riga Dom Cathedral Boys Choir to perform in New York - May 30, June 1 & 2, 2010 Described by the press as "comparable to the Vienna Choir Boys," the Riga Dom Cathedral Boys Choir will be visiting the U.S. again this year and giving performances in New York on May 30, June 1 and 2.   The Riga Dom Cathedral Boys Choir was founded in 1950. Choir members are trained at the Riga Dom Choir School and sing regularly at church services and classical music concerts held in the Riga Dom Cathedral.   The Riga Dom Cathedral Boys Choir has a repertoire ranging from Bach to Britten. Their programs frequently incorporate modern arrangements of folk songs and gems from the 17th and 18th centuries, and they are as adept singing a cappella as they are with piano or organ accompaniment. The choir has performed in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, Japan, Finland, Russia, Canada and the United States. They made 50 appearances in Benjamin Britten's children's opera, Little Sweep, when it was produced by the Latvian National Opera, and they have recorded seven CDs.   The President of the United States , the Presidents of Finland , Ukraine , Uzbekistan and Turkey , H. R .H. Prince Charles and HM Elizabeth II Queen of the United Kingdom, participants of NATO summit (2006) have all enjoyed performances by the Choir in Riga.   New York performance details: Sunday, May 30th,  4:00 pm - Latvian Community Center, Catskills, Elka Park, NY  Tuesday, June 1st, 1:10 pm - Quaker Ridge School, 125 Weaver St. Scardsale, NY Wednesday, June 2nd, 1:00 - Trinity Church, Broadway at Wall St. New York NY  Wednesday, June 2nd, 7:30pm - Church of the Heavenly Rest,  2 East 90th St. (at 5th Ave.)   New York, NY (admission by free will offering).   For more information aboout the above events please contact Mr. Andrejs Jansons: Tel 201 944 1273; e-mail jansonsa@gmail.com
7.23.10	Latvian mezzo-soprano Elina Garanca to perform at Carnegie Hall on October 25, 2010 World renowned Latvian mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča will be returning to New York to perform in Massenet’s opera  „La Navaraise” at Carnegie Hall at 7:30pm on Monday October 25, 2010.   This special event is being hosted by the Opera Orchestra of New York (visit www.oony.org for more details ).Also apprearing in this opera will be Roberto Alagna and Brian Kontes.   The same evening, Maria Guleghina, Krysty Swann and Mignon Dunn will appear in a performance of Mascagni’s  “Cavalleria Rusticana”.   Tickets are limited for this special double-bill opera event. Please e-mail us as soon as possible at: info@latvia-newyork.org if you are interested in attending. The performance will sell out fast. Ticket prices are $60 and via OONY we are fortunate to been able to secure a limited number of seats.
9.14.10	Where Latvian citizens can vote in New York for the 10th Saeima Elections on Saturday October 2   Latvian citizens who are in New York on Saturday October 2, 2010 can vote in the 10th Saiema Elections.   A voting station will be availabe between 7am and 8pm at:   Latvian Mission to the United Nations 333 East 50th Street New York, NY 10022 Tel: 1-212-838-8877   To vote in the elections in New York City that day you must be a Latvian citizen and hold a valid passport. You must bring your passport to the polling station (it is not enough to know your citizenship registration number). For further information about these elections please visit theCentral Election Commissions website.
11.05.10	Latvian National Choir debuts at White Light Festival - Lincoln Center - November 12 & 13, 2010 This November, the Latvian National Choir ("Latvija") makes its debut U.S. visit, appearing in New York at the Lincoln Center on November 12 and 13, 2010.   Friday November 12, 2010 at 10:30 pm - Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse   In its U.S. debut, the Latvian National Choir performs an eclectic a cappella program featuring Swiss composer Frank Martin’s remarkable Mass and the Estonian Veljo Tormis’ shamanistic Curse upon Iron.   Latvian National Choir; Tõnu Kaljuste, conductor   MARTIN: Mass for double chorus; PÄRT: Dopo la vittoria; TORMIS: Curse upon Iron   Saturday November 13, 2010 at 7:30 pm - Alice Tully Hall, Starr Theater   The music of Bach transcends time, resonating as deeply now as it did 300 years ago; Arvo Pärt’s music is new, but feels as if it has always existed. These two acclaimed composers are joined in a timeless program featuring the Latvian National Choir, the paragon of the Baltic region’s renowned choral tradition.   Latvian National Choir; Tõnu Kaljuste, conductor; Orchestra of St. Luke’s   BACH: Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied; Komm, Jesu, Komm!; PÄRT: Stabat mater (U.S. premiere); Adam’s Lament (U.S. premiere)   For more information about these performances please visit www.lincolncenter.org   The Latvian National Choir “Latvija” is the biggest concert choir in Latvia. Over the recent years, the choir has co-operated with the leading symphony orchestras of Singapore, Israel, Germany, France, Estonia, Moscow and St. Petersburg, and smaller ensembles such as Absolut Ensemble, the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the outstanding conductors Mariss Jansons, Neeme Järvi, Mstislav Rostropovich, Kristjan Järvi, Pavo Järvi, Valery Gergiev, Zubin Mehta, Jeffrey Tate, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Andris Nelsons, Tõnu Kaljuste and others.
11.05.10	Gidon Kremer at the White Light Festival - Lincoln Center - November 11, 2010 at 7:30pm The incomparable Gidon Kremer and his intrepid Baltic ensemble return to Lincoln Center with their own arrangement of Beethoven’s monumentally imaginative String Quartet Op.131, which the great music scholar Joseph de Marliave called “the direct expression of Beethoven’s most intimate spirit, the channel of inspiration flowing from another sphere.” The evening also features the New York premieres of works by young Russian composer Lera Auerbach and Georgian composer Giya Kancheli, the latter who wrote Silent Prayer in celebration of Kremer’s 60th birthday.   Kremerata Baltica; Gidon Kremer, violin and leader; Ula Ulijona, viola; Giedre Dirvanauskaute, cello; Andrei Pushkarev, percussion   AUERBACH: Sogno di Stabat Mater (New York premiere); KANCHELI: Silent Prayer (New York premiere); BEETHOVEN (arr. Kremerata Baltica): String Quartet in C-sharp minor, Op.131   For further information please visit www.lincolncenter.org
2.17.11	Renowned Latvian conductor Andris Nelsons debuts with the NY Philharmonic Latvian conductor Andris Nelsons returned to New York’s Lincoln Center on February 10 to debut this time with the NY Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall.  On February 17, 2011, the Consulate of Latvia in New York and Latvia’s Mission to the United Nations hosted diplomats to a special performance of Shostakovich’s  Fifth Symphony and Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor. Ambassador Normans Penke, Hon. Consul  Daris Delins and their spouses met with the conductor following this outstanding performance. Andris Nelsons returns to New York on March 11, 2011 to again perform at the Met Opera with Tchaikovsky ‘s Queen of Spades.    Please see below the NY Times review on the evening’s performance on February 17 at Avery Fisher Hall:   February 11, 2011   A Visitor Arrives, Armed With a Sprawling Score   By ANTHONY TOMMASINI   It is hard for a technically adept conductor not to make a big impression with Shostakovich’s gripping Fifth Symphony. But it is just as hard for an interpretation of this well-known piece to stand out.   Andris Nelsons, the dynamic 32-year-old Latvian conductor who is the music director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, chose Shostakovich’s Fifth to conclude his debut program with the New York Philharmonic on Thursday night at Avery Fisher Hall. His keenly dramatic yet clear-headed approach brought welcome insights to Shostakovich’s sprawling score.   The charismatic Mr. Nelsons drew brilliant, richly textured playing from the Philharmonic. But the Shostakovich symphony presents psychological as well as musical challenges. It was composed in 1937 after an official Soviet condemnation of Shostakovich over the modernist decadence of his shocking opera “Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District.” The symphony represented the composer’s attempt, however forced, at rehabilitation. He described it as a lyric-heroic symphony that explored the sufferings and ultimate optimism of man. Many conductors hear the work as a veiled personal protest and plumb the score for bitter irony.   Mr. Nelsons took the piece at face value. In the first movement, a brooding Moderato that builds to shattering climaxes, he drew transparent playing from the Philharmonic, allowing the rigorous contrapuntal writing to come through with affecting presence.   He conveyed the music’s ambiguity where it seems unmistakable, in the second movement, for example, which hovered here between a bucolic dance and a grotesquerie of a scherzo. The pensive slow movement was beautifully restrained. Mr. Nelsons took quick tempos in the wild finale, right through the blaring conclusion. Some conductors pull back here, so that the repeated notes in the high strings sound like head-pounding triumphalism. Mr. Nelsons and the musicians played it straight, and gloriously.   The concert began with a lithe account of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, with Jonathan Biss, fresh from his Carnegie Hall recital debut, giving an elegant, fleet-fingered performance. He and Mr. Nelsons inspired each other to take chances.   Mr. Nelsons returns to the Metropolitan Opera next month to conduct Tchaikovsky’s “Queen of Spades” (after a successful 2009 debut in Puccini’s “Turandot”). To judge from the splendid playing of the Philharmonic on this night and the ovation from the audience, he should be coming back to this other prominent Lincoln Center podium.   Source: NY Times.
2.19.11	Baryshnikov Arts Center Presents The New York Debut of The Latvian Choir Kamēr - March 17, 2011 Baryshnikov Arts Center Presents The New York Debut of The Latvian Choir Kamēr - Thursday March 17, 2011 at 8 pm   The Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC) is pleased to announce a special concert addition to its spring 2011 season featuring the New York debut of the Latvian choir Kamēr... on Thursday, March 17 in BAC’s Jerome Robbins Theater at 8 PM. Kamēr..., widely considered one of the greatest amateur choirs in the world, will perform The Madrigals of Love, a program featuring New York premieres of a variety of recent compositions by contemporary Latvian composers, including Rihards Dubra, Ēriks Ešenvalds, and Renārs Kaupers, all written in the style of one of the oldest choral genres: the madrigal. These new compositions will be performed alongside some of the 16th century works that inspired them, providing a rare opportunity to experience the astounding musicianship of this singular ensemble.   Kamēr... is a collective of 36 young vocalists from Riga, Latvia whose members range in age from 16 to 30. The choir has earned top honors in dozens of international competitions and is renowned for its distinctively bright, clear vocal sound grounded in the rich choral tradition of the Baltic region. Kamēr... has collaborated with some of Europe’s leading musicians, including Gidon Kremer, Arvo Pärt, and Giya Kancheli, and has recently expanded its repertoire by commissioning new works from composers in the Baltic region and around the world. Founded in 1991, just as the Latvian Soviet regime began to fall, Kamēr... was established with the aim of providing a fresh start for the many talented young musicians who had previously been relegated to state-run community choirs. From the choir’s very first performances amidst regime change and economic crisis, founder and conductor Māris Sirmais has placed an emphasis on reviving and preserving the vibrant, emotionally-charged style of the Latvian choral tradition.   The Baryshnikov Arts Center is the realization of a long-held vision by artistic director Mikhail Baryshnikov, who sought to build an arts center in Manhattan that would serve as a gathering place for artists from all disciplines. BAC’s opening in 2005 heralded the launch of this mission, establishing a thriving creative laboratory and performance space for artists from around the world. BAC’s activities encompass a robust residency program augmented by a range of professional services, including commissions of new work, as well as the presentation of performances by artists of excellence at varying stages of their careers. In tandem with its commitment to supporting artists, BAC is dedicated to building audiences for the arts by presenting contemporary, innovative work at affordable ticket prices. In February 2010, BAC opened the Jerome Robbins Theater, which serves as an organic extension of the existing center, featuring multidisciplinary work, emerging talent, and international artists, and including artist-centered activity that fosters creative exploration. For more information, please visit www.bacnyc.org.   Program Information: Thursday, March 17, 2011 at 8 PM   Kamēr... Māris Sirmais, Conductor   Mīlas madrigāli / Madrigals of Love Ēriks Ešenvalds – O Solutaris Rihards Dubra – Rīt jau jābūt John Farmer – Fail Phyllis I saw Johann Hermann Schein – Freue Dich Lucas Pearsall – Lay a Garland Pierre Paserreau – Il est bel et bon Juris Vaivods – Alšvangas madrigāls Marģeris Zariņš – Četrbalsīgs madrigāls par vecmodīgu tēmu Arturs Maskats – Madrigāls (klusā daba) ar lāčiem Valts Pūce – Divpadsmitais sonets Renārs Kaupers – Mazā bilžu rāmītī Ēriks Ešenvalds – Tāls ceļš   Ticket Information: Tickets are $15 and can be purchased by calling 212.868.4444 or visiting www.bacnyc.org or www.smarttix.com. The Jerome Robbins Theater is located within the Baryshnikov Arts Center, 450 West 37th Street, NYC or visit www.banyc.org
2.19.11	Leading Met Opera tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko - special benefit concert - March 6, 2011 The Latvian National Opera Guild has arranged a benefit concert in support of the Operatic Study “Figaro” at the Latvian Academy of Music in Riga with the internationally renowned tenor of the Latvian National Opera and the New York Metropolitan Opera Aleksandrs Antoņenko, accomponied by pianist  George Boyer   When & Where: March 6, 2011, 3:00 PM Latvian Ev. Luth. Church 254 Valentine Lane, Yonkers, NY 10705   A reception will follow in the Chandelier Room   Admission:  contributions, starting at $50. Students $25; Children free   Further information:   Andrejs Jansons  201-944-1273 & Aija Pelše   516-935-0967   Aleksandrs Antoņenko will sing at the Metropolitan Opera in the role of Dmitri in Mussorgsky opera Boris Godunov. He is scheduled to perform on  March 9, 12 and 17, 2011. For further detail please visit www.metopera.org
2.19.11	Latvia at the NY Times Travel Show 2011 - February 25-27, 2011 Latvia will again be represented at the 2011 New York Time Travel Show.   The NY Times Travel show is on from Fenruary 25-27, 2011 at the Javits Convention Center. This year, Latvia will be sharing its exhibition booth with Estonia.   For more details about the travel show, please visit: http://www.nyttravelshow.com/
3.03.11	Andris Nelsons to conduct Boston Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall - March 17, 2011 Renowned Latvian conductor Andris Nelsons will be replacing James Levine on March 17, 2011 to conduct the Boston Symphony Orchestra performing Mahler's 9th Symphony.   Andris Nelsons last month made his debut performance with the NY Philhamonic and returns again this month to the Met Opera to conduct Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades.   For more detailrs about this performance please visit the Carnegie Hall website.
3.08.11	Latvia's Ambassador to the U.N. to address Brooklyn chapter of the UNA-USA on March 16 at 7:00 pm at the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University On Wednesday March 16 at 7:00 pm Latvia's Ambassador to the U.N., H.E. Normans Penke, will speak before the Brooklyn chapter of the UNA-USA, at the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University. Ambassador Penke will share the Latvian perspective on the United Nations; discuss his country’s policies toward and actions involving the UN since the end of the Cold War within a more general context of the Baltic States (Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia). Finally, the Ambassador will touch on the issue of how Latvia perceives U.S. foreign policy toward the United Nations and how it affects relations with the United States. This will be followed by a Q & A session and refreshments.   The event will take place in the main building, Metcalfe Hall / Schwartz Atlantic center, Room LLC 116. The entrance is on the corner of De Kalb & Flatbush Avenues. For directions to the Brooklyn Campus of LIU visit: www.liunet.edu/Brooklyn/About/Visit.aspx. For more details about the event visit the UNA-USA Brooklyn chapter website visit: www.unabrooklyn.wordpress.com.   If you are planning to attend RSVP either by clicking "I’m Attending" in the event page "Latvian Ambassador To the UN Will Speak In Brooklyn" on Facebook or by e-mailing unabrooklyn@gmail.com
3.13.11	Latvian tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko to star as 'Otello" at Carnegie Hall with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra - Friday, April 15, 2011 In February 2010, conductor Riccardo Muti debuted at the Met with Verdi’s Attila in a performance The New York Times called a “revelation.” Now on April 15, 2001 he brings Otello in a concert performance to Carnegie Hall with his Chicago Symphony.   Staring in the role of Otello will be Latvian tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko - already now well known to audieneces in New York following his recent performances at the Metropolitain Opera.   For more information about this event, please visit the Carnegie Hall website.
5.04.11	Maris Briežkalns Quintet at the Blue Note - Monday May 16, 2011 - at 8 pm Maris Briežkalns Quintet is today one of the leading and interesting small acoustic mainstream bands on Latvian jazz scene, focusing on pop, Latin and jazz.   They will be appearing at New York's Blue Note Jazz Club on Monday May 16th at 8 pm.   For further information about this event please visit the Blue Note website.   To listen to the Quintet please click here.   The leader of the Quintet, Maris Briežklans, is also the founder and director of Rigas Ritmi - Latvia's leading annual international jazz festival - established in 2001.  For more information about Rigas Ritmi please click here.
6.25.11	Referendum on dissolution of the Saeima (Latvian Parliament) to be held on 23 July 2011   On 30 May 2011 the Central Election Commission announced the Referendum on dissolution of the 10th Saeima on the ground of the Presidential order Nr. 2 of 28 May 2011 “On the proposal on dissolution of the Saeima”. The referendum on this issue will be held on 23 July 2011.   The referendum's question will be – "Do you support dissolution of the 10th Saeima?" The ballot papers will include two possible answers – "for" and "against". This wording is determined by the Law “On National Referendums and Legislative Initiatives”. Article 14 of this law stipulates that a proposal submitted for a referendum shall be written in the ballot papers as well as the words “for” and “against”.   According to the Law “On National Referendums and Legislative Initiatives” the Referendum on dissolution of the Saeima proposed by the President of Latvia shall be held not earlier than one month before and not later than two months after the date the Central Election Commission has received a notification of this proposal.   On the Referendum Day on 23 July 2011 polling stations will be open from 7.00 a.m. till 10.00 p.m. Voters will be able to cast their vote at any polling station in Latvia and abroad since the Voter Register will not be used. To provide for only one vote for each voter, a special stamp will be put on a voter’s passport indicating participation in the Referendum.   If in the National Referendum more than one half of the votes are cast in favour of dissolution, the Saeima shall be deemed as dissolved and new parliamentary elections shall be proclaimed. These elections shall take place within two months after the dissolution of the Saeima.   In New York, Latvian citizens will be able to vote at:   Latvian Mission to the United Nations 333 East 50th Street New York, NY 10022 Tel 1-212-838-8877   For more information (in Latvian) please see the Latvian section of this website.