Two prominent business executives — Uni-President Enterprises Corp General Manager Alex Lo (羅智先) and Yahoo Asia Managing Director Rose Tsou (鄒開蓮) — have been invited to co-host a flag-raising ceremony at the Presidential Office plaza on New Year’s Day.
Council for Cultural Affairs Minister Emile Sheng (盛治仁) said the surprise arrangement underscores the government’s determination to celebrate the Republic of China’s (ROC) 100th anniversary next year with creativity.
In addition, famous Aboriginal composer Lee Tai-hsiang (李泰祥) has been invited to provide a special arrangement of the National Anthem to further highlight the uniqueness of the flag-raising ceremony on the first day of the ROC’s centennial, said Sheng, who concurrently heads the ROC (Taiwan) Centenary Foundation.
In an effort to inspire all ROC citizens to commemorate the country’s 100th anniversary with joy, Sheng said both the Presidential Office and the foundation have “racked their brains” to design interesting and meaningful programs.
Lee, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, presented his newly completed musical score to Vice President Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) at the Presidential Office on Wednesday.
Lee told Siew that he endured great physical pain while trying to inject new life into the National Anthem.
“I worked my heart out. Every note required great effort,” he said.
Lee said the new arrangement makes the National Anthem sound more lively and theatrical.
More than 200 musicians selected from private and public music ensembles and orchestras will play the piece at the New Year’s Day flag-raising ceremony, Sheng said.
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