World-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma (馬友友) is next month to give his first live performance since February in Taipei, after health authorities approved a shortened quarantine plan for the musician, organizers said on Friday.
Ma was originally to perform in Taiwan in March as part of “The Bach Project” tour he started in August 2018, but his visit was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He is to begin his tour with a solo performance at the Taipei Music Center on Nov. 10, local promoter Management of New Arts (MNA) said after the government approved a seven-day quarantine period for the virtuoso.
While the majority of people entering Taiwan must quarantine for 14 days, business travelers from territories deemed to be at lower risk of COVID-19 can apply for a shortened quarantine of five to seven days.
Applicants must present on arrival proof of a negative test for COVID-19 performed within three days before their departure, and be tested again at the end of the quarantine period.
Ma would also be required to engage in “self-health management” — wearing a mask when needed and checking his temperature daily — for seven days before he arrives in Taiwan on Nov. 2 on a chartered flight.
According to his Web site, Ma aimed to explore “how culture connects us” during the 36-city tour across six continents by performing Johann Sebastian Bach’s six suites for solo cello.
The tour was disrupted after Ma performed in Dakar on Feb. 25, and the rearranged performance in Taipei would be his first since then, MNA said.
Following his recital in Taipei, British pianist Kathryn Stott is to join Ma for four performances across Taiwan.
They are to perform at the Tainan Cultural Center on Nov. 11, National Taichung Theater on Nov. 13, National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts on Nov. 14 and National Concert Hall in Taipei on Nov. 15, the promoter said.
A total lunar eclipse coinciding with the Lantern Festival on March 3 would be Taiwan’s most notable celestial event this year, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said, urging skywatchers not to miss it. There would be four eclipses worldwide this year — two solar eclipses and two lunar eclipses — the museum’s Web site says. Taiwan would be able to observe one of the lunar eclipses in its entirety on March 3. The eclipse would be visible as the moon rises at 5:50pm, already partly shaded by the Earth’s shadow, the museum said. It would peak at about 7:30pm, when the moon would
A New York-based NGO has launched a global initiative to rename the nation’s overseas missions, most of which operate under the name "Taipei," to "Taiwan Representative Office (TRO)," according to a news release. Ming Chiang (江明信), CEO of Hello Taiwan, announced the campaign at a news conference in Berlin on Monday, coinciding with the World Forum held from Monday through Wednesday, the institution stated in the release. Speaking at the event, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Huang Jie (黃捷) said she believed this renaming campaign would enable the international community to see Taiwan
DEFENSE: The US should cancel the US visas or green cards of relatives of KMT and TPP lawmakers who have been blocking the budget, Grant Newsham said A retired US Marine Corps officer has suggested canceling the US green cards and visas of relatives of opposition Taiwanese lawmakers who have been stalling the review of a proposed NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.7 billion) special defense budget. The Executive Yuan has proposed the budget for major weapons purchases over eight years, from this year to 2033. However, opposition lawmakers have refused to review the proposal, demanding that President William Lai (賴清德) first appear before the Legislative Yuan to answer questions about the proposed budget. On Thursday last week, 37 bipartisan US lawmakers sent a letter to Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), the heads
TOO DANGEROUS: The families agreed to suspend crewed recovery efforts that could put rescuers in danger from volcanic gases and unstable terrain The bodies of two Taiwanese tourists and a Japanese pilot have been located inside a volcanic crater, Japanese authorities said yesterday, nearly a month after a sightseeing helicopter crashed during a flight over southwestern Japan. Drone footage taken at the site showed three bodies near the wreckage of the aircraft inside a crater on Mount Aso in Kumamoto Prefecture, police and fire officials said. The helicopter went missing on Jan. 20 and was later found on a steep slope inside the Nakadake No. 1 Crater, about 50m below the rim. Authorities said that conditions at the site made survival highly unlikely, and ruled
RSS