MUSIC Unites Jamaica Foundation (MUJF) will be celebrating the life and work of renowned German composer Ludwig van Beethoven with a virtual concert next Sunday, December 13 at 4:00 pm.

MUJF principal Rosina Christina Moder noted that celebrating local and internatonal artistes has been a hallmark of the foundation since its inception, and while nobody knows the exact day when Beethoven was born, his baptism was registered on December 17, 1770, in the small St Remigius Catholic Church in Bonn, Germany. In the tradition of the time, a baby was baptised three or four days after birth, therefore the concert will be around the time of his birth.

“This virtual concert will open with a special Beethoven tribute by young Jamaican pianist Alain Barrant, who will perform Beethoven’s famous For Elise. This programme will, at the same time, present original works by Jamaican composers who will personally introduce their composition as well as speak about what Ludwig van Beethoven means to each of them, “ said Moder.

“This virtual concert offers the opportunity to feature some of these Jamaican composers who live abroad, like Eleanor Alberga from the United Kingdom, Sharon Calcraft from Australia, and Ted Runcie from Taiwan. Furthermore, the programme will also include works by Paul Shaw and Andrew Marshall, who reside in the United States; and Peter Ashbourne, our Jamaican veteran; as well as Michael Sean Harris, who is the sort of ‘new kid on the block’ from Spanish Town,” she continued. In addition to the Jamaican composers several local instrumentalists and vocalists will be featured during this concert. This includes pianist Paul Shaw, head of the piano department at the School of Music at Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts; Stephen Shaw Naar, will present the world premiere of Peter Ashbourne’s Colon Man at Linstead Market, and soprano Carline Waugh will give a rendition of Ashbourne’s song, Fi Mi Love have Lion Heart.

Violinist extraordinaire Steven Woodham will open the concert with a solo fantasy filmed and recorded at the Chinese Garden, Hope Royal Botanical Gardens.

The event will be streamed on the foundation’s social media platforms on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, as well as on the local TV station Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica.