Minister of Culture, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

Good evening.

I am delighted to join you here tonight, coming straight from the Great Hall of the People to this concert hall in the magnificent Forbidden City.

A visit to China is truly a great experience. I am happy that I am joined by my wife, and also by members of my government and a large and prominent delegation.

Our hope and ambition is to promote political and economic cooperation between our countries. Yet, vital is also people-to-people contact and cultural exchanges. In short, I visit your country to strengthen the human dimension in our relationship.

Music is a most natural expression of our common human emotions. It is a true bridge to friendship between peoples and nations.

Music is a language that everybody across national boundaries understands.

Culture and history have enriched us with a wealth of diversity in musical expressions. Today, old and new forms of expression stand side by side.

Our concert this evening reflects the rich layers of the cultures of the past, the present and indeed the future.

It is a pleasure to attend this musical celebration of friendship between our two countries, presented by Norsk Hydro and supported by so many other friends of Norwegian-Chinese cooperation.

Tonight’s programme represents a new high-technology dimension in the musical communication and contact between our two countries.

It is online – a technology that will facilitate and promote our cultural exchange.

I will in this context pay tribute to the Chinese government for enacting a new law on copyright last year. This will be important to our work to expand trade and, indeed, cultural relations.

Artspages is a flourishing Norwegian-Chinese cooperation that will make music from our two countries available on the Internet.

I am therefore pleased to push the Artspages button.(trykker på knappen)

My congratulations and good luck!

Thank you.