Rick Garson, chief curator of "Global Harmony" concert series, gives a speech at a press conference for the event in Beijing, July 8, 2008. [Photo: ent.sina.com.cn]

The world's top operatic singers are gearing up to make the Olympic host city of Beijing not only a Mecca for sports fans, but also a music hotspot.

Italian mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli, American soprano Renee Fleming, and Italian tenor Salvatore Licitra are among nine musicians due to perform in Beijing during the Olympics for the "Global Harmony" concert series, a press conference announced on Tuesday.

Rick Garson, chief curator of "Global Harmony," said he believed that the shows would offer a superb musical experience for people visiting Beijing during the Olympics.

The concerts will be held from August 7 to 17 in the Great Hall of the People and the Forbidden City Concert Hall. "The dates and the venues have been carefully selected to create a world-class cultural experience that seamlessly complements the Olympic sports events and their scheduling," said a press release on the event's Web site.

Other performers include sopranos Angela Gheorghiu and Sumi Jo, tenors Marcello Giordani, Ramon Vargas and Jonas Kaufmann, as well as baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky. Supporting them will be the China National Symphony Orchestra, led by world-renowned conductors Emmanuel Villaume and Nicola Luisotti.

Part of the concerts' proceeds will be used to help Sichuan earthquake survivors, the press conference said.

(CRI July 9,2008)