30 years of town twinning: Lord Mayor of Manchester signs the City of Chemnitz's Golden Book

"The connection between our two cities is no coincidence," said Lord Mayor Barbara Ludwig. "The fact that Chemnitz was compared to Manchester at the beginning of industrialisation was the highest seal of quality that could be awarded to an industrial city at the time."

Her counterpart Elaine Boyes also reminded the audience of the parallels in the cities' industrial history. "The conclusion of a town twinning agreement is more than a formal act. It's about friendly dialogue between people." This is another reason why she was pleased to be able to bring a piece of Manchester's music scene to Chemnitz for the Musikfest with the Blackley Band. The dialogue is alive in the cooperation in various projects of young people, in the cultural scene or in the exchange of industrial museums.

"I hope that there will always be people who keep the partnership between Chemnitz and Manchester alive and that our cities will have a good future together," said Lord Mayor Barbara Ludwig.

Guests at the reception in the town hall were the participants of the delegation from Manchester, which included Lord Mayor Elaine Boyes, her companions Lady Mayoress Linda Geoghegan and Paul Hyde, Adjutant to the Lord Mayor of Manchester. The reception was also attended by the Mayor of Chemnitz and representatives of Chemnitz City Council, as well as members of the German-British Society in Chemnitz. Musicians from other twin cities were also guests.

The guests from Manchester had the perfect setting for the celebration of the town twinning: they travelled to the 5th German Music Festival, as the programme of the host city also includes many concert encounters with musicians from Chemnitz's twin cities (PM 219 from 30.04.2013 - www.chemnitz.de): The Blackley Band from Manchester in the UK will be performing at the music festival in Chemnitz.

One of the highlights of the programme was undoubtedly the joint concert by the bands and orchestras from Chemnitz's twin cities: These included the jazz band from the University of Akron under the direction of Prof Jack Schantz, the Lodz Youth Wind Orchestra, the Blackley Band from Manchester, the jazz band from the Musikverein St. Bartholomew from Mulhouse, the folklore ensemble from Taiyuan, Pekko Käppi and group from Tampere, the wind orchestra Mladà Dechovka from Usti nad Labem and the folklore group "Lasorewyie Sori" from Volgograd. They put the audience in a swinging mood at the Chemnitz market on Saturday afternoon.

Chemnitz was once again transformed into a magnet for music lovers on the Saturday of the music festival: the city centre was full of people who lingered in front of the stages, listened to the numerous open-air concerts and made musical discoveries.

Programme highlights on Sunday, 12 May

10.00 a.m. - Ecumenical festive service of the Chemnitz parishes with the Saxon Trombone Mass and the St. Petri Castle Choir

St Peter's Church - Stage 19

10.00 a.m. - Prizewinners' gala of the competitions and award ceremonies

Stadthalle, Great Hall - Stage 1

11.00 a.m. - Concert by folklore group Cossacks from the Russian twin city of Volgograd

Sound Mile Jakobiplatz - Stage 29

13.00 - Concert Chinese folklore group from the Chinese twin city Taiyuan

Düsseldorfer Platz - Stage 14

14.00 - Joint concert of the participants of the 5. Speeches by the Prime Minister of Saxony, Stanislaw Tillich, the Mayor of Chemnitz, Barbara Ludwig, and the President of the BDMV, Siegfried Kauder - followed by the grand parade along the Straße der Nationen towards the market square.

6.00 pm - Closing concert "Thank you Chemnitz" - See you in 2019 - Concert with the Zwickau Youth Wind Orchestra

Main stage Brückenstraße - Stage 12

Accessibility Press Office German Music Festival

In addition to the "Klingende BDMV" exhibition, the press office for the four days of the festival can also be found in the Chemnitz City Hall. The Bundesvereinigung deutscher Musikverbände e. V. (BDMV) and the city will be on hand to answer questions from media representatives. The press office will be open from 9am. A press lounge will be set up in the Salon am Tropenhaus, where media representatives can obtain accreditation, ask questions and work.

Questions about the programme will be answered by the BDMV as the organiser, who can be contacted during the four days on 0371 4508762 and by email at presse(at)deutsches-musikfest.de.

The press office of the city of Chemnitz will answer questions about the music festival on all four days on 0371 4508740 and by e-mail pressestelle(at)stadt-chemnitz.de.

To the 5th German Music Festival

The 5th German Music Festival will take place in Chemnitz from 9 to 12 May 2013. Around 15,000 musicians and an estimated 150,000 visitors from all over Germany and its neighbouring countries are expected to attend Germany's largest music festival. The organiser of the German Music Festival, the Bundesvereinigung Deutscher Musikverbände e.V., together with the Sächsischer Blasmusikverband e. V. and the city of Chemnitz, will present a rich programme of concerts, musical competitions, lectures and symposia with renowned lecturers and speakers throughout the city centre. The 5th German Music Festival is supported by the Ostdeutsche Sparkassenstiftung together with the Sparkasse Chemnitz, the federal government, the Free State of Saxony, the Kulturstiftung des Freistaates Sachsen, Verbundnetz Gas and eins energie sachsen.