The Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation has granted a donation for starting the operations of the Friends of the Sibelius Academy fund-raising organisation in the United States.

The aim of the non-profit organisation is to raise funds for Sibelius Academy’s joint projects between Finnish and U.S. music schools, orchestras and other art establishments. Its operations include student and teacher exchange programs, research and development projects and joint artistic and cultural export projects.

The first joint projects have already been implemented with the Juilliard School of Music, New York University and the New York Philharmonics.

The official start of the organisation was celebrated by a concert by the Sibelius Academy Symphony Orchestra, led by Esa-Pekka Salonen. The concert was arranged in Los Angeles in October 2007.

The donation sum is EUR 40,000.

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