Europa Nostra – the leading European heritage civil society organisation – granted its Medal of Honour to Plácido Domingo, world-renowned opera singer and conductor, who presided over Europa Nostra for a decade (2010-2020). This recognition honours both his exceptional service at the helm of the organisation and his immense dedication to promoting Europe’s cultural heritage.
Plácido Domingo received the Europa Nostra Medal of Honour on stage at the Gran Teatro all’Aperto Giacomo Puccini in Torre del Lago, Italy, at the end of his Gala concert held within the framework of this year’s Puccini Festival.
Reacting to this European recognition, Maestro Plácido Domingo stated: “I shall cherish the Europa Nostra Medal of Honour with deep gratitude, both as an artist and as a European citizen. With great expertise and incredible passion, Europa Nostra promotes our heritage, which lies at the very heart of our European identity. May Europe’s diverse cultural heritage, shaped by art and unique landscapes, inspire minds and hearts toward dialogue through its profound beauty. It fills me with deep emotion that I have received Europa Nostra’s recognition in Torre del Lago, at the Puccini Festival where I made my debut over half a century ago. Thank you, Europa Nostra!”
Prof. Dr. Hermann Parzinger, Europa Nostra’s Executive President, and Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, Secretary General of Europa Nostra, attended the Gala concert at Torre del Lago and presented Plácido Domingo with the Europa Nostra Medal of Honour.
Prof. Dr. Hermann Parzinger emphasised: “We are indebted to Maestro Domingo for all that he has done, as a committed leader acting in a voluntary capacity, to help raise the public profile of Europa Nostra’s mission and action. During the 10 years of his Presidency, we successfully promoted the multiple values of cultural heritage – tangible and intangible – for the future of Europe and its citizens and communities. Indeed, the unity in diversity of our Culture is Europe’s greatest asset. These crucial messages continue to be immensely relevant, now more than ever. Maestro Domingo’s legendary voice and his inspiring, generous and loyal support to Europa Nostra has been highly valued, by our large pan-European civic movement, and by the European Union Institutions, who are key partners and supporters of Europa Nostra’s activities. Together with his successor as President of Europa Nostra, Cecilia Bartoli, we are immensely grateful for his power of example.”
Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović highlighted: “We were thrilled to present our Medal of Honour to Maestro Domingo at such an important heritage site – Torre del Lago – which is closely related to the life and exceptional artistic opus of the iconic Italian and European composer Giacomo Puccini. Maestro Domingo is one of the greatest protagonists of the operas composed by Puccini and it is therefore very fitting to honour him on stage of the Gran Teatro all’Aperto Giacomo Puccini in Torre del Lago, for being such an influential ambassador of Europe’s cultural heritage. We are grateful to the Puccini Festival for providing such an exceptional setting for such a special occasion.”
Fabrizio Miracolo, President of the Puccini Festival, stated: “The Europa Nostra Medal of Honour, presented on the stage of the Gran Teatro Giacomo Puccini, symbolically brings together three great treasures of European culture: Puccini, Domingo and this unique place where the Maestro chose to live and create his music. Domingo belongs to the history of opera and to the history of Puccini, but above all he continues to remind us that culture knows no borders and that the heritage we have received from the past can truly live only if we are able to pass it on to future generations. It is precisely for all these reasons, and for what Plácido Domingo represents in the history of opera and in the interpretation of Puccini’s works, that we asked Maestro Domingo to become Artistic Director of the Puccini Academy. For the Puccini Festival Foundation, it is a great honour that Europa Nostra has chosen Torre del Lago for this recognition. It also confirms the path we intend to pursue: to make these places increasingly an international home for music, culture and the memory of Giacomo Puccini, open to Europe and to the world.”
During his mandate as President of Europa Nostra from 2010 to 2020, Plácido Domingo made an outstanding contribution to the promotion of the organisation’s mission and action, lending his legendary voice to the cause of Europe’s shared heritage and values. Plácido Domingo co-hosted annual high-profile European Heritage Awards Ceremonies, spotlighting the best heritage projects and champions from all over the continent, at iconic heritage sites in Amsterdam, Lisbon, Athens, Vienna, Madrid, Turku, Berlin and Paris, with the participation of thousands of people. During his presidency, among many other initiatives, Europa Nostra launched the 7 Most Endangered Programme, a civil society campaign to save Europe’s heritage in danger, and implemented the Cultural Heritage Counts for Europe cooperation project, which demonstrates the multiple benefits of heritage for Europe’s economy, society, culture and the environment. Europa Nostra also provided strong support to the major mobilisation to save Villa Viardot and the House of Bizet in Bougival, France, successfully led by Centre Européen de Musique, a member organisation of Europa Nostra.
