Plácido Domingo in Belgrade: “Cultural Heritage is the Goldmine of Serbia”

The President of Europa Nostra, Plácido Domingo, seized the occasion of his concert given on 8 December 2014 in Belgrade, the capital city of Serbia, to convey a special message to the government and citizens of Serbia.

“You are blessed with a beautiful and extremely rich cultural and natural heritage. Your culture and heritage are strategic resources for your future! Be proud of them but also take good care of them! Invest in them! Don’t allow short-term goals to prevail over the long-term aim of preserving those treasures for future generations! Always remember: the creative energy and the talent of the young generation – inspired and empowered by our shared cultural heritage – is the true gold mine of Serbia and a true engine for the sustainable development of your country,” said Plácido Domingo in a public statement exclusively published by Serbia’s leading daily newspaper Vecernje Novosti on 9 December 2014.

Plácido Domingo also met with the Mayor of Belgrade, Siniša Mali, with whom he, among others, spoke about the importance of culture and cultural heritage in Belgrade and the rest of Serbia.

After the concert, Plácido Domingo had an enthusiastic encounter with the delegation of Europa Nostra’s country representation in Serbia, led by Professor Irina Subotić, Vice-President of Europa Nostra and President of Europa Nostra Serbia, and by Višnja Kisić, Secretary General of Europa Nostra Serbia.

Last August, Plácido Domingo gave an exclusive and extended interview to Vecernje Novosti with a strong emphasis on his views as the President of Europa Nostra.

“The Europe we live in today is our amazing collective achievement if we compare it to Europe’s troubled past. Only together can we preserve peace in Europe and find the way of out of today’s deep crisis. This crisis is above all the crisis of values, the crisis of confidence. If we want Europe to prevail and to combat all sorts of skeptical and even destructive forces which are on the rise in Europe, we must re-discover and re-assert our cultural values”, he stated in this interview.

“We must also understand and embrace our multiple identities as a source of richness and not as a sign of weakness. I am equally proud to be a Spaniard and a European. Like you can be equally proud to be Serbs and Europeans. Our cultural heritage tells us this story of us, the Europeans, who have been interacting – since time immemorial –across generations and across frontiers. Culture and cultural heritage are indeed key assets for Europe. Our leaders should therefore give them a more central place in Europe’s policies and priorities,” advocated Plácido Domingo.