"We look forward to sharing our music with the residents of Shanghai and the many visitors to the World Expo," said Philadelphia Orchestra Executive Director and CEO Frank Slattery.

The world's prestigious orchestra, also one of the most-traveled American symphonic ensembles, will perform during the first week of the Expo on May 7 next year, at the Expo Performance Center which is under construction and will be able to accommodate 18,000 people.

"This occasion marks another step in the U.S. commitment to the Expo," said Shanghai Consul General Beatrice Camp, who Tuesday witnessed the signing ceremony of a memorandum between the orchestra and local Expo organizers on the future performance.

The Shanghai Expo Bureau Deputy Director General Huang said that Philadelphia Orchestra is a world-class organization which had a historic and friendly relationship with China.

Shanghai will be the last station of the 109-year-old Philadelphia Orchestra's 2010 tour of Asia, which will mark its 35th tour outside North America and 14th visit to Asia. Before Shanghai, the Orchestra will also visit Beijing China.

Thirty-six years ago in 1973, the Philadelphia Orchestra was the first U.S. orchestra to perform in China, at the special request of President Richard Nixon and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger as cultural ambassador in re-establishing U.S.'s bilateral ties with China.

(Xinhua News Agency September 9, 2009)