Rick Steves' Europe: A Symphonic Journey [60 words]
Usually you'll find Rick Steves touring the great destinations of Europe. Now you can join him on a different journey: a Symphonic Journey. In this unique one-hour special, Rick Steves teams up with the talented Cascade Symphony Orchestra. The result is a performance that combines Europe's most stirring Romantic-era anthems with beautiful high-definition cinematography and Rick's insights into European history.

Rick Steves' Europe: A Symphonic Journey [140 words]
Rick Steves, America's leading authority on European travel, teams up with the Cascade Symphony Orchestra and maestro Michael Miropolsky for a musical journey that begins in the United States, and touches down in seven different European countries. The special, taped at the Edmonds Center for the Arts near Seattle, celebrates music's power to stir the patriotic soul. Playing musical tour guide, Steves utilizes his extensive knowledge of European history and culture to help set the context for each piece. Then, the orchestra performs a selection of stirring 19th-century anthems by Romantic-era composers, including Grieg, Smetana, Strauss, Berlioz, Elgar, Wagner, and Verdi. Each selection honors a particular nationality, while the finale, Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" (Europe's official anthem) pays homage to the continent's motto of "United in Diversity." The music is accompanied by a montage of evocative video images from each country.

Click on the images to view the full-sized JPGs. Right-click on the download link to save the image. The graphic title at the end is an EPS file that can be scaled.