1. St. Petersburg composer Olga Petrova came to Boston to present her music at the Boston University School for the Arts Composers’ Forum on February 15;  her cantata for Soprano, Flute, guitar and string orchestra will be performed by the ALEA III on February 19.  Ms. Petrova was the first Russian woman composer to visit the School.  It certainly brought some new issues to the discussions on the profession of teaching composition in the former Soviet Union and today’s Russia.  Ms. Petrova has also appeared for lectures and master-classes at Boston Conservatory, Lesley College, and the Longy School of Music.
  2. St. Petersburg composer Alexander Mnatsakanyan (Chairman of the Composition Department of the St. Petersburg Conservatory) visited Boston University for a master-class in composition (February 22) and for performances of his Symphony No. 2 at the Harvard Paine Hall on February 20, String Quartets Nos. 1 and 2 on February 21 at the Longy School of Music.
  3. During the last week of May 2000, musicians from Boston University were in St. Petersburg on the trip sponsored by the Trust for Mutual Understanding. The “Boston Days in St. Petersburg” included:  lectures by Marjorie Merryman, Bruce MacCombie, and Richard Cornell, a master class by Phyllis Hoffman, several recruiting sessions, and the concert of the XXXVI International Festival "Musical Spring in St. Petersburg".  The business schedule contained several meetings with the Consul General of the United States of America in St. Petersburg Mr. Paul Smith and Mr. Thomas Leary, Consul for Press and Culture, as well as the Conservatory officials.