A few years ago, I teamed up with Cascade Symphony to create Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey. In the hour-long special, we take a musical tour to seven different European countries.
In this clip from the special, we travel to the ruggedly beautiful west coast of Norway to hear the music of Edvard Grieg — a delightful soundtrack for the wonders of the fjords.
A few years ago, I teamed up with Cascade Symphony to create Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey, an hour-long special that explores Europe’s Romantic music.
This was the soundtrack of the Victorian Age, back when the sun never set upon the British Empire. And in this clip from the special, we travel to jolly olde England, where you’ll hear the grandeur and confidence behind Edward Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance.
Re-watching this clip, I remember the fun challenge of introducing each of these great works of patriotic music. I had to give each piece some historical and cultural context — just as all of our guides at Rick Steves’ Europe Tours endeavor to prepare our tour members to find both meaning and joy in new cultural experiences.
We did it! Rick Steves’ Europe travelers have met our goal of raising $500,000 to help empower Bread for the World to combat structural poverty and hunger.
2,123 of you gave $100 or more each, totaling $282,073. As promised, I matched the first $250,000. Together, we raised $532,073 to fight structural causes of hunger. All this money — 100% — was given to Bread for the World to advocate (as they so expertly do) in our halls of government for policies that help the hungry both at home and abroad. This is not “handouts for the lazy,” and it’s not “trickle down,” either. Good Americans, surrounded by a sea of abundance (and in the midst of what I see as a political storm of greed), struggle to simply feed their children. Our initiative is smart compassion in action.
Now let’s see if we can go beyond our goal! Please let your loved ones know about this timely challenge. You have until this Sunday to join us and get your thank-you gift — my European Christmas gift pack or the Rick Steves’ Europe Complete Collection DVD Box Set — before Christmas.
Giving in partnership with caring travelers like you makes my work even more gratifying. Thanks, happy holidays, and Merry Christmas to all.
Join me on a stirring little musical trip back to the days when Italy won its independence.
In this clip from Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey, we’ll see how, in the late 19th century, composers like Giuseppe Verdi partnered with freedom-lovers as Italy struggled heroically to unite and join the family of nations.
A few years ago, I teamed up with the Cascade Symphony to create Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey, an hour-long special that explores Europe’s most stirring Romantic-era anthems.
In this clip from the special, we drop in on the Czech Republic. As throughout Europe in the late 19th century, Czech nationalists and Romantics teamed up to celebrate their unique cultural heritage. Bedrich Smetana’s masterwork, “The Moldau,” is the unofficial anthem of the Czech Republic… and if you’re headed to Prague, you’re sure to hear it. Enjoy this little musical trip to Bohemia.