The Monaco Foundation Organises a “Concert for Peace” to Mark the Centenary of the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris

Zhang ZHANG, Leo ZHANG, Leopoldo GIANNOLA ©Nicolas VINCELET-CLERC

To celebrate the centenary of the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris (CIUP) — a renowned international residential and cultural campus in Paris hosting students and scholars from around the world — Ms Martine Garcia-Mascarenhas, Director of the Monaco Foundation, organised a “Concert for Peace” on Sunday 12 October at the Cité’s Maison Internationale.

As H.S.H. Prince Albert II stated in his address to the United Nations General Assembly on 25 September: “Peace is not a utopia, but an imperative necessity.” This conviction resonates particularly strongly at the CIUP, where for a hundred years young people from all over the world have lived and shared experiences together — a living testament to the enduring need for peace throughout the world.

This spirit of hope and determination was expressed through music, performed by Zhang Zhang, violinist and concertmaster of the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra from 2000 to 2024, and now soloist with the Royal Opera of Versailles. Recipient of the Jean-Pierre Bloch Prize awarded by LICRA to artists committed to peace and social progress, she received this distinction from Prince Albert II on 31 March 2022.

She was accompanied by Leopoldo Giannola on guitar and her brother, Leo Zhang, on cello — both actively involved in ZhangoMusiq, the NGO she founded in 2007. Together they performed a repertoire combining classical music and film scores, centred on the themes of peace and universality. This programme reflects the mission of her NGO, inspired by Monaco’s philanthropic tradition and dedicated to promoting music as a vehicle for dialogue and solidarity — values embodied and celebrated this year by the CIUP.

Nearly 500 guests — including dignitaries, academics and residents — attended this musical evening and applauded Zhang Zhang’s message: “What unites us is far stronger than what divides us.” A first for this unique institution, which each year hosts around 12,000 students and scholars of 150 nationalities — and more than 500,000 over the past century.

https://www.centenaire.ciup.fr/

https://zhangomusiq.org/zhangomusiq/