The Helsinki Festival at the end of August and beginning of September has a rich and varied programme painted with a broad brush. It aims to maintain its status as the biggest Finnish festival in terms of audience figures. The Helsinki Festival has six programme units: classical music, the Huvila Festival Tent, dance and theatre, visual arts and cinema, a Children’s Festival, and city events. This year’s programme will be introducing some new attractions, such as a free concert (The Lord Mayor’s Popular Concert) in Senate Square, and a Can you Festival? event for young people during the first weekend. Children will have a whole festival of their own, and they and their families will in other respects be remembered in many ways. The leading international guest artists for this year will include conductor Christoph Eschenbach, the Mosaïques Quartet, violinist Gidon Kremer, singers Matthias Goerne and Marjana Lipovsek, jazz guitarist John Scofield, director Frank Castorf and the Volksbühne Theatre am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz from Berlin, and sculptor Anish Kapoor. This year will mark the 50th anniversary of the start of the Sibelius Weeks, predecessor of the Helsinki Festival. Details of the Festival are available at www.helsinkifestival.fi The dates of the 2001 Helsinki Festival are August 24—September 9. Further information: Marja Istala, Press Officer, tel. +358 9 6126 5132, e-mail: istala@helsinkifestival.fi The Helsinki Festival is an arts festival held annually in late August—early September. It covers music, theatre, dance, visual arts, cinema and city events and features top Finnish and international artists. The Helsinki Festival is sponsored by the following in 2001—2003 Main sponsors: Elisa Communications, Finnair, Helsingin Sanomat, Hewlett-Packard and Okobank Group. Project sponsors: Accenture and Taloussanomat. Product sponsors: Budget Rent a Car, EiriPrint, Erikoispaino, JCDecaux, Kaisaniemen Dynamo and Radio Helsinki 95,2 MHz.