These spiritual musical events began in the Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore, one of the great symbols of religious liberty, and proceeded in Pilgrimage from the New World to the Old with successive concerts in Westminster Cathedral in London and Notre Dame in Paris, the Vatican, then onto the royal city of Toledo in Spain, and finally to the inevitable goal of all great pilgrimages-the Holy Land-for three events in Bethlehem, Nazareth and, lastly, Jerusalem.

In each city the concert was performed in the home Cathedral of the resident archbishop who presided over the event, inviting members of the other faith communities to join him in celebrating the new Millennium in the spirit of brotherhood which these events so deeply embody. His Holiness Pope John Paul II himself attended the special performance in the Vatican.

The musical work which His Holiness has wished to have performed on these important occasions is "The Creation" by Joseph Haydn, one of the greatest oratorios of western music, first performed in Vienna in 1798. This work has a special significance that made it worthy of His Holiness' approval for such an important series done under his aegis: it sets the first verses of the Book of Genesis, ending with the creation of Adam and Eve. This text is uniquely holy to all Christians, Jews and Muslims. In this way, the Pope's message of tolerance and fraternal love among adherents of these great religions could not be more clearly demonstrated.

The Pope entrusted this project to the artistic direction of Maestro Levine, whom America magazine has dubbed "The Pope's Maestro." For the last eleven years, since he first went to Krakow as Artistic Director and Conductor of the Krakow Philharmonic, Maestro Levine has had the privilege of working directly with the Pope in developing and conducting musical expressions of His Holiness' spiritual message of inclusion.

See photos from the concert in Baltimore