On Sunday, 14 October, Riga Technical University (RTU) celebrated its 150th anniversary at Arena Riga with «Keep Creating!» - an extensive performance full with a great variety of music, art and technology.
The audience enjoyed performances of violinist Baiba Skride, pianist Vestards Šimkus, singer Intars Busulis, opera singer Inga Kalna, guitarist Kaspars Zemītis, the Latvian National symphony orchestra conducted by maestro Aleksandrs Viļumainis, actor Arturs Skrastiņš, RTU choirs «Gaudeamus» and «Delta», folk dance ensembles «Vektors» and «Dancis» among other artists. The grand performance gathered an audience of 6000 people.
By combining music, art and the unique video projections of Roberts Rubīns, the performance «Keep Creating!», staged in honor of this significant anniversary, created a technological parade which took the audience through the greatest scientific achievements and historical highlights of RTU throughout the centuries. The combined performance of the orchestra and dance groups reenacted various historical episodes of RTU, such as the foundation of the higher school, the wartime and the soviet era. The video projections, in their turn, evoked vivid memories for those having graduated the university during the Riga Polytechnical Institute era and provided an insight into the current activities of RTU students and researchers.
Beside watching fabulous performances the audience could engage into singing the student anthem «Gaudeamus» and «Tika tā» («Only This Way») - a song by the legendary band Liepājas Brāļi, during the performance of which the most experienced RTU academic staff members and students were honored.
RTU is thanking all the production staff of «Keep Creating!» - staging director Jānis Siliņš, stage designer Aigars Ozoliņš, musical director Juris Vaivods and producer Leonarda Ķestere as well as all the creative staff in charge of ensuring a smooth run of the grand performance.
The anniversary celebrations of the oldest technical university in the Baltics were attended by RTU graduates, students, staff, partners and friends.
RTU (then – Riga Polytechnical Higher School) is the first higher educational establishment in the territory of present-day Latvia and is the oldest technical university in the Baltics, established on 14 October 1862. Some of its most notable graduates are the Latvian-born Nobel Prize laureate Wilhelm Ostwald, the legendary Mayor of Riga George Armitstead, the President of Latvia Andris Bērziņš, Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis and many other people who have earned their name in science and society. Currently RTU has approximately 15 000 students studying at 8 faculties and is the centre of technical and engineering education in Latvia offering a variety of possibilities for acquiring higher education and provides a well thought-out research development basis, which consists of 30 laboratories and centres, 33 research institutes and 103 departments and professional divisions.
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