UNESCO has declared 2016 the international year for global understanding and Lucca’s UNESCO club is celebrating the four hundredth anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death with a recital by Hopkinson Smith, the world-famous American lutenist unanimously regarded as the finest interpreter of the sixteenth and seventeenth lute repertoire. The great American artist will perform on Wednesday, October 19th at 6 pm in the Auditorium del Suffragio dell’Istituto musicale L. Boccherini, thanks to the Boccherini Institute’s Directorate and Lucca’s UNESCO club. The program is rich with references to Shakespeare’s historical artistic context thanks to a selection of composers who lived in London during Shakespeare’s life and where, in some cases, there existed a direct personal and artistic relationship. Among these composers are John Dowland, Anthony Holborne and John Johnson. Shakespeare is also included in the UNESCO celebrations planned for 2016, and is annually remembered during  World Book Day. We are also grateful for the US Consulate’s sponsorship of its American lutenist.