Kurt Masur was the conductor of the Gewandhaus Orchestra from 1970 to 1996. During this period he led the highly traditional Gewandhaus Orchestra to unprecedented artistic heights which were recognised all over the world. The honorary citizen of Leipzig passed away at the age of 88 in the USA on 19 December 2015. Invitations to the memorial concert were issued by the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Foundation, the Gewandhaus and the city of Leipzig. German Federal President Joachim Gauck honoured Masur with a so-called silent visit to the memorial concert. Ken-David Masur made a short speech in which he looked back on the life and work of his father.
During the memorial concert Burkhard Jung, Mayor of Leipzig, presented the International Mendelssohn Prize to Tomoko Masur for her personal dedication in establishing Mendelssohn societies in Japan and America.
Conducted by Michael Sanderling, the Gewandhaus Orchestra played works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy and Steffen Schleiermacher, composers with whom Kurt Masur always enjoyed a close relationship. Between 1988 and 1992, Michael Sanderling was the solo cellist in the Gewandhaus Orchestra under the direction of Kurt Masur. The star violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, who performed countless times with Kurt Masur, was one of the closest musical partners of the conductor. In honour of the conductor, musicians from some of those orchestras where Kurt Masur held the position of Musical Director also played in this line-up: French National Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra and Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra.
The proceeds from the ticket sales were donated to the International Kurt Masur Institute. The guiding principles of the institute are Masur's permanent commitment to young people and his desire to promote dialogue through music. The institute is therefore planning to cooperate with the International Mendelssohn Academy at Mendelssohn House and hold seminars, courses and concerts in order to facilitate and promote worldwide exchanges and meetings between young musicians.