The Concert in Central Park attendees. Although rain fell throughout the day and continued until the start of the concert, an estimated 500,000 audience members made this the seventh-largest concert attendance in the United States in history. The stage backdrop depicted an urban rooftop with water tank and air outlet, symbolic of New York's skyline. At twilight, the backing band went onstage, followed by New York's mayor, Ed Koch, who announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, Simon and Garfunkel!" The duo entered through a side stage door, took center stage amid audience applause, looked at each other and shook hands, and began the concert with their 1968
The September Concert September Concert: More news coverage of The September Concert Video of September 2009 concerts around the world Haruko Smith, Founder and Chair, Taro Patrick Smith, Ph.D., Jacques d'Amboise, Robert Benezra, Ph.D., Milagros del Corral, Ph.D., John Daly Goodwin, Darryl Pottorf, Rebecca Seawright, Sundaram Tagore, Randy Wayne White Robert Rauschenberg Marisa Berenson, Christy Turlington Burns, John Campi, Tom Freston, Quincy Jones, Dorothy Lichtenstein, Milton Moskowitz, David Ng, Todd Oldham, Nancy Ploeger, Howard J. Rubenstein, Susan Rudin, William C. Rudin, Ravi Shankar, Steven Spinola, Scott M. Stringer, Dennis Swanson Camilla G. Hellman, Rosario Velasco Lino, Ludovica Rossi Purini, Mayo Shono, Koji Yoshikawa.