2009 Summer Deaflympics language to express the message of "Power in Me," Lai said. World-renowned deaf percussionist Evelyn Glennie has been invited to perform at the opening ceremony, as well as the local drumming group U-Theatre, and more than 80 children from schools for the hearing-impaired in Taipei and Taichung cities, according to Lai. The team from the People's Republic of China did not attend the opening ceremony. Neither side has officially given the reason, although most news sites are attributing it to the Dalai Lama's recent trip to Taiwan. The People's Republic of China had previously not attended the opening of the
Rainer Hersch in London with Denise Ham and in masterclasses at the Royal Academy of Music with János Fürst and George Hurst. He has conducted many orchestras around the world including The Philharmonia Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra and Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. Soloists who have participated in his comedy concerts include Alfred Brendel, Nicola Benedetti, Marc-André Hamelin, Paul Lewis and Dame Evelyn Glennie. Rainer Hersch is the grandson of the artist Eugen Hersch and the great-great-great grandson of the playwright Hermann Hersch. Born in the UK of a German father and English mother, Hersch