The Shiga Prefectural Government will hold a concert featuring seven students from Shiga Prefectural Ishiyama High School, Music Course, at Joseph Haydn Private University in Burgenland on November 5 to promote friendship between the prefecture and the Austrian state. Students at the university will also be performing at the concert.

Exchanges between the prefecture and the state were inspired by a social media post in 2021, which pointed to the resemblance between the shape of Austria and that of Lake Biwa in the prefecture. Students from the high school and the university jointly performed at EXPO 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan.

The joint performance at the expo in July 2025

Image 1: https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M103190/202610278779/_prw_PI1fl_4SVoWfU0.jpg

Image 2: https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M103190/202610278779/_prw_PI2fl_1czNeZaI.jpg

About the concert in Burgenland

Date: Thursday, November 5, 2026, starting at 3 p.m.

Venue: Joseph Haydn Private University in Eisenstadt, Burgenland

Overview: A concert featuring seven students from Shiga Prefectural Ishiyama High School, Music Course, and those from Joseph Haydn Private University.

Overview of the visit: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/attach/202610278779-O1-0r6T9PjX.pdf

Background to the exchanges between the prefecture and the state

Shiga Prefecture is home to Lake Biwa, Japan’s largest lake, while the Austrian state of Burgenland is home to Lake Neusiedl, the biggest lake in the country. The prefecture and the state signed a memorandum of understanding in 2023 to promote exchanges between these regions by building on their shared features such as castles and ceramic arts.

Shiga and Burgenland sign a memorandum of understanding in November 2023: https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M103190/202610278779/_prw_PI3fl_5B7357gA.jpeg

Cycling trails named after each other

As part of their exchange program, Shiga and Burgenland have named their respective cycling trails after each other. Shiga Prefecture has a cycling trail called "Burgenland Road," while Burgenland has a trail named "Shiga Cherry Blossom Cycling Path."

A ceremony to unveil the commemorative sign of "Burgenland Road" in Shiga Prefecture in July 2025: https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M103190/202610278779/_prw_PI4fl_aIisP3IZ.jpg

A ceremony to unveil the commemorative sign of "Shiga Cherry Blossom Cycling Path" in Burgenland in April 2026: https://cdn.kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M103190/202610278779/_prw_PI5fl_4qgexxuE.jpg