The Arvo Pärt Centre. Estonian composer Arvo Pärt is one of the most famous and successful contemporary composers from the countries around the Baltic Sea. The Arvo Pärt Centre was founded in 2010 by the composer and his family. The centre is home to the composer’s personal archive, but also works as an information and music centre, and is a meeting point for musicians, researchers and music-lovers – anyone who is interested in Arvo Pärt’s music and his artistic ideas and heritage. The goal of the centre is to create opportunities to preserve and explore the creative heritage of the composer in his mother tongue and home country, Estonia. The centre is in Laulasmaa, 35 kilometres from Tallinn, on a peninsula in magnificent nature, a pine forest with a view of the Baltic Sea.

The Black Diamond is a modern waterfront extension to the Royal Danish Library in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Black Diamond functions as a Cultural center for the Royal Library with literary events, theatrical performances and conferences. The facilities include a 600-seat auditorium, the Queen’s Hall, used for concerts—mainly chamber music and jazz—there are also exhibition spaces, a bookshop, a restaurant, a café and a roof terrace. Two museums are based in the Black Diamond, the National Museum of Photography and a small museum dedicated to cartoon art. Its quasi-official nickname is a reference to its polished black granite cladding and irregular angles.

Hanaholmen – Cultural Centre for Sweden and Finland, works to develop collaboration between the countries in all areas of society. Hanaholmen plans and organises different kinds of events, courses, seminars and projects, and evaluates various societal development needs. Hanaholmen is also a conference centre and hotel with a view of the Baltic Sea. Hanaholmen administrates four Nordic foundations, of which the biggest is the Swedish-Finnish Cultural Foundation. The Swedish-Finnish Cultural Foundation is also Hanaholmen’s mandator, which means that it’s ultimately responsible for Hanaholmen’s operations. The cultural centre at Hanaholmen was opened in 1975 by King Carl XVI Gustaf and president Urho Kekkonen. In 1967, Finland’s jubilee year, Sweden decided to remit 100 million SEK of wartime debt, and a return gift was required. The Finnish government decided to open a jointly administered cultural centre to develop collaboration between the two countries.

Just a bridge span from Old Town of Riga, on the left bank of the Daugava, looms an extraordinary, culturally significant edifice, the Castle of Light – the National Library of Latvia. The library building houses a modern information centre and ample space for cultural and social events, exhibitions, offering one and all multi-themed reading rooms and access to rare books and audio/video recordings besides the usual printed matter. The mission of the Library is to build and maintain a repository of national and international literary works, securing access to them for the general public. Over four million units are now located here, mostly Latvian and foreign publications about Latvia and Latvians but also rare handwritings, maps, music, films, newspapers and magazines. Opened in August of 2014, the striking edifice is the masterwork of the world-renowned Latvian architect Gunārs Birkerts (USA).

National Library of Lithuania in Vilnius is the country’s flagship library and host of regular public events and exhibitions. Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania is a national cultural institution open to all users, active in the areas of dissemination of information, culture, science and education, performing library activities and ensuring implementation of the national information policy falling within its competence. The mission is to be the Lithuanian space of knowledge creating value for the public.

Voksenåsen is Norway’s gift to Sweden for the humanitarian aid during World War II. The house is situated high above Oslo bordering to the recreational area Nordmarka, with views over the city and the Oslofjord. Voksenåsen is owned by the Swedish Ministry of Culture and offers a varied program ranging from literary events, concerts and the celebration of the Swedish midsummer, to courses in music, language and democracy for youth and young adults. Voksenåsen also holds a large collection of contemporary Norwegian and Swedish art, as well as a restaurant, accommodation, bar and a large patio overlooking all of Oslo and the surrounding area. Voksenåsen was opened in 1960.