Condoleezza Rice plays piano at Buckingham Palace

[December 02, 2008]  LONDON (AP) -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice gave a piano recital for Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.

Rice performed music by Johannes Brahms and was accompanied by British Foreign Secretary David Miliband's wife, Louise, on violin, as well as three members of the London Symphony Orchestra.

The queen gave Rice an audio recording of the recital Monday night as a gift.

Rice is a classically trained pianist who had expressed a wish to play at the palace.

She was making her final trip to Britain before President-elect Barack Obama takes office next month. She was due Tuesday in Brussels for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers, and then planned to travel to India.

[Associated Press]

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