The program of this year’s George Enescu International Festival has been announced

Over 4,000 artists will be present in Bucharest between August 24 and September 21, with a theme of Anniversaries / Celebrations.

At the first press conference for the 27th edition of the George Enescu International Festival, the artistic director, Maestro Cristian Măcelaru, presented the theme and development directions of the event, which has become a cultural brand of Romania.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of George Enescu’s death, providing an opportunity to highlight both the artistic legacy of the great composer and his profound impact on universal classical music. Over 4,000 artists from Romania and around the world will be in Bucharest for what promises to be the most “rich” edition of the festival to date: throughout 29 days, more than 95 concerts and performances will take place, organized into seven major series, catering to all classical music lovers.

The main concert program in Bucharest will include over 45 performances of George Enescu’s works, including the opera Oedipe, produced by the National Opera of Bucharest, directed by Stefano Poda. Internationally renowned musicians, such as Ionuț Pascu in the role of Oedipus, Ruxandra Donose as Jocasta, Ramona Zaharia as the Sphinx, Bogdan Baciu as Creon, and Paul Curievici or Vazgen Gazarian as Laius and the High Priest, will perform under the baton of conductor Tiberiu Soare. Symphonies, Romanian Rhapsodies, orchestral suites, the Concertante Symphony for cello and orchestra, the Ballad for violin and orchestra, and many other chamber, choral, and solo works will be performed by some of the world’s most prestigious orchestras.

This year’s edition brings, alongside Oedipe, another opera performed by the Valencia Orchestra, conducted by James Gaffigan, on the stage of the National Opera of Bucharest: L’Heure Espagnole by Maurice Ravel, celebrating the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth. Seven other operas in concert versions will be presented at the Palace Hall or the Romanian Athenaeum, as announced by Cristian Măcelaru, artistic director of the festival.

In addition to the well-known concert series at the Palace Hall, the Athenaeum Concerts, Midnight Concerts, Radio Hall Concerts, Auditorium Hall at the National Museum of Art Concerts, and the beloved family and children’s concert series at the Odeon Theatre, Maestro Cristian Măcelaru is proposing an innovative program for this anniversary edition, aimed especially at attracting a young audience, raised in the digital age, dominated by technology and images, but not necessarily familiar with classical music. The new series combining music and visual arts, JTI Immersive Experience, will take place at the MINA Museum on Thursday and Friday evenings at 8:00 p.m.

The 27th edition of the festival honors significant moments in the life, creation, and activity of great musicians, composers, and orchestras invited to Bucharest in 2025: alongside Enescu’s works, we will hear compositions by Dmitri Shostakovich (50 years after his death), Pierre Boulez (100 years since his birth), Maurice Ravel (150 years since his birth), and Arvo Pärt (90 years since his birth). Additionally, we celebrate 100 years since the birth of conductor Marin Constantin, 45 years since the founding of the Bremen Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, 100 years of activity for the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, 70 years since the founding of the Transylvania Philharmonic Orchestra in Cluj-Napoca, and more.

Present at the event, Mrs. Natalia Intotero, the Minister of Culture, assured that she would make every effort to ensure the necessary resources for this extraordinary undertaking:

“The George Enescu International Festival is much more than a simple artistic event; it is a symbol of Romanian cultural value, an opportunity to celebrate the legacy of a genius of classical music, George Enescu. Under the high patronage of the President of Romania and with the support of the Ministry of Culture, this festival has become an international reference point for artistic excellence. We support educational activities for students, pupils, and young artists through internships, masterclasses, and volunteering, strengthening the Festival’s role as a promoter of young talents and a model of the close connection between education and culture. Furthermore, it is a point of pride that the festival attracts visitors from all over the world, stimulating not only culture but also the national economy through tourism and increased revenue.”

The festival will be supported by the Ministry of Culture, which will remain committed to ensuring the continued promotion of Romanian culture internationally.

Cristina Uruc, interim manager of ARTEXIM, also presented organizational details and new approaches for this edition, announcing that Mrs. Gilda Lazăr is the new Communications Director for the George Enescu International Festival and Competition:

“I am excited to announce that this year’s edition of the Enescu Festival brings an extraordinary diversity, with over 80 ensembles from 28 countries, including symphonic orchestras, choirs, and chamber formations, which will perform in both Bucharest and across the country, prestigious international collaborations, and related events such as exhibitions dedicated to George Enescu and innovative virtual reality projects. ARTEXIM’s team will expand in the coming months to manage this impressive logistical effort. We are determined to continue attracting and inspiring a young audience through innovative initiatives such as immersive experiences and partnerships with contemporary artists.”

Photo credit: Andrei Gîndac

Maestro Cristian Măcelaru will conduct the opening concert of the festival, leading the “George Enescu” Philharmonic Orchestra from Bucharest. Among the invited artists for the 27th edition are conductors Keri-Lynn Wilson, Ustina Dubitsky, Marta Gardolińska, Daniele Gatti, Sir Andras Schiff, Ivan Fischer, Klaus Mäkelä, Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Daniel Harding, Giovanni Antonini, Paavo Järvi, Lahav Shani, Petr Popelka, Cristian Mandeal, Tarmo Peltokoski, Gabriel Bebeșelea, Constantin Grigore, Vasily Petrenko, Manfred Honeck, Gianandrea Noseda, pianists Rudolf Buchbinder, Martha Argerich, Jean Yves Thibaudet, Kirill Gerstein, Lucas & Arthur Jussen, Alexandra Dariescu, Leif Ove Andsnes, Alexandre Kantorow, Nelson Goerner, Daniel Ciobanu, Luiza Borac, Jan Lisiecki, violinists Anne-Sophie Mutter, Isabel Faust, Nemanja Radulović, Augustin Hadelich, Ioana Cristina Goicea, Alexandru Tomescu, Christian Tetzlaff, Daniel Lozakovich, cellists Kian Soltani, Sol Gabetta, Gautier Capuçon, Andrei Ioniță, Valentin Răduțiu, Marc Coppey, sopranos Asmik Grigorian, Pretty Yende, Kristine Opolais, Jennifer Holloway, Magdalena Kožená, Rachel Willis-Sørensen, mezzo-sopranos Judit Kutasi, Ruxandra Donose, Ramona Zaharia, tenors Benjamin Bernheim, Gerhard Siegel, Nikolai Schukoff, baritones Bogdan Baciu, Ionuț Pascu, basses Vazgen Gazaryan, Alastair Miles, Riccardo Novaro, Andreas Bauer Kanabas, and more.

Some of the most prestigious orchestras, choirs, and chamber ensembles have been invited to perform works dedicated to composer George Enescu, raising the artistic standards that the festival’s audience is accustomed to: Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra of London, National Academy of Santa Cecilia Orchestra, Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, WDR Symphony Orchestra from Cologne, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Dresden Staatskapelle, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Academy of Saint Martin in the Fields, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Mahler Chamber Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra, French National Orchestra, Il Giardino Armonico with NFM Choir from Wroclaw, Sinfonia Varsovia, Accademia Bizantina, Les Siècles, and the Intercontemporain Ensemble, Latvia Radio Choir, Estonia Chamber Choir, London Voices, Radio and Philharmonic Choirs, and George Enescu Philharmonic Choir, among others.

The development and promotion of young Romanian musicians and the laureates of the George Enescu International Competition, as well as their international collaboration, are two of the main goals of the Enescu Festival. Thus, the Romanian Youth Orchestra is invited to perform a concert alongside the renowned Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra under the baton of Manfred Honeck, as well as a standalone concert conducted by Christian Reif, both at the Palace Hall. The winners of the 2024 edition of the George Enescu International Competition will perform alongside international musicians and orchestras, such as the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra with Renaud Capuçon, the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Lahav Shani, and the Royal Camerata Orchestra led by Alex Amsel, who will participate in the conducting masterclass during the Enescu 2024 Competition.

The program will include international premieres and distinctive reinterpretations of milestone works from the universal repertoire. Additionally, exhibitions, lectures, and a symposium dedicated to George Enescu, with participation from musicologists, composers, students, and classical music lovers, will provide opportunities to explore new perspectives on his works and share recent research about the composer.

Subscriptions for the concert series will be available for sale on the www.eventim.ro platform, with individual tickets available from February 15, 2025.

The George Enescu International Festival takes place under the High Patronage of the President of Romania, being a cultural project funded by the Romanian Government through the Ministry of Culture and organized by ARTEXIM.

brandBucharestclassical musicCristian Macelarugeorge enescugeorge enescu international festivaloedipeRomania
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