Enescu Festival, 2025: Exceptional Concerts at the Romanian Athenaeum

Enescu Festival, 2025 Edition

The iconic Romanian Athenaeum, renowned for its extraordinary acoustics, will once again host two major concert series as part of the George Enescu International Festival: the Athenaeum Concert Series (Afternoon Concerts) and the Midnight Concert Series. Subscriptions are available for purchase on the Eventim.ro platform.

The Athenaeum Concert Series

This series includes 28 concerts, featuring masterpieces by renowned composers of world classical music, performed by symphony orchestras, chamber ensembles, and soloists from the most prestigious international stages. Scheduled at 5:00 PM (Monday–Thursday) and 4:30 PM (Friday–Sunday), these concerts will feature performances by:

• The Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, the Basel Chamber Orchestra, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, the Orchestra of The Age of Enlightenment, the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and Les Ambassadeurs – La Grande Écurie.
• Chamber Choir of Namur, Latvian Radio Choir (performing in Romania for the first time), Les Siècles, Belcea Quartet, Leonkoro Quartet, Arcadia Quartet, the Romanian Radio National Orchestra, the “George Enescu” Philharmonic Orchestra, the Radio Chamber Orchestra, the National Chamber Orchestra of Moldova, the “Transylvania” State Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir from Cluj-Napoca (celebrating 70 years), and the Moldova Philharmonic Orchestra from Iași.

Distinguished international conductors will take the podium, including Charles Dutoit, Lahav Shani, Kazuki Yamada, Gianandrea Noseda, Sigvards Kļava, Cristian Mandeal, Pierre Bleuse, Franck Ollu, Ustina Dubitsky, Emmanuel Resche-Caserta, Arnaud Arbet, Gabriel Bebeșelea, Maxim Emelyanychev, Cristian Florea, Emmanuel Tjeknavorian, and more.

Performing under their direction will be world-renowned soloists:

• Violinists: Augustin Hadelich, Isabelle Faust, Ilian Gârneț, Simone Lamsma, Daniel Lozakovich, Valentin Șerban, and Hyeonjeong Lee (Enescu Competition winners).
• Cellist: Sol Gabetta.
• Pianists: Nelson Goerner, Daniel Ciobanu.
• Percussionist: Colin Currie.
• Organist: Vlad Vișenescu.
• Violist: Răzvan Popovici.
• Sopranos: Sarah Aristidou, Pretty Yende, Lucy Crowe.

Additionally, Renaud Capuçon, David Grimal, Jan Lisiecki, and Sir András Schiff will appear both as soloists and conductors, offering audiences a “play-conduct” experience with the orchestras they lead.

Violinist Christian Tetzlaff and pianist Leif Ove Andsnes will perform a chamber recital, featuring works by Mozart, Brahms, and Ravel, as well as a world premiere by South Korean composer Donghoon Shin.

The final afternoon recital at the Romanian Athenaeum will be performed by the renowned Austrian pianist Rudolf Buchbinder.

Cristian Mandeal will conduct the “Transylvania” Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir, with soloists Lucy Crowe, Jess Dandy, Benjamin Hulett, and Alastair Miles, in a performance of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis, a masterpiece combining spiritual depth and symphonic grandeur.

The Athenaeum Concert Series will also include two opera-in-concert performances:

1. Dardanus (1774 version) by Jean-Philippe Rameau, performed by Les Ambassadeurs – La Grande Écurie and the Chamber Choir of Namur, conducted by Emmanuel Resche-Caserta, with soloists Reinoud van Mechelen, Emmanuelle de Negri, Edwin Fardini, and Stephan Macleod.
2. Endgame by György Kurtág, featuring the “George Enescu” Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Arnaud Arbet, with Frode Olsen, Leigh Melrose, Hilary Summers, and Leonardo Cortellazzi.

On Thursday, September 11, 2025, at 5:00 PM, the groundbreaking performance Breaking Bach will blend Bach’s music with hip-hop, in a unique collaboration between choreographer Kim Brandstrup and the Orchestra of The Age of Enlightenment.

The Midnight Concert Series

Taking place on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights at 10:30 PM, this 11-concert series will explore a variety of styles and periods, from Renaissance and Baroque music to Italian folk traditions and improvisational performances.

Highlights include:

• Sinfonia Varsovia and the Preludiu Chamber Choir – Voicu Enăchescu, performing Zbigniew Preisner’s Requiem for My Friend, dedicated to director Krzysztof Kieślowski (August 29, 2025).
• Royal Camerata, conducted by Alex Amsel, presenting Enescu’s Third Suite (August 30, 2025).
• Pianist Evgeny Konnov, 2024 Enescu Competition winner, performing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor (August 30, 2025).
• Soprano Asmik Grigorian and pianist Lukas Geniušas, performing works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Enescu, and Ravel (August 31, 2025).
• Accademia Bizantina, led by Ottavio Dantone, presenting two Baroque concerts (September 5–6, 2025).
• O/Modernt Chamber Orchestra, with percussionist Evelyn Glennie, presenting a fusion program blending medieval, Baroque, minimalist, and Nirvana (September 7, 2025).
• Mandolinist Avi Avital and Between Worlds Ensemble, performing Southern Italian folk music (September 12, 2025).
• Conductor Giovanni Antonini leading Il Giardino Armonico and the NFM Choir of Wrocław in Mozart and Beethoven (September 13, 2025).
• Violinist Mihaela Martin performing Barber’s Violin Concerto with the Berlin Academy of American Music (September 14, 2025).
• Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, led by Tõnu Kaljuste, performing works by Bach, Pärt, Rachmaninoff, and Enescu’s Waldgesang (September 19, 2025).
• The series will conclude with harpsichordist Skip Sempé’s first-ever performance in Romania (September 20, 2025).

Tickets & Subscriptions

Subscriptions for these concert series are available until Friday, February 14, 2025, at midnight:

• Athenaeum Concert Series (28 concerts):
  • Category I: 5,390 lei
  • Category II: 4,290 lei (Discount: 2,755 lei for students, pupils, and pensioners).
• Midnight Concert Series (11 concerts):
  • Category I: 2,300 lei
  • Category II: 1,850 lei (Discount: 1,100 lei for students, pupils, and pensioners).

From February 15, 2025, at 12:00 PM, individual tickets will be available for purchase.

Tickets can be purchased via Eventim:
https://www.cts.eventim.ro/artist/festivalul-george-enescu