Ten orchestras from Bucharest and five other cities in the country will perform in a dedicated series at this year’s Enescu Festival, the largest classical music event in the country.

The series will see the orchestras perform alongside Romanian and foreign soloists and guest conductors in a varied program, covering both Romantic and modern authors and contemporary music.

The concerts are scheduled to take place at Sala Radio, which previously hosted the festival series dedicated to contemporary music.

The public can see the Transilvania Philharmonic Orchestra of Cluj-Napoca, conducted by Jonathon Heyward, performing alongside pianist Andrei Gologan; the National Radio Orchestra, with conductor Francesco Lecce-Chong, pianist David Fray and clarinetist Emil Vişenescu; Banatul Philharmonic Orchestra of Timişoara, with conductor Martijn Dendievel and Arcadia Quartet; the Bucharest Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Delyana Lazarova, and accompanied by violinists Diana Moş and Vlad Stănculeasa; the orchestra of the Hungarian Opera of Cluj, led by Lawrence Foster, performing a program that includes Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande; Sibiu Philharmonic Orchestra with Roderick Cox conducting and violinist Ioana Cristina Goicea; Moldova Philharmonic Orchestra of Iaşi, conducted by Hankyeol Yoon and accompanied by pianist Florian Mitrea; George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra, with conductor Alexandre Bloch and pianist Alexandra Silocea; and Mihail Jora Philharmonic Orchestra of Bacău, conducted by Alan Buribayev, and accompanied by cellist Ştefan Cazacu.

“The Romanian Orchestras series was designed to showcase the characteristics of the guest orchestras, which, this year, tackle a varied repertoire, combining well-known works, such as Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony, Sibelius’s Second and Fifth symphonies, and Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande, with Romanian premieres. Cristian Măcelaru chose performance-works, and I’m thinking of Fazil Say’s Piano Concert, Adrian Pop’s Hore, and Dan Dediu’s Frenesia. We also welcome the public to the September 10th concert of Musica Ricercata ensemble at Odeon Theater,” Cristina Uruc, interim manager of Artexim, the festival’s organizer, said.

The festival takes place between August 27th and September 24th. This year, it reaches its 26th edition.

(Photo: Andrada Pavel, courtesy of Enescu Festival)

simona@romania-insider.com