Romania’s George Enescu classical music festival has begun, one of Eastern Europe’s biggest musical events.
The festival takes place every other year throughout September, when Bucharest welcomes some of the world’s major orchestras and soloists in tribute to George Enescu. Some 3,500 musicians will take perform in dozens of concerts.
Enescu is considered Romania’s greatest composer, musician and conductor, he was born in 1881 and died in 1955. Three years later the first festival took place.
This year the 26th edition opened on Monday at Sala Palatului where one of the world’s greatest cellists, Frenchman Gautier Capucon was guest of honour.
He’s been playing under the direction of Romanian conductor Cristian Măcelaru, who is also the director of France’s National Orchestra.
Many concerts take place in the 19th century, neo-classical Romanian Athenaeum which was restored after decades of neglect under the dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was toppled in 1989.
The London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Simon Rattle, performed Mahler’s Ninth Symphony and will go on to stage Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie alongside Enescu’s Voix de la Nature in the second week.
In the first week the festival’s chairman Zubin Mehta will conduct Verdi’s opera Otello in a concert with the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, and in the second week he will conduct Mahler’s Second Symphony.
The festival will run in Bucharest until September 24th.
