"Enescu 70" - in the Enescu Concerts Series

officelondon
Jun 4
3 min read

A Celebration of Voice, Myth, and Memory

Enescu's music only: myth meets melody, the past speaks in the voice of the eternal present!

A night to remember at the Romanian Cultural Institute in London, as we paid tribute to Romania’s greatest composer, George Enescu, marking seventy years since his passing.

Enescu 70 offered a rare and richly textured encounter with the visionary artist whose music seamlessly blended Romanian folk traditions with European modernism. In partnership with the National Opera of Bucharest/ Opera Națională București, the evening featured the celebrated baritone Ștefan Ignat, internationally acclaimed soprano Bianca Mărgean, tenor Liviu Indricău, and pianist Luminița Berariu. At the heart of the programme was Oedipe, Enescu’s monumental and only opera, brought to life through a recital led by Ștefan Ignat, who guided the audience through selected excerpts, enriched with contextual insights into Enescu’s music and themes.

The event was opened by RCI London Deputy Director Raluca Ioana Cimpoiasu, who highlighted the uniqueness of this Enescu-only programme within the Enescu Concerts Series and recalled the Royal Opera House’s landmark 2016 production of Oedipus, brought to life in collaboration with RCI London.

On display, a beautifully curated exhibition from the George Enescu National Museum showcased rare photos, archival documents, and portraits of the composer – tracing Oedipe’s journey from its 1936 Paris premiere to modern stages.

At the heart of this event was the monumental Oedipe, Enescu’s only opera – a myth retold through music of incandescent intensity. Baritone Ștefan Ignat, a legendary Oedipe who has sung the title role countless times, guided the audience through a sequence of selected excerpts, bridging performance and reflection in a unique concert/talk format. Each aria or monologue has been introduced in English, offering insight into Enescu’s compositional voice, thematic symbolism, and folkloric sources.

The evening has been further enriched by a specially curated exhibition from the George Enescu National Museum in Bucharest, displayed on the ground floor of the Institute. Rare photographs, archival treasures, and portraits of the composer chart the history of Oedipe from its 1936 Paris premiere to contemporary stagings.

George Enescu only programme:

Luminița Berariu – solo piano: Pavana from Suite No. 2, Op. 10

Bianca Mărgean – Estrene à Anne, Languir me fais..., Estrene de la rose, Present de couleur blanche, Changeons propos, from Sept Chansons text by Clément Marot

Liviu Indricău – Aux damoyselles paresseuses d’escrire à leurs amys, Du conflict en douleur from Sept Chansons text by Clément Marot

Selections from the opera Oedipe:

Ștefan Ignat – Where are they?; O, my child; Why do you tremble, my son?; From dawn till dawn; I know of a potion; The Sphinx’s Aria; Look, people of Thebes; But oh, what life awaits you; Farewell, sweet Antigone

Luminița Berariu – solo piano: Romanian Dance

Liviu Indricău – The Shepherd’s Flute Song, Theseus’s Aria

Bianca Mărgean – Antigone’s Aria

Marking seventy years since the passing of Romania’s greatest composer, Enescu 70 offers a rare and richly textured encounter with the work of George Enescu – a visionary artist whose music wove together Romanian folk heritage and the universal language of European modernism. This exquisite event, brought to London in partnership with the National Opera of Bucharest, presents the celebrated baritone Ștefan Ignat, together with the internationally acclaimed soprano Bianca Mărgean, tenor Liviu IndrIcău, and pianist Luminița Berariu.