Do You Like Enescu?

I believe that more people would answer affirmatively at the end of such a sparkling festival as the 2011 Enescu Festival was.

Enescu did not write music with popularity potential, with the exception of his two rhapsodies. And yet, at the 20^th edition and after an existence of 52 years – in spite the fact many believe that the festival is 20 years old only – the “Enescu” Festival became a social phenomenon. Although there were just as many concerts as two years ago, the degree of participation in the paying audience was much larger, cashings scoring, at the same prices, up to 2.900.000 Lei, as compared to the 1.160.000 Lei cashings two years ago.

Festival Square. Foto: Virgil Oprina

This is no secret. The festival was promoted with more spectacular means than ever and reached all potential audience categories, from people who would only come to the festival, to professionals of the field.

It is difficult to make a selection and mark only some top events in the festival. But this starts with one certainty: unless Ioan Holender was the artistic director of this festival, we would have never had in this edition Barenboim, or Mehta, or Antonio Pappano and the list could go on. “For me personally, the connection comes from the fact that I've known mister Ioan Holender for many years and I am certain that it was due to his influence, as the festival's director, that me and my orchestra got invited in. I know many major orchestras come here, in this festival, and this means that we also belong here. However, I am very happy to be in your country for the first time. I have never been to Romania before and it is a major moment to us”, said Antonio Pappano.

Antonio Pappano. Foto: Virgil Oprina

The concert of Orchestra of the National Academy of St Cecilia of Rome, exceptionally conducted by Antonio Pappano was one of this edition's highlights, with the fantastic pianist Denis Matsuev delivering a Concerto No. 2 for Piano and Orchestra by Rachmaninov equally intensely romantic and surprising, followed by three encores rising thunders of applause in the audience.

Undoubtedly, piano performances dominated the current edition, either we're talking about the recital of famous Yundi or of Murray Perrahia, who has been coming for many years at the Enescu Festival along with Saint Martin in the Fields, or about Christian Zaccharias who seems to have gotten a sort of an addiction with the passionate audience in the Romanian Athenaeum, returning to Bucharest on every occasion, together with Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne.

As for the audience abroad, it is easy to notice the popularity of certain opuses, such as Enescu's Rhapsodies with the early ones in particular. These opuses probe their popularity virtues in the concert hall, which is understandable when we consider the folk inspiration (popular by excellence) of the musical material concerned, next to the spectacular orchestration, which corroborated with a good interpretative version raises the audience's enthusiasm anywhere, through the unsophisticated note of exuberance and Balkan exoticism. However, the effort of tackling more difficult opuses from the Enescu repertoire, and effort resumed this year by major orchestras of the world is again notable.

Denis Matsuev. Foto: Virgil Oprina

The open air concerts in the parking of the Romanian Athenaeum turned again the area of the city into what was called the “Enescu” Festival Square, probably giving the most representative cultural mix in the audience, which may illustrate the concept of the popular when it comes to classical music, whether we're talking about solo recitals, performed by a chamber ensemble, or by wide vocal-symphonic performances, that city area receiving with just as much joy jazz recitals or world music concerts.

A mixture of elements worthy of a thorough sociological study is to be found in this audience attracted by the harmonic sounds in classical repertory, by the environment and the atmosphere created around the stage in the true emotion exchange with musicians, and with the interpretative versions they give. This is to a certain extend a socially underprivileged audience, or at least marked by the ever more poignant touches of interrelational pragmatism specific to modern society in general. Free access plays also a major role in the mentality of the Romanian culture consumer, which adds to this freedom of movement not allowed conventionally in the concert or performance hall.

Daniel Barenboim. Foto: Virgil Oprina

A lot can be said about this year's “Enescu” Festival. It was wide, diverse, colourful; featuring VIPs, as well as quality music, but above all it was of impact. I believe that in the autumn of 2011 I will meet more people who would answer affirmatively to the question, “Do you like Enescu?”