Enescu Festival

Enescu (George) Festival

August and September (in odd-numbered years)

The George Enescu Festival is held in Bucharest, Romania, over three to four weeks in August and September in odd-numbered years. More than 3,000 musicians, many of them distinguished artists, take part in Romania's celebration of its only famous classical-music composer, George Enescu (1881-1955). In addition to an extensive program of concerts and recitals, prestigious competitions are held at the same time for composers, pianists, and violinists. The rest of the country joins in with related concerts in other parts of Romania.
In 1958, the then-communist regime in Romania launched the festival to honor an artist who had been driven out by their policies: Enescu had died in Paris just three years earlier. Concert venues are centered around Bucharest's Enescu Square and include the Sala Mare a Palatului (Palace Hall) and the Ateneul Roman (Romanian Atheneum), a neoclassical rotunda. Music lovers flock to the festival, whose ticket prices are far lower than many of its counterpart classical-music festivals in Europe.

CONTACTS:
Artexim
Calea Victoriei nr.155
corp D1, sc.8, et.2
sector 1
Bucharest 010073 Romania
www.festivalenescu.ro
Romanian National Tourist Office
14 E. 38th St., 12th Fl.
New York, NY 10016
212-545-8484; fax: 212-251-0429
www.romaniatourism.com