The third day of the George Enescu International Festival offered me two unforgettable musical encounters. By afternoon, at the Romanian Athenaeum’s “Concerts at the Athenaeum” series, I set out on a vibrant journey with the Chamber Orchestra of the Republic of Moldova under maestro Cristian Florea, featuring the young violin virtuoso Ilie Gârneț. That same evening, I was carried away by the Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra, led by its founder Keri-Lynn Wilson, with American soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen as soloist.

The year 2025 marked, for me, a joyous return to the spellbinding realm of classical music - whether symphonic, chamber or operatic - through encounters (and re-encounters) with some of the world’s greatest orchestras and most celebrated soloists. For nearly a month, they all converged in Bucharest under the vast artistic umbrella of the “George Enescu” International Festival. Once again at the festival’s artistic helm stood Maestro Cristian Măcelaru, who - together with the Artexim team - crafted an impressively ambitious program. For over three weeks, we basked in the transformation of Bucharest into a major capital of high art music.