Storied Tours… International has come to a close. Thank you!

25 Oct Storied Tours… International has come to a close. Thank you!

The second edition of Storied Tours… International has come to a close: five European cities, one language: music

Mezzosoprano Ruxandra Donose, sopranos Leontina Văduva, Iulia Isaev, Teodora Gheorghiu, and bass-baritone Sorin Coliban, accompanied by pianists Sergiu Tuhuțiu, Cătălin Răducanu, Diana Ionescu and Cristian Niculescu, performed for audiences from the Romanian diaspora.

The second edition of the Storied Tours… International project has come to a close after a series of five recitals held in London, Rome, Vienna, Paris and Berlin, which brought opera singers accompanied by pianists closer to audiences from the Romanian diaspora, which rediscovered their ties with Romania through music.

 At the end of the recitals, audience members spoke about the musicians, about their feeling of belonging, about the joy of an evening of Romanian music experience in an adopted country, about their gratitude at feeling they are noticed:

‘It’s moving to hear the Romanian language and Romanian music in the heart of London. Mezzosoprano Ruxandra Donose and pianist Sergiu Tuhuțiu make an extraordinary pair onstage. I cried when I heard the song People,’ said one audience member at the Romanian Cultural Institute London recital.

In Rome, an audience member confessed: ‘It was an evening when I felt that there was no longer any distance between ourselves and our home country. The music united us in a natural, simple, and profound way. And magnificent soprano Leontina Văduva and young pianist Cătălin Răducanu, oh, they filled my heart with yearning when they performed Whoever Loves and Abandons, in such a unique way. I’ve never heard it played like that before.’

 In Vienna, at the house where Mozart once lived, a symbol of the Austrian capital, a Romanian woman lauded ‘the professionalism and sincerity of baritone Sorin Coliban and pianist Diana Ionescu.’

 In the heart of Paris, at the Behague Palace, home to the Romanian Embassy, a Romanian sitting in the first row commented on the sheer emotion conveyed by soprano Teodora Gheorghiu, who was accompanied by pianist Diana Ionescu: ‘The audience listened in full silence, as if not to miss a single breath of the performance.

 ‘In Berlin, a Romanian attending with two Austrian friends, summed up the evening’s atmosphere: ‘I came to the concert out of a deep feeling for the Romanian language and I left with a deep feeling for people. This is what this project does in bringing artists to play for us in every country: it reminds us that we are all people.’

In the five concerts held at the Romanian Cultural Institute in London, Accademia di Romania in Rome, the Mozarthaus in Vienna, the Romanian Embassy in Paris, and the Romanian Embassy in Berlin, audiences were overjoyed to meet mezzosoprano Ruxandra Donose, sopranos Leontina Văduva, Iulia Isaev and Teodora Gheorghiu, and bass-baritone Sorin Coliban, accompanied by pianists Sergiu Tuhuțiu, Cătălin Răducanu, Diana Ionescu and Cristian Niculescu.

This year’s edition, sponsored by the Department for Romanians Internationally, carried on the task begun in 2024: that of bringing Romanians abroad closer to the Romanian and universal musical heritage through performances by musicians with major international careers. The repertoire, made up of opera arias, lieder, ballads, chansons, and canzonettas, was a musical odyssey ranging from historical roots to the present and between Romanian culture and the European continent in which that culture lives on through its artists.

Artists’ Testimonials

Mezzosoprano Ruxandra Donose, after the London concert, ‘For me, to sing among Romanians living abroad is a way of returning home, wherever I might be. The emotion of the London audience reminded me of how strong is our connection through music.’

Soprano Leontina Văduva, after the Rome recital: ‘Romanian diaspora audiences have a special sensibility. It is a joy and a responsibility to bring to them a part of home through music. I was overjoyed to sing here in Rome, a place where, well may you laugh, I’m actually performing for the first time in my career.’

 Soprano Iulia Isaev, in Berlin: ‘I was so happy to receive the invitation to take part in this wonderful project, because I believe that our Romanians from the diaspora deserve a lot. And I also know how overwhelming homesickness can be. This is why we are here, my accompanist Cristian Niculescu and I, in order to give them the gift of emotion, joy, and being close to one another.’

 Bass-baritone Sorin Coliban, in Vienna: ‘I myself live in a different country than Romania, right here, in the capital of Austria. To me, Vienna is a city of musical resonances, but the emotion of performing for the Romanian community lends it a unique vibration, one that goes beyond the stage. Particularly since I am taking part in this project for the second time, which makes me enormously happy, and I hope we succeed in continuing it in years to come.’

 Soprano Teodora Gheorghiu, in Paris: ‘Every encounter with Romanian audiences abroad is a reminder of the fact that art has the power to rebuild bridges between places and people. I have sung very close to them and it’s as if every minute of the recital filled me with the joy I could see on their faces.’

The events also featured introductory lectures given by musicologist Oltea Șerban-Pârâu, the project’s creator, who provided audiences with an opportunity to discover the historical and aesthetic context of the repertoire being performed and the contributions of Romanian composers to the European musical heritage: ‘We are delighted that this project has now become a tradition and is eagerly awaited by Romanians in Europe’s capitals, we are delighted that we have reached five cities in this second edition, we are delighted that the Department for Romanians Internationally continues to support us. In all five cities we were privileged to have extremely warm audiences eager for such projects. Each recital ended in standing ovations, and all the audience members are enchanted with the way in which these great names of the Romanian operatic art have been able to transform every type of music by enriching it with their voices, their stage experience and all they have achieved over decades-long international careers.’

The Storied Tours… International project has been for both artists and audiences a means to reconnect with Romania and a reaffirmation of cultural identity through art.