Classical Meets Club Culture in New Enescu Series

The George Enescu International Festival 2025 extends beyond the traditional concert halls and brings, for the first time, classical music, reinterpreted and transformed, under the 'Enescu in Control' project, to the Control Club in Bucharest, CE Report quotes AGERPRES.

According to a press statement released on Tuesday, every Wednesday evening, from 22:00hrs, Club Control hosts concerts from the new 'Enescu in Control' series - events where international artists and top Romanian ensembles propose a different kind of musical experience - free, experimental, in dialogue with jazz, electronic music and contemporary percussion.

The 'Enescu in Control' project marks a first for the festival: an opening to a cultural space that, over the past 17 years, has become a landmark for alternative music in Romania. Control, a club recognised for its avant-garde concerts and for its role in developing strong independent musical voices in Bucharest, thus becomes the host of a unique chapter in the story of the Enescu Festival. In this space, classical music breaks free from the mould and comes to life in the rhythm of the city: the audience dances, applauds, lives every moment without conventional limitations, say the organiser.

"We felt it was time to bring classical music to a place where the meeting of genres can create bridges and revelations. The 'Enescu in Control' concert series is an invitation addressed to young people, but also to all those curious to discover how classical music can be reinvented and how it can enter into dialogue with the rhythms of the present. The Enescu Festival thus connects with the vibration of the city and with the new generations," Cristian Macelaru, the artistic director of the Enescu Festival, is quoted as saying in the press statement.

The 'Enescu in Control' series is said to transform every Wednesday evening into an absolute event, with a special atmosphere: at 22:00hrs, in the club's main hall, internationally recognised artists will propose spectacular reinterpretations of the great works from the classical repertoire, as well as their own compositions, improvisations or unexpected combinations.

The series debut on August 27, bringing to the Control Club stage the exuberant musicians of the Janoska Ensemble, an ensemble with an unmistakable style, where classical virtuosity is intertwined with improvisation and a playful spirit.

The second event, on September 3, brings a reference name in contemporary musical experimentation: Francesco Tristano, pianist, innovative composer and artist who brings together the boundaries between Bach and techno, between baroque and minimalist electronic music.

On September 10, the Radio Romania Big Band will perform. Special guests are the Italian saxophonist Stefano Di Battista and the Romanian trumpeter Sebastian Burneci.

The last concert of the series, on September 17, is dedicated to percussion instruments, through the spectacular performance of the Bucharest Percussion Ensemble, made up of Ioana Ailenei, Alina Trifu, Stefan Ailenei, Vlad Polgar, Mihai Minzar and Alexandru Stroe.

The 'Enescu in Control' series is dedicated to a diverse audience - from jazz, electronica or alternative rock enthusiasts to those who, perhaps for the first time, will discover Enescu's creations or those of great composers, in this free format.

The George Enescu International Festival is an event held under the High Patronage of the President of Romania.