WINGS – The FREEDOM Won by the Romanians in 1989 (Chamber Music in Tokyo)
The Romanian Musicians’ Association of Performers’ Creation (UCIMR), in partnership with the Embassy of Romania in Japan and the Romanian Music Society in Japan (日本ルーマニア音楽協会), with support from the Romanian Cultural Institute (ICR) through the Cantemir program, announces the “WINGS” project. This initiative promotes Romanian performers and creators of various generations to the Japanese audience through two recitals in the Land of the Rising Sun.
The WINGS project takes place in the context of a triple celebration: 35 years since the 1989 Revolution, 20 years of activity of the Romanian Music Society in Japan, a partner in promoting Romanian music and culture in Asia, and one year since the signing of the Joint Declaration Establishing the Strategic Partnership between Romania and Japan by Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
Thus, the capital of Japan will host two musical recitals: on Thursday, August 29, at 7:00 PM, at the Minato Gender Equality Center, and on Saturday, August 31, at 6:00 PM, at Minato-Ku Takanawa Citizen Hall.
Pianist Horia Mihail, one of Romania’s most prestigious soloists, will perform alongside young performers Andreea Ioana Nistor, violinist, and Antonia Beteag, soprano.
PROGRAM
The program’s theme is “FREEDOM,” marking 35 years since the 1989 Revolution. It will feature the premiere of “WINGS” for voice, violin, and piano, specially composed by the award-winning Romanian composer Sebastian Androne-Nakanishi.
The artists will perform a varied repertoire that includes well-known pieces from the Romanian and global musical heritage. The musical curation of the project is expressed through the selection of pieces and theartistic performance, featuring a diverse program that includes both solo piano pieces performed by Horia Mihail and chamber works for voice or violin with piano accompaniment by Romanian composers of the 20th-21st century and a Japanese composer.
The audience will listen to “Doina Stăncuței” by Tiberiu Brediceanu, “Lăutarul” for solo violin by George Enescu, “Quel guardo il cavaliere” (Norina) by Gaetano Donizetti, “Caprice No. 3” for solo violin by Vasile Filip, “Nocturne” by Dinu Lipatti, “Hello hello” (Lucy) from “The Telephone” by Gian Carlo Menotti, as well as Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso by C. Saint-Saëns.
The events will feature the world premiere of the composition “Wings (Tsubasa)” for soprano, violin, and piano by Sebastian Androne-Nakanishi.
WINGS
The composition “Wings (Tsubasa)” was created to capture the profound beauty and emotional depth of the “Takeda Lullaby,” a well-known traditional Japanese song. The inspiration for this piece came from the composer Sebastian Androne Nakanishi’s wife, who, upon learning that he had received a commission to compose a work for soprano, violin, and piano to be performed in Japan, encouraged him to be inspired by the stirring elegance of this lullaby, which is also seen as a symbol of the yearning for peace and tranquillity.
Considering the complexity of translating the original text, the composer relied on various available resources and integrated his own interpretation of the Romanian translation.
“The WINGS project is meant to strengthen the bilateral Romanian-Japanese ties, initiated by us more than 8 years ago with our partners. After last year’s tour in three Romanian cities (Bucharest, Brașov, and Sfântu Gheorghe), it is now the turn of Romanian artists to perform in Japan because, although thousands of kilometres separate us, music unites cultures from all meridians.” – Sebastian Gheorghiu, Member of the UCIMR Board of Directors.
HORIA MIHAIL
Horia Mihail is a Romanian pianist. A soloist with the Radio Orchestras and Choirs, Horia Mihail also gives solo recitals or performs in various chamber music ensembles, the most well-known being the Romanian Piano Trio, with which he performed between 2005 and 2010, alongside Alexandru Tomescu and Răzvan Suma. He has performed over 1,000 times with most of the symphony orchestras in Romania, including the George Enescu Philharmonic in Bucharest and the National Radio Orchestra. He is currently a Concert Soloist with the Radio Musical Formations in Bucharest and the Brașov Philharmonic. As president of the Accendo Cultural Association, he has an intense managerial activity, organising five MusicON tours of the Romanian Piano Trio, three Stradivarius tours, and, in cooperation with Radio Romania Cultural, the Travelling Piano and Violin Duel tours: Stradivarius vs. Guarneri.
ANTONIA BETEAG
Soprano Antonia Beteag graduated from the “Gheorghe Dima” Music Academy in Cluj-Napoca and is currently pursuing her master’s studies at Anton Bruckner University in Linz. Her passion for opera and vocal-symphonic music has been enriched by collaborations with renowned conductors and teachers such as Anita Hartig, Ramon Vargas, Leontina Văduva, Florin Estefan, and Diana Țugui. Since 2020, Antonia has collaborated with various cultural institutions in the country, including the Sibiu State Philharmonic (Sibiu Opera Festival), Pitești Philharmonic, Romanian National Opera in Cluj, and Oradea State Philharmonic. A significant moment in her career includes her debut in Carl Orff’s cantata Carmina Burana under the baton of maestro Cristian Spătaru, and the role of “Lucy” in the chamber opera “The Telephone” by Gian Carlo Menotti, performed at the opera in Linz.
ANDREEA IOANA NISTOR
Andreea Ioana Nistor is a National University of Music Bucharest student. She began her musical journey at the age of 6 under the guidance of Professor Marius Lăcraru. Her musical achievements include numerous awards at national and international competitions, highlighted by the Third Prize at the National Olympics in 2019 and the Second Prize in 2012. In 2021, she even won the First Prize at the prestigious “Rezonanțe Sonore” International Competition. With each recital, Andreea has delighted audiences in cities such as Bucharest, Sibiu, Brașov, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Heidelberg. Moreover, she was honoured to play one of George Enescu’s violins during an open-day concert at the George Enescu National College of Music, where she graduated from.
Admission is free, subject to availability, with reservations required through the Romanian Embassy in Japan, at tokyo@mae.ro / 0081 (0)3-3479-0311 (ext.2) for the August 29 concert at the Minato Gender Equality Center, and via email at info@r-ms.org for the August 31 concert at Minato-Ku Takanawa Citizen Hall.
The WINGS project is organised by the UCIMR – The Romanian Musicians’ Association of
Performers’ Creation – in partnership with the Romanian Embassy in Japan and the Romanian Music Society in Japan (日本ルーマニア音楽協会), and co-financed by the Romanian Cultural Institute through the Cantemir Program – a funding program for cultural projects intended for the international environment. The Romanian Cultural Institute is not responsible for the project’s content or how the project results may be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the funding beneficiary.
The Romanian Musicians’ Association of Performers’ Creation (UCIMR) Founded in 1995 at the initiative of Ștefan Gheorghiu, the principal violist of the Bucharest Philharmonic, UCIMR is a non-profit public utility organisation that contributes to the development and dissemination of classical, jazz, and contemporary music, both nationally and internationally.
For nearly three decades, the association has supported the performing arts, from soloists, choristers, and instrumentalists to dancers or ballerinas, by initiating and implementing cultural projects aimed at facilitating the exchange of experience and promoting artists in diverse environments. UCIMR organises thematic syncretic events where jazz, classical, and contemporary music blend with new technologies, poetry, cartography, crafts, gastronomy, or even oenology, inviting the public to taste and savour art with all senses in unconventional spaces, with over 50 partners from 18 countries across 3 continents. Notable events include traditional festivals such as CellEAST Festival, The Jazz Cave Festival, ICon Arts, and the National Day and New Year’s Eve concerts in Sibiu.
Lavinia Iancu
PR/OJECT MANAGER m: +40 (726) 490 045www.sustenobil.ro