Three musicians in full ascension on the international stage, winners of the 2014 George Enescu International Competition – violinist Stefan Tarara, pianist Josu de Solaun, and cellist Eun-Sun Hong –performed in the Enescu Competition 2018 Opening Gala Concert alongside the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gabriel Bebeselea.
The core program of the night was Concerto for violin, cello, piano, and orchestra by Paul Constantinescu, the only triple concerto in the Romanian classical music and the second triple concerto ever composed. The first one, signed by Ludwig van Beethoven, was performed in turn at the opening of the 2016 Enescu Competition, by laureates from previous editions.
The Concerto for Violin, Cello, Piano, and Orchestra was composed in 1963, Paul Constantinescu’s final year, and it is a work of reference in the Romanian classical music composition. Author of a rich body of work including symphonic music, chamber music, as well as vocal music, Paul Constantinescu also wrote original scores for films such as A Stormy Night (1952), A Lost Letter (1953), and The Mill of Good Luck (1956).
The first recording of Paul Constantinescu’s Triple Concerto was made with pianist Valentin Gheorghiu, violinist Stefan Gheorghiu, and cellist Radu Aldulescu, while Iosif Conta conducted the National Radio Orchestra. Valentin Gheorghiu and Stefan Gheorghiu, resounding names of the Romanian and international classical music scene, are also previous winners of the Enescu Competition.
The 2018 Enescu Competition opening night program started with Concerto for Orchestra by young Chinese composer Tian Tian – the winner in the Composition section of the 2016 Competition – and closed with Enescu’s Poème Roumain Op.1.
About musicians
At the age of 32, violinist Stefan Tarara won the 2014 Enescu Competition with standing ovation for his emotional interpretation of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D major – a concerto that the composer himself described as a lush, irresistible reflection on love and the beauty of life. Born in Germany to Romanian parents, the violinist has performed on the world’s most famous concert stages including Philharmonie Berlin, Tonhalle Zurich, Salle Pleyel in Paris, Liederhalle Stuttgart, Frauenkirche Dresden, and has appeared as a soloist under the baton of great conductors such as Zubin Mehta and David Zinman. Stefan Tarara plays a Nicolò Gagliano violin.
“George Enescu is a red thread in my life”, says Spanish pianist Josu de Solaun. He has recorded and released internationally The Complete Piano Sonatas of George Enescu in 2016, at the prestigious record label Naxos. Today, Josu de Solaun is known and applauded on Romanian stages across the country, where he frequently gives recitals and concerts. A great admirer of composer George Enescu, the pianist was accommodated during the 2014 Enescu Competition in a rented apartment on George Enescu Street, in the same building where George Enescu himself had lived for six years.
With a remarkable interpretive force, Eun-Sun Hong started to study cello at the age of nine. Born in Seul and settled in Germany, the cellist has performed in such prestigious concert venues as London’s Wigmore Hall, Konzerthaus in Berlin, Théâtre des Champs Élysées in Paris, Victoria Hall in Genève and has been invited to prestigious international festivals like the Ravello in Italy, Casals in El Vendrell, Piatigorsky Cello International Festival in Los Angeles, Kronberg Academy Cello Festival in Germany, Seiji Ozawa International Academy in Switzerland. She studied with cellist Lluís Claret, a renowned musician and pedagogue highly appreciated in the entire musical world.
Admired for his enthusiasm and musicality, Gabriel Bebeselea became in 2011, at the young age of 26, Conductor of the National Romanian Opera in Iasi, marking a premiere as the youngest conductor ever employed at a cultural institution in Romania. In the same year, Gabriel Bebeselea had an internship as assistant conductor at one of the first ten orchestras of the world – Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam. He had the opportunity to take part in the rehearsals and concerts of the most representative conductors today, such as Mariss Jansons and Bernard Haitink. He currently conducts on some of the most important international and Romanian stages. Since 2016, Bebeselea is the principal conductor of the Transylvania State Philharmonic in Cluj-Napoca.
photo credit: Cătălina Filip
