The Romanian National Children's Choir "Allegretto," with the support of ICR Beijing, is organizing an extensive tour in China, performing four concerts at the International Festival of Art and Culture for Children in Tianjin, followed by three major concerts in Beijing, as follows:
July 21-27: International Festival of Art and Culture for Children in Tianjin
July 28, 2024, 15:00 PM – Winland International Financial Centre
July 30, 2024, 19:00 PM – Silk Road International Arts Center (Langfang)
August 1, 2024, 19:30 PM – Forbidden City Concert Hall
ICR Beijing is delighted to invite you to these exceptional cultural events, where you will have the opportunity to appreciate the talent and dedication of Romanian children. The concert repertoire includes 29 songs performed in 10 foreign languages, such as "On écrit Sur Les Murs" (French), "No me hables" (Spanish), "Opa Opa" (Greek), "We Are the World" (English), and "Mingtian hui gen hao" (Chinese). Admission is free!
The National Children's Choir Allegretto was founded in 1974 by Prof. Adriana Codreanu at the National Palace of Children in Bucharest and is composed of members aged 7 to 18 from Bucharest and other cities in Romania (Ploiești, Slobozia, Constanța, Pitești). Under the guidance of Mr. Gherasim Radu Chiriță and through the efforts of Dumitrica Popescu and multiple generations, the children's choir has achieved remarkable success on stages in Romania and around the world, performing songs in 24 languages. The choir has performed over 1600 shows and concerts, over 600 of which were abroad, participated in 69 tours and 6 international creative camps, and competed in numerous competitions and festivals, winning over 60 awards, gold medals, best performance awards, first prizes, and other distinctions.
They have performed at the UN headquarters in New York, the Palais des Nations in Geneva, the National Opera in Athens, the Tognolo Theater in Venice, RAI UNO in Italy, in Russia, Moldova, Mongolia, the National Opera in Warsaw, in Nancy, France, in Istanbul, Izmir, and Antalya, Turkey, in North Macedonia, and the Odessa Opera in Ukraine. Allegretto has collaborated with renowned international artists such as Felicia Filip, Mariana Nicolesco, Ștefan Bănică Jr., Michael Jackson, Richard Clayderman, and Toto Cutugno, as well as with all major Romanian artists.
They have also had the honor of performing before prominent world figures, including the President of Poland, the family of US President G.W. Bush, kings and queens from Italy, Jordan, Morocco, Belgium, and the Netherlands, as well as for prestigious organizations and institutions such as UNESCO. The choir has also been involved in fundraising and charity activities for UNICEF, UNESCO, the Red Cross, and the Romanian Theatrical Union.
The choir's performances have been broadcast by the British BBC, as well as national television stations in Morocco, Jordan, and Latvia.
Awards and Recognition:
- Representing Romania at international television competitions
- Best Performance Award in Bari, Italy (2001, 2003)
- Gold Medal in Odessa, Ukraine (1995)
- Gold Cup in Konin, Poland (1996)
- Silver Medal at the World Choir Olympics in Hong Kong (2006)
- Grand Prize in Mexico (2005)
- Grand Prize and two First Prizes in Israel (2011)
- "Ambassador of Friendship" title awarded by the Chinese government
- "Romanians for Romanians" Award from Realitatea TV
- "Ambassador of Friendship" title awarded by the Romanian Cultural Institute in Beijing
Choir Leadership:
Prof. Adriana Codreanu
Founder and principal conductor of the Allegretto choir from 1974 until her retirement in 2022. Renowned educator and prolific composer, she created numerous collections of children's songs and was the coordinating director of the International Children's Festival "Friendship Without Borders." She produced two notable CDs: "Allegretto around the world" and "Carolers have arrived," significantly contributing to the choir's international recognition. She dedicated herself to the holistic development of choir members, having a profound impact on their personal and artistic growth.
Radu Gherasim Chiriță
Appointed conductor after Prof. Codreanu's retirement, having collaborated with her for over 30 years. Expert in orchestration and sound illustration for radio and TV productions, bringing extensive technical experience to the choir. His role includes improving the choir's musical arrangements and maintaining the high performance standards set by Prof. Codreanu.
Dumitrica Popescu
Vice President of the Romanian Cultural Foundation for Allegretto Children, an organization supporting the choir's activities. Utilizing personal experience as a parent of a choir member, she manages event organization and communication strategies, ensuring a strong presence of the choir in cultural events and community interactions.
Repertoire (90 minutes):
- Aseara ți-am luat basma (Romanian)
- Bare necessities (English)
- Catrina (Romanian)
- Cântec și zâmbet / Ge sheng yu weixiao (Chinese)
- Aceeași melodie/ Tong Yi Shou Ge (Chinese)
- Ce te uiți la gacii mei (Romanian)
- E su e giu (Italian)
- Fetițe dulci (Romanian)
- Hava Naghila (Spanish)
- Haulita de la Gorj (Romanian)
- How long will the moon appear? (English)
- I wanna be like you (English)
- Kukuecica kuka (Polish)
- Mamma Maria (Italian)
- Maramureș (Romanian)
- Mary Poppins (English)
- No me hables (Spanish)
- Noi suntem profesori (Romanian)
- Obladi (English)
- On ecrit sur le mur (French)
- Op (Italian)
- Opa opa (Greek)
- Rugutu (Romanian)
- Rhytms of one world (English)
- Sve bi me (Croatian)
- We are the world (English)
- Nabucco (Italian)
- Iasomie Mo Li Hua (Chinese)
- Mine va fi și mai bine/ Mingtian hui gen hao (Chinese)
Concert Locations:
Winland International Finance Center
The Winland International Finance Center, one of the high-class and modern spaces, offers an elegant concert hall on the seventh floor of a skyscraper on Financial Street. Winland is renowned for hosting elite cultural events dedicated to a select audience from the business, diplomatic, and academic sectors.
Silk Road International Arts Centre
The Silk Road International Arts Centre, led by the famous pianist Claudia Yang, is the largest integrated cultural architecture and a landmark in northern China, near the Daxing International Airport, with the most diverse functions and specific themes. The Silk Road International Arts Centre was launched in 2019 to provide all the conditions for organizing international and regional cultural activities.
Forbidden City Concert Hall
The renowned Forbidden City Concert Hall, located in the famous Zhongshan Park, primarily hosts classical music concerts and performances. It offers an intimate and elegant setting for music lovers, combining the historical charm of the location with excellent acoustics for high-quality musical performances.
We look forward to seeing you there!
