"Allegretto" Romanian National Children Choir Concert at Forbidden City Concert Hall

» › › Corul Național de Copii "Allegretto" în Sala de Concerte din “Orașul Interzis”(„Forbidden City Concert Hall”)
  • 1 August 2024 - 1 August 2024
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The National Children's Choir "Allegretto" held an extraordinary tour in China from July 21 to August 2. The "Allegretto" delegation, comprising 52 members (28 children, 8 teachers, and 15 parents), participated in the Tianjin International Children's Art Festival and performed in three of Beijing's most impressive concert halls, organized by the Romanian Cultural Institute in Beijing.

The 2024 International Festival of Culture and Arts (Tianjin International Children's Art Festival), launched in 1998, featured 45 delegations with over 1,100 children from 25 countries across five continents, presenting impressive performances. The Allegretto Choir, consisting of children aged 6 to 18, performed seven concerts in Tianjin, sometimes delivering two or three concerts a day, in packed venues. The children were rewarded with thunderous applause, admiration from the audience, and even had spectators singing along, captivated by their diverse repertoire, particularly the Chinese songs.

In Beijing, the three concerts took place in outstanding venues with full houses: at the Winland International Financial Center (July 28), the Silk Road International Arts Center in Langfang (July 30), and the Forbidden City Concert Hall (August 1). The concerts, each lasting 1 hour and 30 minutes without an intermission, featured a repertoire of 29 pieces in 11 languages: Romanian, Chinese, English, Greek, Italian, Hebrew, Polish, Spanish, French, Croatian, and Turkish, which earned great admiration from the audience.

The final concert, held on August 1 at 7:30 PM at the Forbidden City Concert Hall, near the famous Tiananmen Square, was a success, with over 600 attendees. The event was honored by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, led by H.E. Jiang Yu, Special Representative of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs for China-Central and Eastern Europe Cooperation and former Chinese Ambassador to Romania, alongside a representative from the Romanian Embassy in Beijing. The audience enthusiastically appreciated the children's performance, applauding and singing for several minutes at the end. The concert was promoted by China International Radio and CCTV6, which produced two reports on the "Allegretto" tour, highlighting the extraordinary musical and linguistic talents of the Romanian children.

The historic Forbidden City Concert Hall, located in the renowned Zhongshan Park, primarily hosts classical music concerts and performances. It provides an intimate and elegant setting for music lovers, combining the historical charm of the location with excellent acoustics for high-quality musical performances.

The Allegretto National Children's Choir celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, having been founded in 1974 through the initiative and dedication of Professor Adriana Codreanu. Over the decades, the children's choir has enjoyed remarkable success on stages in Romania and around the world, performing songs in 26 languages. The choir has held over 1,600 performances, including more than 600 abroad, conducted 69 tours, and organized 6 international creative camps. It has participated in numerous competitions and festivals, winning over 60 awards, including gold medals, best performance awards, and first prizes.

The Romanian Cultural Institute in Beijing organized the entire schedule for the 5 days of concerts and rehearsals in Beijing, provided the delegation with an air-conditioned bus from Beijing Jiaotong University during their stay, as temperatures were very high, organized a calligraphy course for the Allegretto choir members at the Beijing University of Architecture and Design (BJTU) on July 29, and ensured all the necessary conditions for the successful completion of the tour.

The events were a great success with the Chinese audience and were promoted on major media platforms in China, including China News, China Daily, CCTV, CGTN, and China International Radio, drawing hundreds of spectators and tens of thousands of online views. The event was also promoted on the ICR/ICR Beijing online platforms (Website/WeChat/Facebook) and social media networks: