Festivalul Internațional de Orgă România

Festivalul Internațional de Orgă România (English: Romania International Organ Festival; pronounced [festiˈvalul internat͡sjoˈnal de ˈorɡə roˈmɨni.a], abbreviated FIO România) is an annual international organ music festival held in Romania, primarily in the capital city of Bucharest. It was founded in 2018 to address the absence of a dedicated international organ festival in the capital^[1]. Organised by the cultural non-profit Asociația Kultur Banat^[2], the festival presents concerts by Romanian and international organists. Its aim is to promote pipe organ music to a broader Romanian public. Performances are generally held in churches and concert venues and are free to attend^[1]. In recent years, the festival has also been broadcast online and on television through Angelus TV Romania^[3][1].

The programme includes solo organ recitals, organ–vocal collaborations, orchestral concerts, and silent film screenings accompanied by live improvisation. Venues have included St. Joseph’s Cathedral, French Church of the Sacred Heart, the Romanian Athenaeum, the Black Church in Brașov, and the Romanian Academy Library. Guest performers have included organists from France, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Sweden, and Romania.

The festival has continued annually since its inception, including adaptations for health and safety measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its stated objective is to contribute to public appreciation of organ music and to support cultural activity related to Romania’s existing organ heritage.

The inaugural edition took place 25–31 May 2018 at the St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Bucharest, which houses one of the city’s grand pipe organs. Initially named the “Festivalul Internațional de Orgă Sf. Iosif,” it offered Romanian audiences a week of nightly organ recitals by distinguished foreign organists. Notably, French organ virtuoso Baptiste-Florian Marle-Ouvrard (titular organist of Saint-Eustache, Paris) performed on opening night^[1]. Another headliner was Czech concert organist Pavel Kohout, known for his award-winning performances^[4]. Kultur Banat organized the first edition with support from sponsors and the local Catholic community, establishing a template of free-entry concerts to encourage attendance^[1].

The second edition in 2019 expanded the festival’s scale, both in duration and venues. Concerts were held in Bucharest at St. Joseph’s Cathedral, the city’s historic Lutheran Church, the Romanian Athenaeum, and the National University of Music Bucharest, reflecting a broadening scope beyond a single site^[1]. This edition introduced orchestral collaborations into the program. In a landmark event at the Athenaeum, organist Domenico Severin (France) joined the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra under conductor Conrad van Alphen to perform Camille Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 3 “Organ Symphony”, among other works^[1].

Another concert at the University’s hall featured organ and choir/orchestra combinations, further integrating the organ into mainstream classical settings^[1]. Solo organ recitals continued at St. Joseph’s and the Lutheran Church, including a performance by Swedish organist Gunnar Idenstam, known for his eclectic style blending folk and improvisation. The 2019 festival also experimented with thematic improvisation: one organist gave an impromptu fantasia on the Romanian folk tune “Ciuleandra,” showcasing the instrument’s creative possibilities in a local cultural context^[1].

The third edition (2020) faced extraordinary challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally planned as a larger event, it was reconfigured into a series of socially-distanced concerts in September 2020^[1]. Concerts were primarily held at St. Joseph’s Cathedral with a limited live audience, while being streamed online to reach viewers remotely^[1]. Three solo recitals took place in Bucharest: by Eduard Antal (Romania), the cathedral’s titular organist; by Steffen Markus Schlandt (Romania), organist of Brașov’s Black Church; and by returning guest Domenico Severin (France)^[1]. In lieu of a traditional week-long festival, the performances were spaced out as individual events (on 20, 22, and 24 September 2020)^[5]. Despite the restrictions, FIO România still managed a special component outside the capital: a Baroque organ-and-orchestra concert in Sibiu. This invite-only concert at the Brukenthal Palace (with only about 80 attendees in an open-air courtyard) featured Ulrich Walther (Austria/Germany) performing on a portable baroque organ with the State Philharmonic of Sibiu in works by Haydn and Händel^[1]. An additional chamber concert took place at Sibiu’s Lutheran Church, also broadcast online^[1].

All 2020 events were streamed live via the festival’s Facebook page and partner channels, given that in-person attendance was severely limited^[1]. Kultur Banat noted that the pandemic edition “required adapting the format to respect distancing rules,” but the use of streaming meant the festival still reached thousands of viewers virtually^[1].

In 2021, FIO România returned in a more robust form for its fourth edition, spanning several weeks from 16 September to 9 October 2021^[5]. The program that year not only resumed in Bucharest but also extended the festival’s geographic reach. St. Joseph’s Cathedral remained the primary venue, hosting multiple recitals, but concerts were additionally held at the Black Church in Brașov and at the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest^[5]. The 2021 edition was organized by Kultur Banat in partnership with the Archdiocese of Bucharest, the “George Enescu” Philharmonic, Brașov’s Black Church, and the NGO Asociația Enarmonia^[5].

The guest list included Baptiste-Florian Marle-Ouvrard (France) and Domenico Severin (France) reprising their participation, Ulrich Walther (Austria/Germany), Steffen Schlandt (Romania), and Eduard Antal (Romania)^[5]. Over six concerts, audiences were treated to a variety of settings: for example, Domenico Severin opened the festival with an organ recital at St. Joseph’s (Sept 16) and then performed another recital at Brașov’s Black Church two days later^[5]. The following weeks saw Eduard Antal in recital at St. Joseph’s (Sept 19)^[5], a duo recital by Steffen Schlandt and his wife Gabriela at St. Joseph’s (Sept 26)^[5], and Baptiste-Florian Marle-Ouvrard in concert there on 3 October^[5]. The grand finale on 9 October 2021 featured Ulrich Walther performing at the Romanian Athenaeum – a special concert that placed the organ on stage in Romania’s premier classical venue^[5].

The fifth edition of FIO România was held in October 2022, returning focus to Bucharest’s venues and presenting an especially diverse repertoire. Concerts took place from 10 to 23 October 2022, primarily at Catedrala Sf. Iosif, which hosted all the recitals for this edition^[6]. Over roughly two weeks, six performances unfolded, featuring six organists. The 2022 artist lineup comprised: Baptiste-Florian Marle-Ouvrard (France), Dalibor Miklavčič (Slovenia), Eduard Antal (Romania), Pavel Kohout (Czech Republic), Domenico Severin (France), and Ulrich Walther (Germany/Austria)^[6]. This mix of guests illustrated the festival’s strategy of inviting organists who are not only virtuoso performers but often hold triple roles as cathedral organists, concert soloists, and music professors across Europe^[2].

The 2022 edition’s programming was notably eclectic and innovative, earning it the description “orgă și cinema, jazz și câte și mai câte” (“organ and cinema, jazz and so on”) in cultural reviews^[2]. Among the highlights, Marle-Ouvrard presented a ciné-concert on opening night: a 90-minute live improvisation of a soundtrack to the silent film The Phantom of the Opera (1925) projected in the cathedral^[2]. This imaginative performance captivated the audience and demonstrated the organ’s “versatility”, in creating a rich atmosphere for film^[2]. Another thematic focus was a tribute to French composer César Franck on his bicentenary – Domenico Severin devoted an entire recital to Franck’s works, honoring the 200th anniversary of the composer’s birth^[2].

Other concerts showcased different stylistic eras: Eduard Antal’s program explored Gothic and late-Romantic French organ music (including Léon Boëllmann, Widor, Vierne, and Mulet) to highlight the “cathedral” sonic grandeur^[2]. Dalibor Miklavčič played pieces from Slovenia’s musical heritage and a set of original improvisations in various styles^[2]. Pavel Kohout’s recital provided one of the emotional peaks of 2022 – he performed his own organ transcription of Bedřich Smetana’s The Moldau (Vltava), bringing the iconic Czech symphonic poem to life on the organ^[2].

Ulrich Walther concluded the festival with a virtuosic program of organ transcriptions, including works by Franz Liszt and the jazz-inflected compositions of Nikolai Kapustin, leaving a strong impression on the closing night audience^[2]. This edition, being the first full-scale festival after the pandemic disruptions, enjoyed robust in-person attendance and reaffirmed the event’s momentum^[2].

The sixth edition took place in late 2023, running from 28 October to 5 November 2023. In this year, FIO România’s concerts were split between two sacred venues in Bucharest: Catedrala Sf. Iosif and the French Church of the Sacred Heart^[3]. Over the span of nine days, the festival offered five main concerts and continued its tradition of free entry, welcoming the public “within the limit of available seats”. The 2023 programming placed special emphasis on vocal collaborations alongside organ solos. The opening night, at the French Church of the Sacred Heart on 28 Oct 2023, was a vocal-orchestral (organ and singers) concert titled “Armonii de Toamnă” (“Autumn Harmonies”)^[3]. This performance featured Czech organist Pavel Kohout together with two sopranos – Iva Hlaváčková (Czech Republic) and Miruna Dascălu (Romania) – offering a blend of organ repertoire and vocal music^[3].

On 29 Oct, organist Eduard Antal gave a solo recital at St. Joseph’s Cathedral^[3]. On 31 Oct, FIO România continued its now-established tradition of film-themed concerts: Baptiste-Florian Marle-Ouvrard returned to improvise live organ accompaniment to the classic silent film Sunrise (1927) by F.W. Murnau^[3].The final weekend included an organ recital on 3 Nov by Domenico Severin (Titular organist of Meaux Cathedral, France)^[3], and on 5 Nov the festival closed with a recital by Ulrich Walther (Austria/Germany) at St. Joseph’s^[3]. Across these concerts, the 2023 edition’s guest roster spanned multiple countries and specialties: France (Ouvrard, Severin), Czech Republic (Kohout, Hlaváčková), Austria/Germany (Walther), and Romania (Antal, Dascălu), reflecting a truly international gathering^[3][3].

The festival’s organization in 2023 was again led by Asociația Kultur Banat in partnership with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bucharest (through its Office for Ecclesiastical Cultural Assets and Heritage), the cultural association Enarmonia, and Angelus TV as a media partner^[3], providing live broadcasts of the concerts, allowing those who could not attend in person to watch from home.

The seventh edition of FIO România was held in November 2024, marking another milestone for the growing festival. Concerts spanned the week of 15–22 November 2024, strategically timed toward the end of the liturgical year. The events were concentrated in central Bucharest, utilizing three distinctive venues: St. Joseph’s Cathedral, French Church of the Sacred Heart, and the “Ion Heliade Rădulescu” Amphitheater of the Romanian Academy Library^[6]. The 7th edition’s opening night on 15 Nov 2024 took place at St. Joseph’s Cathedral, where Austrian organist Ulrich Walther (professor at Graz University of Music) delivered a solo recital^[6].

On 16 Nov, Walther was joined by Romanian soprano Miruna Dascălu and tenor Andrei Mihalcea for a “Concert vocal cu orgă” (vocal concert with organ) titled Armonii de Toamnă, reprising the autumnal theme with voice-and-organ renditions of sacred and classical pieces^[6]. Canadian-born organist Craig Humber (resident organist at Vienna’s Votivkirche) performed a solo recital on 17 Nov at St. Joseph’s, bringing North American and Viennese influences into the mix^[6]. In a nod to the festival’s innovative spirit, Baptiste-Florian Marle-Ouvrard (France) presented a “Ciné-concert” on 19 Nov 2024: an improvisation on the organ to accompany a screening of a silent film, which took place at St. Joseph’s Cathedral^[6]. Mid-week, the festival shifted venue – on 20 Nov an organ and poetry evening was staged at the Romanian Academy Library’s amphitheater^[6]. This concert featured young Romanian organist Toma Verly alongside actors Elena Voicu and Radu Bunea, who recited poetry, creating a multi-disciplinary artistic dialogue between music and spoken word^[6].

The 2024 edition concluded on 22 Nov back at St. Joseph’s Cathedral with a grand finale organ recital by Pavel Kohout (Czech Republic)^[6]. By 2024, the festival had firmly established itself as an event in Romania’s classical music scene, attracting organists and music-lovers from across Europe each year^[6].

Asociația Kultur Banat is the principal organizer of FIO România. It is a cultural non-governmental organization.

From the beginning, the Archdiocese of Bucharest (Arhiepiscopia Romano-Catolică de București) has been a key partner, providing venues (like St. Joseph’s Cathedral and other Catholic churches) and institutional support. The Archdiocese’s Office for Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage co-organizes and promotes the concerts^[3]. Other organizational partners have included the Asociația Enarmonia (a Romanian cultural association) and, for special events, classical music institutions such as the “George Enescu” Philharmonic and the Brașov Black Church administration (e.g. in 2019–2021 when concerts were held in collaboration with those entities)^[5].

Media partnerships have significantly expanded the festival’s reach. In particular, Angelus TV Romania, a Catholic television station, joined as a partner and broadcaster – by 2022 and 2023, Angelus TV was streaming the festival concerts live, enabling national coverage of the performances^[3].

It represents the first major international organ festival based in Bucharest^[1]. Many of the guests are organists who have played in the great music capitals of the world (Paris, Vienna, London, New York etc.), and by bringing them to Bucharest, FIO România serves as a bridge between Romania and the broader European organ tradition^[1].

Romania possesses around a thousand pipe organs (many historical, especially in Transylvania and Banat), but many are in disrepair and the general public has had limited awareness of them^[1]. By generating interest and appreciation for organ music, the festival indirectly supports efforts to maintain and restore these instruments; an unused organ deteriorates faster, whereas an instrument that is played and loved will be cared for^[1].

In the European context, FIO România combines the solemnity of sacred music traditions (frequently including works by J.S. Bach, César Franck, and other classical masters) with innovative presentations that resonate with modern audiences^[1].

After seven editions, FIO România has built a dedicated following in Bucharest (with some attendees traveling from other cities or abroad), and its online broadcasts have created a virtual audience that extends internationally^[1]. The festival’s success is evidenced by the increasing number of renowned organists eager to participate and by positive critical reviews in Romanian media that praise its “exceptional cultural-musical manifestation”^[6][1].