site.btaSofia Philharmonic Performs in Bucharest on Bulgaria's National Day

A concert by the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra marked Bulgaria's National Day in Bucharest on Monday. It took place at the Romanian Athenaeum and was the idea of Bulgarian Ambassador to Romania Radko Vlaykov. The invitation came after the Philharmonic's outstanding performance in the same hall in March 2024.

The festive programme for March 3 combined works by three of the greatest Bulgarian composers. Under the baton of Maestro Nayden Todorov, the musicians presented Marin Goleminov's Firedance, Pantcho Wladigeroff's  Piano Concerto No.3 with soloist Georgii Cherkin and Symphony No. 1 by Veselin Stoyanov, bringing the audience to its feet several times. 

Before the start of the concert, the national anthems of Bulgaria and Romania, as well as the European Union anthem, were played by the Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Todorov.

"Thank you for the wonderful introduction to today's festive evening," Vlaykov addressed the musicians and the audience, adding, "There is no more appropriate place than the world-famous Romanian Athenaeum building in the centre of Bucharest to celebrate with deep satisfaction the great diversity of the centuries-old ties between Bulgarians and Romanians, especially in the second half of the 19th century."

He highlighted the significant contribution of Bulgarian merchant, banker and benefactor Evlogi Georgiev, who in 1886 donated RON 200,000 in gold for the construction of the Athenaeum, and emphasised another Bulgarian trace in Bucharest - the Solakov Inn, which was the seat of the organisation of the revolutionary struggle of the Bulgarians and at different times was inhabited by revolutionaries Vasil Levski, Hristo Botev, Georgi Rakovski.

"We warmly welcome the initiative of the Municipality of Bucharest for the restoration of the Solakov Inn and its transformation into a Municipal Cultural Space. I express my special gratitude to the Mayor of Bucharest, Nicusor Dan, for his agreement to dedicate a significant part of the future Solakov Inn to the history of the Bulgarian presence in Hana, Bucharest and Romania in the second half of the 19th century, as well as for the opportunity for the representatives of the Embassy to participate in the special municipal commission drafting the reconstruction project of the Solakov Inn," the diplomat noted.

Vlaykov recalled that these days mark the two-year anniversary of the signing of a political declaration on strategic partnership between Bulgaria and Romania. 

"Despite the relative constraints imposed by the series of early parliamentary elections in Bulgaria and the holding of four different elections in Romania in 2024, the two countries have managed to achieve the highest dynamism, diversity and depth in our relations," the diplomat said. 

He described the cooperation between Bulgaria and Romania in the field of security and defence as the most developed in recent times, and that in energy as excellent.

"Apart from the existing projects, which are important for the transfer of energy carriers to Moldova, the speed with which Bulgaria and Romania, together with Greece, will be able to build a multimodal corridor between us is also important. In this corridor, in addition to the transport of energy carriers, there is a chance to build road, rail and digital infrastructure important not only for Bulgaria, Romania and Greece, but also for NATO and the EU," the Ambassador added. 

He also said that after the full accession of both countries to Schengen, the data from the first two months of 2025 already show the huge positive impact for business, tourism and contacts between Bulgarians and Romanians.

"Romanian tourists continue to rank first among foreign tourists visiting Bulgaria and Bulgarian tourists rank first among foreign nationals visiting Romania. Romania ranks second among Bulgaria's foreign trade partners and Bulgaria ranks among the top 4-5 foreign trade partners of Romania," Vlaykov said.

At the end of his speech the Ambassador thanked his compatriots for preserving the Bulgarian language, customs and traditions and Georgi Nakov, national representative of the Bulgarian minority in the Romanian Parliament, for representing them in the most dignified way in the Romanian Parliament. 

This was followed by an address on behalf of the Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, read by the Secretary of State, Ruxandra Ivan. 

"The strength of our bilateral partnership was further demonstrated by our joint efforts in the Schengen accession process. I take this opportunity to express my deep gratitude for Bulgaria's unwavering cooperation, which has played a crucial role in achieving this common goal," she said, adding that progress on projects such as the Fast Danube Initiative and the construction of a third bridge over the Danube remain a priority. 

The guests at the reception on the occasion of March 3 had the opportunity to hear and see a greeting from the Bulgarian Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov to all the ambassadors of Bulgaria around the world. The video message was broadcast on plasma screens in the hall, which later showed pictures of the Romanian Parliament, illuminated in the colours of the Bulgarian tricolour.

"This is a precedent. It is the first time that the facade of a state institution in Romania is illuminated with the colours of Bulgaria," Romanian MP Georgi Nakov told BTA.