Porumbescu's Ballad

Ciprian Porumbescu's Ballad is the most famous ballad in the Romanian culture which encorporates characteristics and traces of traditional songs and moods in a perfectly harmonious balance...

Labis: Out-of-the-Ordinary Deer

Nicolae Labis's most famous poem is "Moartea caprioarei" / "The Death of the Deer", which was the symbol of a generation that was trapped in a regime that suffocated people bit by bit, teaching them that art is liberating...

Eminescu's Eve on a Hill

Probably the most beautiful song, with lyrics by Mihai Eminescu and sung by the Madrigal Choir:
"Sara pe deal" / "Eve on a Hill".

Dreary the horn sounds in the eve on the hill,
Sheepflocks return, stars on their way twinkle still,
Watersprings weep murmuring clear, and I see
Under a tree, love, thou art waiting for me.

Holy and pure passes the moon on the sky,
Moist seem the stars born from the vault clear and high,
Longing thine eyes look from afar to divine,
Heaving thy breast, pensive thy head doth recline.

Tired with their toil, peasants come back from the field,
From the old church, labourer's comfort and shield,
Voices of bells thrill the whole sky high above;
Struck is my heart, trembling and burning with love.

Ah! very soon quietness steals over all,
Ah! very soon hasten shall I to thy call,
Under the tree, there I shall sit the whole night,
Telling thee, love, thou art my only delight.

Cheek press'd to cheek, there in sweet ecstasy we,
Falling asleep under the old locust-tree,
Smiling in dream, seem in a heaven to live,
For such a night who his whole life would not give?

translated by Leon Levitchi and Petre Grimm

Maria Tanase - the Romanian Heart

If anyone would like to know the Romanian spirit it is enough to listen to songs by Maria Tanase like "Lume, lume" / "People, people" or "Ciuleandra".

Maria Tanase lived during a time when the spirit was most alive and creative and she was the real authentic voice of a whole nation, representing the Romanian art in New York at the beginning of the 20th century for many times.

Paula - A Gorgeous Voice

Paula Seling is a young Romanian artist who always sings live to share her brilliant voice with people, who writes her own songs and lyrics of extreme sensitivity and vibe and who is here to bring beauty into our lives. Her lyrics are often messages of responsibility and care for the others like "Tu nu vezi" - "You don't see"...
I can hardly wait for Paula's next song...

Romanian Cheese

I am definitely a 'cheese girl' - I couldn't live without good cheese in its various forms. Benefiting from the ancient valleys, rivers and the Carpathian mountains, Romanian fresh cheese is exquisite.
It comes in several forms: cottage cheese - which every woman in the countryside has and makes with dedication and care; cas [kash] which is the pride of every shepherd and such a delight to all senses; urda [urda] which is very low-fat and every lady likes it because of its fine delicacy and special taste; burduf [bu:rduf] cheese which is a special type of cheese placed in sheep stomach skin to keep natural fat properties; telemea [telemea] cheese which is for people who like fresh salty cheese; cascaval [kashkaval] which is close to the typical French cheese but much fresher...
In Romania, there are several regions famous for their cheeses, e.g. Bucovina or Marginimea Sibiului...So, do take the opportunity and try all the types of cheese that come from eastern Europe as its an unforgettable treat...

Up, Up and Upper...

It was such a joy to see this animation movie from Disney called "UP" - on Monday at around noon I was sharing a high-tech cinema room with a dad and his little son who couldn't read the subtitles to see the movie...not just the kid loved it but also we, the adults, simply because this is just so much better than an animation backed up by expensive advertising campaigns and the reason for this is that "Up" has an original story to tell... I'm sure people will discover the beauty of this story about dreams, adventure, authentic living, kids and elderly people in time, like the good going above the bad. It is surely an educational movie and such a nice opportunity to spend some high quality time with your child and laugh and get on edge together, like the guys in my cinema room... Brilliant!