Bucharest (AFP)
Romanian soprano Angela Gheorghiu will lend her voice to defend the cause of the musicians of the Metropolitan Opera (Met) in New York, deprived of salaries after the cancellation of their shows due to the pandemic.
"On February 21, thanks to the miracles of technology, I will perform for you" Song to the Moon "by composer (Czech Antonin, editor's note) Dvorak and" Our Father "by (Romanian) composer Anton Pann", a- she wrote on her Facebook account on Sunday.
Considered one of the greatest voices in the opera scene in the world, Ms. Gheorghiu, 55, will perform in Bucharest, alongside pianist Alexandru Petrovici, and will be accompanied from New York by the Met Orchestra.
Tickets for this recital, which can only be watched online, have been on sale for $ 15 (12.5 euros).
"Proceeds will go to more than 150 Met musicians in need," she added, adding that everyone involved in this "special cause" will work on a voluntary basis.
In an interview with the Romanian channel Digi24, Ms. Gheorghiu said that these musicians "had not received their salaries for a year and were in a very difficult situation".
The soprano rejected the term "charity concert", stressing that it was for her a "human and professional need" to support this cause.
"An artist is important only alongside his artistic family, without an orchestra or choir we can do nothing".
The recital will take place in the Romanian Athenaeum, an elegant concert hall in Bucharest, built by the French architect Albert Galleron and inaugurated in 1888.
“This is my cathedral,” Ms. Gheorghiu said, recalling having given her first recital there at the age of 17.
The Met's general manager, Peter Gelb, told AFP in September that his institution was going through "the most difficult period" in 137 years of existence.
The last eight weeks of the 2019-20 season and the entire following one have been canceled, which is expected to result in a shortfall of $ 154 million.
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