Emisiunea “Muzică 100%”, numai la RRI, marți, 11 ianuarie 2022, îl evocă pe Ioan Luchian Mihalea, muzician nepereche, care la sfârșitul anului tocmai încheiat, ar fi devenit septuagenar și care a creat în anii 80 fenomenul Song, formație corală aparte atunci și acum. Invitaţi prin telefon, jurnalistul de radio Bogdan Dragomir și foști membri ai coralei Minisong, care devenise o pepinieră pentru Song. Totul, asezonat cu muzică:
COVID-19 The number of new Covid-19
cases in Romania on Saturday was 455, out of over 28,000 tests. In hospitals, the
number of coronavirus patients is under 3,700, 623 of them in intensive care. Also,
59 COVID-related deaths were reported for the past 24 hours. The vaccine
rollout continues, with several vaccination marathons scheduled this weekend in
various cities. Drive-thru centres are also operational in several parts of the
country. Since the end of December, over 7 million vaccine doses have been
administered in Romania, with more than 3 million people receiving the booster
dose as well.
PILGRIMAGE Tens of thousands are taking part today in the traditional Catholic Whitsun pilgrimage in Şumuleu Ciuc, in central Romania. The organisers have taken measures to ensure the event complies with the Covid-19 safety rules. Hundreds of volunteers have been mobilized to this end, alongside hundreds of gendarmes, police, firefighters, mountain rescue workers and ambulances. Last year, the pilgrimage on Mount Şumuleu, which brought together over 100,000 people from around the world every year, was cancelled over the pandemic. In 2019, on June 1, Pope Francis travelled to Şumuleu Ciuc, where he held a service devoted to Mary, the Mother of God. The Şumuleu Ciuc pilgrimage dates back more than 450 years.
MOLDOVA In the Republic of Moldova the campaign for next months snap elections has officially started. Political analysts say this would be a tough race between pro-European and pro-Russian parties. The pro-European Action and Solidarity Party, founded by the incumbent president of the country, Maia Sandu, promised a fair and clean campaign, to gain citizens trust. Their main opponent is the Socialists Party headed by the former president Igor Dodon, which forms a pro-Russian electoral bloc together with Vladimir Voronins Communists. Also running for seats in parliament is the party headed by the mayor of Bălţi town, Renato Usatyi, which aims to win over a chunk of the pro-Moscow electorate, and a party headed by Ilan Shor, the hideaway tycoon who lives in Israel after having been sentenced to 7 years in prison by a court of first instance, following the USD 1 billion bank fraud scandal.
PANDEMIC As of Monday Spain opens its borders to travelers from countries deemed safe, such as the UK, Austria, China, Israel and Japan, without healthcare restrictions, the Radio România corrspondent in Madrid reports. As of June 7 travellers who have completed a full vaccination scheme approved by the WHO or the European Medicines Agency will also be welcomed to the country. Austria has also revised entry conditions, with the new measures to be enforced as of the end of June. People travelling to Austria from countries for which travel alerts are not in place, Romania included, are exempt from self-isolation requirements. Entry into Austria is allowed for those who produce a vaccination certificate, a negative SARS-CoV-2 test or an anti-body test taken in the past 3 months. Tests are not required for children up to 10 years of age.
EUROVISION 26 countries are competing tonight for the 2021 Eurovision trophy. The worlds largest televised song competition is held this year in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. This is the years first major global performance, although held under strict COVID-19 containment measures. Only 3,500 people will be allowed in the venue, to watch artists from the entire Europe. The public must present negative COVID-19 tests and will wear face masks. Romania failed to qualify into this years Eurovision final. Over the years, Romanias best performances in this competition were two 3rd places (in 2005 and 2010) and a 4th place in 2006. (tr. A.M. Popescu)
COVID-19 Romania In about 10 days we will be able to predict the peak of the coronavirus epidemic in Romania, the health minister Victor Costache told a private TV station on Thursday night. He added that the authorities are unable to make this estimate at present because it depends on the number of Romanians returning from abroad. Costache explained that if the number of cases reaches 4,000, which is the maximum that the Romanian healthcare system can handle, the patients with mild forms of the disease will be treated at home. The authorities will announce new restrictions in the coming days, Victor Costache also said. Meanwhile, the government has announced tougher penalties for thwarting efforts to combat the epidemic and for false representations in relation to the COVID-19. The decision comes after fines and scores of criminal investigations have been initiated against people who disregarded self-isolation rules or lied about coming from red zones in order to avoid the quarantine. The new penalties go as far as to 15 years in prison. So far 308 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Romania, with 2 patients in critical condition.
COVID-19 world The total death toll of the coronavirus pandemic has gone over 10,000 today, according to the latest data made public by the John Hopkins Center for Systems Science and Engineering in the US. A total of 10,030 people out of 244,517 confirmed cases died from the novel coronavirus disease. Italy reports the largest number of deaths, over 3,400. Other countries with significant death figures include China, Iran, Spain, France, the US and Britain. Whereas China reports no new locally transmitted cases, and the new cases are citizens coming from abroad, in Europe the situation continues to worsen. The EU has closed its borders for foreign citizens and banned all non-essential travel in the Schengen area, to slow down the spreading of the disease. EU leaders will hold a new conference call on March 26 to discuss the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic. On the same day, the European Parliament intends to increase the aid package planned by the Union for the business environment. The European Central Bank has already announced 750 billion euros in emergency funds will be channelled into government and private debt, in an attempt to contain the economic effects of the pandemic. Estimates point to a possible 5% drop of the Eurozone GDP this year.
RADIO Radio Romania News and Current affairs and all public radio stations in Europe broadcast the song Youll Never Walk Alone as a show of unity amid the COVID-19 pandemic. European broadcasters aired today the Gerry and The Pacemakers piece simultaneously, urging people to stay at home in order to help contain the pandemic. Known as an anthem of Liverpool football club, among others, the song You’ll Never Walk Alone was written in 1945 and has been covered by many artists over the years.
PRAYER Catholics around the world Thursday night joined Pope Francis in prayer for an end to the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more people in Italy then in any other part of the world, Reuters reports. Italian bishops urged Catholics in the country to light candles in the windows and pray at home, as a sign of unity and solidarity. The initiative was announced early this week and was disseminated by social media around the world. The Pope is self-isolating at the Vatican. Last Sunday he walked on Romes empty streets to pray in 2 churches for an end to the pandemic. The Vatican announced that for the first time, the Easter mass will be held without public participation.
FILM The Cannes Film Festival will most likely be postponed to June or July over COVID-19 concerns, the organisers have announced. The 73rd Cannes Festival was scheduled to take place between May 12 and 23. Hollywood will no longer make public box office figures, after theatres have been closed down in many countries, making last weekend the worst in 2 decades in this respect. Over the past few days the US, Canada, UK, Italy, France, South Korea closed down cinema halls due to restrictions concerning indoor events, while theatres in China, Hollywoods biggest foreign market, have been closed for weeks because of the pandemic.
(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)
COVID19 Romania has 3 confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection, with the patients current state reported as good. Another 52 people are quarantined across the country, and 8,796 are under home monitoring. The healthcare authorities in the counties Timiş in the west and Maramureş in the north-west are running investigations to establish the people who were in contact with the 2 persons who tested positive for the coronavirus on Friday. Both of them had travelled to Italy recently. The first patient in Romania, a 25 year old man from Gorj County, in the south, is feeling well, and Fridays tests came out negative, doctors say. If the next test is also negative, the patient will be discharged. In Europe, Italy remains the most affected country. As the epidemic spread, stock exchanges across the world reported total losses of over 5 trillion US dollars. The BBC says the US financial markets have not been hit so hard since the 2008 financial crisis. Investors fear that the growing number of coronavirus cases outside China may turn the disease into a pandemic.
AFGHANISTAN Romania welcomes Saturdays agreement signed by the USA and the Taliban for the normalisation of the situation in Afghanistan, as well as the joint declaration between Washington and Kabul for bringing peace to Afghanistan, the Romanian foreign ministry announced. Romania voices confidence that full implementation of these agreements will lead to stability in Afghanistan. According to the foreign ministry, Bucharest will continue to support the efforts to ensure peace and security in Afghanistan, coordinating with its NATO allies. The US and the Taliban Saturday signed in Doha, Qatar, a historic agreement that paves the way for the withdrawal of all American troops from Afghanistan in the next 14 months and for inter-Afghan peace negotiations after 18 years of war.
EUROVISION Buzau, in the south-east of the country, is hosting on Sunday the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. The public and a specialised jury will choose the song to be performed in the 2020 Rotterdam international competition by Romanias representative, Roxen. Several pieces have been written for her, and the best 5 of them are in the national final. Roxen gained popularity last summer with her song You Dont Love Me, aired in France, Mexico, the USA, Russia, Spain, Greece, Switzerland, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Estonia. Roxen will compete in the Eurovision first semi-final on May 12, with the final scheduled for May 16.
MIGRANTS Greece prevented 4,000 migrants to enter its territory “illegally from Turkey, a spokesman for the Greek government announced on Saturday after an emergency meeting chaired by PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis, AFP and Reuters report. On Friday, the country faced a mass, organised and illegal border crossing attempt, but it managed to overcome it, the government spokesperson explained. He added that Greece protected its borders and the borders of the EU. Also on Saturday, in an address in Istanbul, Turkeys president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country will open its borders to enable migrants to leave, and criticised the EU for not helping Ankara enough. Turkey says it was forced to ease border controls for the refugees trying to reach the EU from Turkey, because of the pressure of the refugees coming from Syria amid clashes in the rebel stronghold of Idlib.
RUSSIA Thousands of Russian opposition supporters gathered in Moscow on Saturday to protest the constitutional reforms initiated by president Vladimir Putin and to pay tribute to opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, murdered 5 years ago near Kremlin, AFP reports. In Sankt-Petersburg, nearly 2,000 people rallied in the centre of the city. The authorised march is the first important public gathering since Putin announced a Constitution review set to strengthen the role of the president and of the State Council. The killing of Boris Nemtsov in February 2015 had huge echoes in Russia and abroad. Nemtsov was in the middle of an investigation into the involvement of the Russian Army in the east Ukraine war.
HANDBALL Romanias womens handball champions, CSM Ramnicu Valcea, Saturday defeated the Swedish side Savehof, 28-20 at home, in the Champions League Main Group 2. In Main Group 1 in the same competition, vice-champions CSM Bucharest play away from home on Sunday against the French team Metz. The Romanian teams are ranking 4th in their respective groups and CSM is the only one having secured a place in the quarter-finals. In mens handball, champions Dinamo Bucharest take on Sporting Lisbon, on Sunday night, after a 26-25 win away from home. If they go past the Portuguese team, Dinamo move into the Champions League round of 16.
(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)
Călin Goia (Leadsänger), Oliver Sterian (Schlagzeug), Valeriu Ionescu (Bassgitarre), Gabi Constantin (Gitarre) und Adrian Cristescu (Keyboards) — kurzum die Pop-Rock-Band Voltaj“ wird Rumänien in Wien beim Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) vertreten. Voltaj hat am Sonntagabend in Craiova sowohl vom rumänischen Publikum als auch von der Jury die maximale Punktezahl bekommen. Die Ballade De la capăt“ (in etwa: Neubeginn“) soll im Mai auf der Bühne in Wien dargeboten werden. Zwölf weitere Musiker und Bands kämpften für die Qualifikation.
Das Lied erzählt von den Entbehrungen, die die Rumänen in Kauf nehmen, die ihr Land verlassen, um im Ausland zu arbeiten. Diese arbeiten von morgens bis spät in die Nacht, um den Kindern, die in Rumänien bleiben, ein dezentes Leben zu sichern. Durch die Ballade De la capăt“ sollen sich die Europäer der Schwierigkeiten bewusst werden, die die meisten Rumänen haben, die hart und ehrlich arbeiten. Călin Goia, der Leadsänger der Band Voltaj, sagte nach der Vorentscheidung, dass die Bandmitglieder nun groß hinaus wollen: Mindestens den zweiten Platz wolle man erreichen, um bisherige Leistungen aus Rumänien zu überbieten. Rumänien platzierte sich beim Eurovision Song Contest zwei Mal auf dem dritten und ein Mal auf dem vierten Platz.
Voltaj hat auch eine englische Fassung des Liedes vorbereitet. Sie hat sich aber noch nicht entschieden, ob die Ballade auf Rumänisch, Englisch oder gemischt in den zwei Sprachen gesungen werden soll. Das Lied De la capăt“ wird schon von den rumänischen Radiosendern ausgestrahlt und wurde für die 13. Preisgala des Rumänischen Rundfunks nominiert. Die Gala findet am 22. März statt und zu diesem Anlass werden die bedeutendsten Auszeichnungen der rumänischen Pop-Rock-Musik für die Kategorien Bestes Lied-Thema“, Song des Jahres“, Bester Pop-Rock-Sänger“ und Sänger des Jahres“ verliehen.
Lhistoire daujourdhui tourne autour d’un numéro magique: 20.
20 comme 20 ans de voyages à travers le monde dun groupe de jeunes habillés en jeans et blouses traditionnelles roumaines en chantant des chansons que peu de gens ont eu le courage dinterpréter: du folklore roumain dans une nouvelle interprétation, du negro spiritual et des noëls dissimulés, de la musique internationale chantée en original au lieu du roumain. Tout cela entre les murs dune guerre froide qui isolait la Roumanie de “la décadence de lOccident”. En plus, 20 ans se sont écoulés depuis la disparition brutale du créateur et chef de direction de ce groupe de musiciens audacieux.
En 1974, Ioan Luchian Mihalea réunissait sous le nom SONG (‘chanson’ en anglais) des étudiants du Conservatoire de musique de Bucarest, rejoints plus tard par les étudiants en Langues germaniques de l’Université de Bucarest. Ils ont fait leurs débuts en chantant de la musique de la Renaissance et des chants médiévaux anglais, pour enchaîner avec tournées, émissions enregistrées, films, concerts sur la scène de la Grande Salle du Palais de la capitale ou encore voyages à létranger. Une vie difficile à imaginer pour le reste des Roumains qui suivaient ce groupe avec admiration et envie à la fois.
Raluca Alina Hurduca a fait partie du groupe Song pendant les années 80, la décennie la plus sombre de lhistoire récente de la Roumanie. Cette expérience a marqué non seulement sa jeunesse mais aussi tout son parcours ultérieur, avoue-t-elle: « A ce moment-là je ne réalisais pas toutes ses implications. Premièrement je pouvais faire quelque chose que jaimais aux côtés de jeunes considérés comme lélite des étudiants, car le groupe Song était formé uniquement délèves et détudiants. Cétait aussi un moyen déchapper à la réalité devenue un véritable cauchemar à la moitié des années 80. Cétait de la pure joie, comme une bulle dorée qui nous entourait. Et je suis persuadée que mes collègues seraient daccord avec moi. Certes, le style, lénergie et cet état desprit étaient transmis par notre chef de chorale. Sy ajoutait le fait dêtre une équipe jeune, car de nouveaux étudiants venaient en permanence nous rejoindre et cela marquait aussi la manière dont les chansons étaient interprétées. »
Le groupe Song était une grande famille, racontent ses anciens membres. Parmi eux, Carmen Săndulescu, aujourdhui journaliste à RRI, qui n’oubliera jamais les répétitions aux côtés des jeunes du Song: « Les répétitions étaient des moments tout à fait à part, qui se sont à jamais imprimés dans ma mémoire notamment parce quelles étaient très sévères. On samusait pendant une dizaine de minutes, comme si on était entre amis, ou en famille, puis on se mettait au travail. Un travail très dur. On répétait 3 notes à linfini, les entrées en scène, des choses qui se sont avérées très utiles aux enregistrements pour la télévision. Pour 3 chansons interprétées à la télé nous avons répété toute une nuit. Nous étions tellement absorbés par létude et par la musique. Nous nous rendions compte que nous étions différents parce que les autres nous le disaient. »
Raluca Alina Hurduc raconte comment se déroulaient les concerts de la chorale SONG dans le pays: «Nous chantions des chansons du folklore roumain, mais aussi des negro spirituals et même des cantiques de Noël dont les paroles avaient été changées. C’est que, de temps à autre, Mihalea bricolait des vers qui allaient avec la mélodie des cantiques et nous les chantions sur scène, dans les années ’80. Le public vibrait d’enthousiasme lorsqu’il reconnaissait les cantiques ainsi déguisées. Il chantait avec nous, il applaudissait. La chose la plus importante que nous avons comprise grâce à ces concerts, c’était que nous pouvions faire des choses et les partager avec les autres, que nous pouvions créer une communion et que cela nous rendait heureux. Ça valait la peine de consacrer du temps à ces choses-là et sortir du quotidien, pour être plus heureux. »
En pleine révolution culturelle communiste, lorsque les artistes n’avaient presque aucune liberté d’expression, comment quelque chose de si différent, comme le groupe SONG, a-t-il pu exister ? Par un « ballet » très subtil, dont très peu étaient conscients — affirme Carmen Săndulescu : « A ce que j’aie compris, dans les années ’80, lorsque les autorités communistes ont exigé une explication concernant le nom de la chorale, la réponse avait été la suivante : SONG ne venait pas du mot anglais qui signifie chanson, c’était un acronyme voulant dire « Suntem Oamenii Noii Generatii » (« nous sommes les gens de la nouvelle génération »). C’était donc une sorte de ballet entre ce qu’il y avait à l’intérieur du groupe et ce qu’il fallait voir de l’extérieur. Je ne sais pas si tous les membres de la chorale en étaient conscients. Je me suis rendu compte de la réalité extérieure au moment où s’est posé le problème de notre participation au festival de la Havane, à Cuba. Cette participation a explicité les choses, pour ainsi dire : sur les 40 dossiers avancés pour ce départ, 18 seulement ont reçu un avis positif. »
L’âme du groupe SONG, le chef de chorale Ioan Luchian Mihalea, adoré par tous ses jeunes chanteurs, fut sauvagement assassiné dans sa propre maison, en novembre 1993. Quelques semaines plus tard, la chorale a donné son dernier concert, à la mémoire de Ioan Luchian Mihalea. Début mars de cette année, 20 ans après, SONG s’est réuni de nouveau, pour un spectacle diffusé en direct par la télévision publique.
Selon Raluca Alina Hurduc, l’émotion s’est propagée bien au-delà du petit écran : « En moins d’un mois, nous avons réussi à nous mobiliser et à nous réunir de tous les coins du pays — et même de l’Europe. Nous avons pu faire une dizaine de répétitions, car cette émission est venue en quelque sorte d’en haut… Ce fut un réussite au-delà de toute attente. Nous nous sommes mobilisés et nous avons chanté comme jadis — certes, d’une manière pas nécessairement parfaite, mais c’était inespéré, très beau. Le fait d’être de nouveau ensemble et de chanter nous a énormément réjouis et je pense que cette joie est passée au-delà du petit écran, si l’on juge d’après les impressions recueillies après le concert et les appels téléphoniques que nous avons reçus. »
Le groupe SONG s’est réuni sous la baguette d’un chef de chorale jeune, Daniel Jinga : « J’avais entendu parler d’eux, j’ai grandi avec cette chorale et à présent je suis heureux que cette rencontre ait eu lieu. Nous avons chanté ensemble, nous nous sommes réjouis. Tout a été empreint d’allégresse et de nostalgie. On m’a demandé à plusieurs reprises, ces dernières années, de créer une chorale similaire. Le fait que certaines personnes, qui perçoivent le désire du public, m’ont demandé de mettre sur pied ce genre de projet prouve que les gens souhaitaient réécouter la chorale SONG. Et ce n’est guère surprenant, des générations entières ont écouté cette musique, qui sera certainement aimée par la jeune génération actuelle. »
La chorale SONG chantera-t-elle de nouveau ? Seul le temps pourra nous donner une réponse. (trad. : Valentina Beleavski, Dominique)
Povestea pe care v-o spunem astăzi se ţese în jurul unui număr magic: 20. 20 de ani, vârsta frumoasă a studenţiei multora dintre cei ce ne ascultă. 20 de ani în care nişte tineri s-au plimbat prin lume, îmbrăcaţi în jeans şi cămăşi tradiţionale româneşti şi au cântat cântece pe care parcă nimeni altcineva nu mai avea curaj să le cânte: folclor românesc interpretat cu o altfel de atitudine, dar şi muzică negro spiritual şi colinde camuflate, muzica lumii cântată în alte limbi decât româna, intre zidurile unui război rece ce ne izola de “Vestul decadent”. 20 de ani de când iniţiatorul şi dirijorul grupului a fost scos din lume cu brutalitate.
Grupul SONG a fost înfiinţat în 1974 de Ioan Luchian Mihalea, cu studenţii de la Universitatea Naţională de Muzică Bucureşti, iar ulterior cu cei de la Limbi Germanice. SONG a debutat cu cântece renascentiste şi muzică veche englezească şi a continuat cu turnee, filme, emisiuni înregistrate, concerte în Sala Mare a Palatului şi excursii peste hotare. Era o viaţă greu de imaginat pentru restul lumii, ce priveau la acest grup aparte cu admiraţie şi poate un pic de invidie. Raluca Alina Hurduc a fost membră a grupului SONG timp de trei ani, chiar în deceniul 8, cel mai cenuşiu al istoriei României. Ea spune că SONG i-a marcat nu doar tinereţea, ci întreg parcursul ei ulterior. În momentul ăla cred că nu îmi dădeam seama de întreaga lui semnificaţie. În primul rând însemna să fac ceva care-mi place cu nişte tineri care în momentul ăla erau o elită, erau numai studenţi şi câţiva elevi în grupul SONG. Însemna o scăpare din realitatea care devenise îngrozitoare la jumătatea deceniului 8, însemna bucurie, pur şi simplu. Era aşa ca o bulă aurie care ne înconjura. Sunt convinsă că mulţi colegi de-ai mei de cor ar zice la fel. Sigur că stilul şi toată energia şi toată starea erau imprimate de dirijor. Cu siguranţă şi faptul că noi eram tineri în permanenţă corul se împrospăta cu studenţi, a participat la atmosfera asta şi la maniera specifică în care se interpretau cântecele.”
SONG era o mare familie, asta spun toţi cei ce au trecut prin acest cor, fie că au fost acolo 6 luni sau 3 ani. Carmen Săndulescu, astăzi realizator de emisiuni la RRI, spune că nu va putea uita niciodată repetiţiile cu SONG: Repetiţiile erau nişte momente deosebite, n-am să le uit niciodată pentru că erau foarte serioase, foarte severe. Glumeam 10 minute, era o atmosferă de gaşcă, de familie, apoi se trecea la lucru foarte serios. Se repeta pe voci, se repetau trei note la nesfârşit, intrările pe scenă… ceea ce ne-a folosit foarte mult în serile în care am avut filmări. Realmente, pentru trei cântece care au apărut la televizor, am intrat şi am ieşit toată noaptea pe scenă şi am cântat toată noaptea. În acel moment, nu prea ne dădeam seama că noi contrastăm cu ce era în jur pentru că eram atât de prinşi în studiu pe deoparte şi în muzică pe de alta… Poate că realizam pe undeva că suntem aparte, pentru că ne spuneau alţii că suntem aparte.”
Raluca Alina Hurduc povesteşte cum erau concertele grupului SONG în ţară: “Am interpretat cântece din folclorul românesc, dar şi negro spirituals, chiar şi colinde cu versurile schimbate. Oanţă mai fabrica nişte versuri la un moment dat pe care le punea pe melodia colindelor şi le cântam aşa pe scenă în anii 80 şi ceva. În sală era un entuziasm extraordinar când recunoşteau colindele astfel camuflate. Cântau, aplaudau. Cred că lecţia cea mai importantă a fost că putem face lucruri pe care să le împărtăşim într-o comuniune, într-o comunitate şi că asta ne face fericiţi. Merită să alocăm timp şi să ieşim din cotidian pentru a fi fericiţi în felul ăsta.”
Cum a fost posibil, în plină revoluţie culturală, când artiştii cu greu mişcau în front, să existe ceva atât de altfel, cum a fost grupul SONG? Printr-un balet delicat, de care puţini erau conştienţi, spune Carmen Săndulescu: Am înţeles că în anii ’80, când s-au cerut explicaţii în legătură cu titulatura, s-a găsit această formulă: Song” nu vine de la cântec, din engleză, ci înseamnă Suntem Oamenii Noii Generaţii. Era undeva aşa un balet între ce trebuia să apară afară şi ce era înăuntru. Nu ştiu în ce măsură toată lumea din Song era conştientă de acest balet. Pentru prima oară mi-am dat seama de realitatea din afara Song-ului în momentul în care s-a pus problema participării la festivalul de la Havana. Havana a tăiat apele, în sensul că din 40 de dosare înaintate pentru plecare au fost aprobate doar 18.”
Sufletul corului, dirijorul şi cel ce ţinea grupul la un loc a fost ucis în mod brutal în propria sa locuinţă în noiembrie 1993. Câteva săptămâni mai târziu, grupul SONG a susţinut ultimul său concert, in memoriam Ioan Luchian Mihalea. După alţi 20 de ani, la începutul lunii martie a acestui an, SONG-ul s-a reunit, într-un spectacol transmis live de TVR. Raluca Alina Hurduc spune că emoţia a trecut dincolo de ecrane: În decurs de mai puţin de o lună am reuşit să ne mobilizăm şi să ne strângem din toate colţurile ţării şi chiar şi din Europa şi să repetăm de vreo 10 ori pentru această emisiune care a venit cumva de sus… A fost nesperat de bine. Ne-am mobilizat şi am cântat ca pe vremuri, sigur, nu perfect, dar nesperat de bine şi frumos. Ne-am bucurat foarte mult şi cred că bucuria asta a trecut cumva dincolo de ecran, aşa, după impresiile pe care le-am cules după emisiune, după telefoanele pe care le-am primit.”
Grupul SONG s-a reunit sub bagheta unui dirijor tânăr, suficient de matur pentru a şti însă ce dirijează: Daniel Jinga: “Auzisem de ei, am crescut cu Song-ul, acum mă bucur că această întâlnire s-a întâmplat. Am cântat împreună, ne-am bucurat şi a fost totul cu nostalgie şi bucurie. Mi s-a cerut de foarte multe ori în ultimii ani să fac un proiect similar SONG-ului. Faptul că anumiţi oameni care simt ce ar vrea publicul mi-au cerut tipul ăsta de proiect mi-arată că el era dorit şi nu mă miră, sunt generaţii întregi care au ascultat muzica asta şi ea va prinde, cu siguranţă şi la generaţia tânără.”
Va mai cânta grupul SONG? Doar timpul ne poate spune.