Author: Ana-Maria Popescu
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Music Time February 16, 2025
Fane and Bubbles, two of the five members of the Bucharest-based hip-hop collective “Har de Golan,” discuss the group’s first gig and plans for the future.
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Music as an Act of Resistance
From African-American spirituals to music written in Nazi concentration camps, from the hippie music of the 60s to punk rock and hip hop, and from literally countless examples of music created by marginalised communities to openly political protest songs, music has, throughout time, played an exceptional role in giving voice to the voiceless.
The journalist Paul Breazu, who has done exceptional work in researching the broader—cultural, social and even political—impact and significance of music, this weekend took part in the French festival Longueur d’Ondes, one of the world’s leading radio, listening and sound production festivals.
His and other Romanian contributors’ participation in the festival was possible thanks to the support of the French Institute in Romania, the Goethe-Institut and NARDIV (United in Narrative Diversity), a project financed by the EU. The workshops held by Romanian professionals at the 21st edition of the festival in Brest are a reflection of the work done as part of ORIZONT SONOR, the first sound creation festival launched in Constanța in September 2024, programmed by the French Institute, the platform SEMI SILENT and Longueur d’ondes.
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Music Time: Farba Kingdom
After the release of their debut album in 2020, the full-scale invasion of Ukraine forced them to leave their home country and to relocate to Romania, where they are now living and working in another multicultural and inclusive city—Timisoara.
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2024 Olympic Profiles
Before the Olympic Games in Paris, David Popovici was the athlete on whom the vast majority of Romanians’ hopes were pinned. And he did not disappoint. He became the new Olympic champion of the 200m freestyle event and won the bronze in the 100m freestyle race. In Paris, he was the first member of Team Romania to win a gold medal, on Monday, July 29th. His success in the 200m race was also the first Olympic title for Romania in men’s swimming. The girls had won Olympic gold medals in 2000, in Sydney, (Diana Mocanu in the 100m and 200m backstroke), and in 2004, in Athens (Camelia Potec in the 200m freestyle).
In the 200m freestyle final in Paris, David was the most likely to win. He had the best performance of the season, and had achieved the best times in the Olympic qualifiers and semi-finals. But the final was unexpectedly balanced. Germany’s Lukas Maertens, the Olympic 400m champion, started very well, but by mid-race he slowed down. The American Luke Hobson and Britons Matthew Richards and Duncan Scott also seemed able to win, but eventually David Popovici triumphed.
Aged only 19, David thus added to his track record the only medal he was missing, the Olympic one. He had won 2 world champion titles, in Budapest in 2022, and 5 European champion titles: on in Kazan, in 2021, in a short-course pool, and then 2 each in Rome, in 2022 and in Belgrade, this year, in Olympic-size pools.
In the 100m freestyle event, David came out 3rd after a breathtaking final, in which China’s Pan Zhanle broke the world record by 0.40 sec. With 2 medals, gold and bronze, Popovici remains the Romanian athlete with the best individual performance at the Paris Olympics.
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Listener’s Day 2024 on RRI
Welcome to the 2024 edition of Listener’s Day, with Ana Maria Popescu and Lacramioara Simion being the hosts of this year’s show. We are happy that we’ve had the opportunity to approach such a challenging topic and we want to thank all those who have sent in wonderful contributions and all those who are now tuned in to the show.
As you may know from RRI’s announcements, the theme of this year’s show was ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. Together with you, we wanted to look at the advantages and disadvantages of AI, at the way in which AI will change the world, at what the jobs of the future will look like. We asked you to think of real-world examples of AI in various fields, to share personal experiences you have had with AI technologies. We also wanted to look at the ethical implications of AI and its potential impact on jobs, privacy, and society, at your hopes and fears regarding AI’s future, at how reliant we will become on AI and at the authority that should regulate the use of AI and how.
Stay tuned!
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The Sunday Show – June 30, 2024
A special instalment of the Sunday Show, devoted to two anniversaries.
First, we talk to Julien Chiappone-Lucchesi, the head of the French Institute in Romania, an institution which in 2024 celebrates 100 years of existence.
And next, we discuss the 10-year anniversary of KineDok, a programme affiliated to One World Romania which organizes documentary screenings in alternative venues.
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Music Time
The French-Venezuelan electronic-pop artist La Chica performed in Romania this June, as part of Fete de la Music in Bucharest, the Transilvania International Film Festival in Cluj and Rockanotherworld festival in Iasi.
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The International Week of New Music
Dan Dediu, artistic director of SIMN: “We have a duty to bring the young generations to the forefront, to motivate them to keep writing music.”
