Aug 082009
A group of tourists is listening to their guide in front of one of Bucharest’s most beautiful buildings: the Romanian Athenaeum. This concert hall was built in 1888 in neoclassical style after a design by the French architect Albert Galleron. The project was conceived by the diplomat Constantin Exarcu and a portion of the money for the completion of the building were gathered in a public collection in which people were asked to “give a leu for the Athenaeum” (The “leu” being the currency of Romania). With its 40 m high dome and the eight Ionic columns it resembles an ancient temple. The Athenaeum is the place to hear classical music in Bucharest. The resident orchestra is George Enescu Philarmonic.