When in Romania ...

The Sala Palatului, Bucharest

The BBC Symphony Orchestra have been visiting Romania. Sub-principal viola Phil Hall suggests that the concert hall experience might just be a bit better for radio listeners than those in the hall ...

Last week the orchestra travelled to Bucharest for two concerts closing their first International festival of Radio Orchestras, 'RadioRo'. The Sala Palatului (Palace Hall, 1960) is very large (seating over 4000) and was built as a huge conference hall in the Communist era.

Unfortunately the acoustics are as dry as the Atacama desert but they have tried to improve things electronically by inserting microphones into the ceiling. However the setting is stuck on 'Rock music' and as a result, from where we sit on the stage, a kind of Wah-Wah effect is noticeable, particularly after a loud chord. It is also hotter than Hades in the hall which becomes particularly trying in the long symphonies by Schubert and Shostakovich we have brought with us. But the large audience is so warm and attentive that it is a real pleasure to play for them. German violinist Viviane Hagner wows them with Bruch's beautiful Scottish Fantasy and local legend Dan Grigore is swamped with flowers after Rachmaninov's Paganini Variations.

Both concerts are sold out and are also being televised. As a gesture

to our hosts we open them with Georges Enescu's colourful Romanian

Rhapsodies. Each one features viola solos and Norbert Blume adds so

much character to them that the president of Romanian TV (no less)

asks him at the post-concert reception if he is a gypsy!

We celebrate Norbert's inner gypsy in the oldest beer hall, the Caru

cu Bere (1879), a huge, vaulted traditional Romanian restaurant that

seats 750 people. With hundreds queuing to get in, we are lucky to get

a table outside in a balmy 30 degrees centigrade (not bad for late

September). The menu is vast, like a broadsheet newspaper, and we feast

on wonderful local delicacies of tripe soup, and Moldavian Stew. The

waitresses wear colourful costumes and bands and dancers are in full

swing inside. We think about joining in... Well, when in Romania...

• Listen to music from the concerts on the BBC iPlayer
• Visit the BBC Symphony Orchestra home page
• Visit the home page of Radio Romania International