What are the thoughts which are brought to you by this beautiful day of your life?

Thank you, because I have been spoiled by you since we know each other and I have known Radio Romania Musical for more than 43 years and during these years our relations have been absolutely wonderful. To be honest, my thoughts are divided: some of them are optimistic and positive, as I am glad that God has helped me reach this age which starts to become enjoyable, being relatively healthy and 'possessing' great achievements. But there are nostalgic and melancholic moments, because perspective is more passive, so to say, because the empty space around me increases, as friends or colleagues from the same generation that is a notorious one left. I certainly hope that, apart from the roles of composition that I have at the Bucharest National Opera House and the occasional collaborations in the country with Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus, next autumn I will happily end my career, and this time the curtain will fall for good, with another Caragiale`s role - as I started 46 years ago singing Venturiano Rică - Dan Dediu`s Trahanache, from 'The Lost Letter' on Ştefan Negrău`s libretto.

Could you say you have a favorite role, which marked your career?

I have several favorite roles and it is well-known that all my roles have been sung, in a way or another, with all my love and power. But above all I love Rodolfo in La Bohème, the title part Faust by Gounod and Des Grieux, in Manon Lescaut by Massenet and surely I cannot ignore Hamlet, which has a special place in my heart - Hamlet, by master Pascal Bentoiu that I sang 41 years ago at absolute first audition and I had sung it years after years until the last time in 1998.

How can one make, from your point of view, a successful musical career and what kind of pieces of advice can you give young artists who aspire to such a career?

You know as well as I do that there are no infallible recipes which can be taken for granted, but surely it is better if there are some details: firstly a generous natural gift, musicality, voice, charm, intelligence and memory. Then there should be a very good health, which is essential for an artist who works in such a competitive profession. Then people should have more discernment, because success is so tricky and you can fall so easily when being hit so hard that you cannot rise again. This profession should be approached with such a great rationality, lucidity and an enormous care. Besides all these, a piece of advice that I have always given to those who have asked me, placing myself on the position of not having taken it into account, as nobody has ever taught me this, is to use a professional manager. I have not done so and therefore, unlike some of my colleagues equally gifted as me, I had a less bright or sonorous career. Do not understand from this that I am discontent, as I am one of the few people who are very happy, but I believe that if I had had an agent in my life, my career would have been more famous.

Thank you very much and let us wish you Happy Birthday and all our good thoughts again.

And I thank you with the same gratitude as always. Beautiful broadcasts, good partners and good times.