Pianist and composer Ștefan Stoianovici will perform at the Romanian Athenaeum's Small Hall on Wednesday, October 15th, in two consecutive shows at 7:00 PM and 8:30 PM. He will present his own work, The Story of 1900. A Jazz Suite. More about this project in the interview below, conducted by Viorel Grecu.

What is the story behind The Story of 1900? You've already presented it several times in public.

Before this concert, I had the opportunity to work on the stage play Novecento by Alessandro Baricco, adapted for the stage by Daniel Simion. That production combined two complementary layers - drama and music - that supported each other. In Novecento, music serves as an aid to the story. My idea with The Story of 1900 was to reverse that relationship: here, music takes center stage, while the dramaturgical and visual layers accompany it. From Baricco's original text, which spans about twenty pages, I condensed everything into a single page that preserves its poetic essence, with just a few key lines. The story is divided into seven tableaux, each encapsulating roughly two lines from the original narrative. The text is still delivered by Vlad Udrescu, who appears in the background as a kind of ghostly presence - a diffuse memory of the original tale. In this way, the story of Novecento - or "1900" - becomes merely a pretext for the music, reshaped as a jazz suite. Another intriguing element of this project is how visual design and live performance interact. Together with Andrei Cozlac and Radu Marțin, we developed a system in which the background imagery reacts in real time to our improvisations. Andrei and Radu created these video templates, which they modify differently from one performance to another, depending on the direction the music takes.

Who are the artists you're collaborating with for The Story of 1900?

The lineup includes Paolo Profeti on alto and soprano saxophone, Sergiu Bivol on trumpet, Bogdan Tănase and Lucas Contreras alternating on guitar, Gabi Matei and Cristian Florea on drums, and Adrian Flautistu on bass. The visual design is handled by Andrei Cozlac and Radu Marțin, Vlad Udrescu provides the recited text, and Costinela Caraene oversees production, promotion, and management.

What does this performance mean to you, as both composer and performer, on the stage of the Romanian Athenaeum?

Now that I think about it, I've never actually performed on the Athenaeum stage before - only had one of my compositions performed there about two years ago. So yes, I'm really excited, especially since we'll be playing two concerts on the same evening, which is not something that happens very often.

Are there plans to release the suite as an album? Should we expect a jazz record from you - The Story of 1900 or perhaps other works?

Yes, in fact, this concert at the Athenaeum will be professionally recorded, and we plan to release a live album, at least on streaming platforms. After the mixing and mastering process, we'll decide how to handle the official album launch.