The '2010 Culture Week' is the event organized during September 5^th and 10^th by the National Bank of Romania, on the occasion of its 130^th anniversary. Conductor Horia Andreescu, pianist Andrei Licareţ, the members of 'RARO' Ensemble and soprano Felicia Filip - here are a few of the artists who have been invited to perform during this Culture Week.

Due to the kindness of Mr. Adrian Vasilescu, advisor to the Governor of the National Bank of Romania, we have been able to find out the details of the events planned by the National Bank for the 2010 anniversary year.

Dear Mr. Adrian Vasilescu, the National Bank of Romania is celebrating the 130^th anniversary of its establishment this year. It is an important moment, a moment which the institution has chosen to highlight by organizing culture days. Why an artistic celebration?

This is not mainly an artistic celebration. It is a celebration spanning almost a year (that is from April - when we celebrated the actual anniversary of the National Bank - onwards). Series of events have been organized - mostly scientific events: debates, symposiums, book launches, research launches, analysis meetings taking place at the National Bank headquarters, gathering attendees from the economic, business or academic world. Therefore, the series of cultural events organized by the National Bank during this anniversary year was harmoniously complemented by financial and banking debates and events.

Let us talk a little bit about the Culture Week you are organizing starting on September 5^th. It is a week that includes two music nights - one of them featuring symphonic music and the other one chamber music, a photography exhibition, a performance by maestro Radu Beligan and another performance - a dancing performance this time - by Răzvan Mazilu.

Indeed, but let us not forget about Saturday - a day which is entirely dedicated to an international symposium gathering about seventy personalities from all over the world: governors, vice-governors, heads of large financial institutions, heads of research institutes, IMF missions representatives who have checked Romania's economic activity over the years.

Thus, we are not getting far from the cultural world, considering that if - as the late Grigore Moisil once said - 'from Latin being regarded as an all-round education criterion, it has come to Math being regarded as such a criterion', nowadays the whole world knows that one of the all-round education main criteria is economy. And we are talking about economic culture nowadays, about credit culture, financial culture and a lot of activities that involve economy intersecting the cultural world.

Therefore, the scope of all-round education has expanded. Back to the Culture Week organized by the National Bank of Romania: what can you tell us about the inaugural concert?

I believe this concert will be an amazing event. Over seventy personalities of the financial world will be attending the event at the Romanian Athenaeum Hall (the Romanian president will be there, as well as Mr. Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank). It will be an outstanding concert, featuring the Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Horia Andreescu, as well as a, I would say, remarkable young soloist - Andrei Licareţ - and several works that will enchant not only the audience, but the whole country, as the concert is to be broadcast live on Radio Romania Music and on the Cultural TV Station. Works by George Enescu will be performed, as well as An der schönen blauen Donau e by Johann Strauss Jr. and other Romanian musical pieces, among which Hora Staccato by Grigoraş Dinicu. I think the latter will also be the last work to be performed in the concert. I therefore wish you a pleasant evening along with us, Radio Romania Music and Cultural TV Station.

The programme is extremely alluring. Was it suggested by the Bank's representatives or by the artists?

It was what economy now calls 'collaboration' - collaboration representing the basis for every strategy: management and leadership as well. Nowadays we can no longer refer to economy without mentioning this triad: management, leadership and collaboration. It was a close collaboration between us and the Philharmonic, as well as between us and maestro Nicolae Licareţ, the artistic director of the Philharmonic.