The Romantic Project - the second winter edition of the Allegra Festival, which will be held from February 8 to 11, 2026 at the Central Military Club, offers four exceptional concert evenings, created with artistic precision and a clearly formulated concept, the center of which is Romanticism.
Within the framework of "The Romantic Project", soloists and chamber musicians, awarded with prestigious international awards, will meet on stage. Among them are violinist Dmytro Udovichenko, winner of the "Queen Elizabeth" Violin Competition, pianist Emanuel Ivanov, laureate of the "Ferruccio Busoni" Competition, violinist Valery Sokolov, Grand Prix winner of the "George Enescu" Competition, violinist Lora Markova, first prize winner of the "Tibor Varga Junior" Competition in Switzerland, violist Paul Ziantara, awarded the Safran Foundation for Music Prize, as well as cellist Barna Karoy, winner of the international cellist competition “David Popper“.
The big star on the Military Club stage in this edition is the Ukrainian violinist Dmytro Udovichenko — laureate of the international competitions in Montreal, Jan Sibelius, Josef Joachim and Singapore. By winning first prize at the "Queen Elizabeth" Violin Competition in 2024, Udovichenko ascends to the top of the world violin Olympus, alongside names such as David Oistrakh, Leonid Kogan and Vadim Repin. He is the heir to a tradition that began with Brahms' favorite violinist Josef Joachim, passed through Auer and Yankelevich and reached his teacher - the legendary Boris Garlicky, one of the great friends of the Allegra festival.
The festival audience will have the opportunity to enjoy Udovichenko's talent on February 10th and 11th, and the music of Felix Mendelssohn is present as a thin red thread that delicately connects the four concert evenings.
Concert program:
February 8th – “Lights and Shadows”
The first evening of the festival presents an impressive dialogue between two geniuses.
Quartet No. 3 by Felix Mendelssohn brings transparency and lightness, while Piano Quartet No. 1 by Johannes Brahms unfolds a deep romantic drama with a fiery finale in the Rondo alla Zingarese. Together, the two works outline a colorful musical landscape — a meeting between light and passion, grace and expressiveness.
Performed by Emanuel Ivanov, Valery Sokolov, Lora Markova, Paul Ziantara and Barna Karoy.
February 9 ”Ecstasy on the Edge of the Abyss”
The program goes through the passion of tango and the expressiveness of Weil, Bloch, Eisler, Ravel and Kapustin. The arrangements for cello and piano transform each work into a miniature with the dramatic depth and virtuoso scope with which the duo Runge and Amon have long won the hearts of the Allegra audience.
February 10 – “The Dawn Tide”
The traditional festive evening of the Allegra Festival brings all the performers together on one stage. Together they will present a program in which the Sextet in D major, op. 110 by Mendelssohn takes center stage — a work bearing all the hallmarks of his early genius: vitality, freshness and sincere emotionality.
The audience will also have the opportunity to hear the premiere of the Piano Quintet by Emanuil Ivanov — a work created on the initiative of Petar Naydenov. As he himself shares, the idea was born spontaneously during their joint concert within last year's festival edition - The Beethoven Project.
A gift – a surprise for the festival audience of AllegraePiano Quintet in C minorRalph Vaughan Williams (1872–1958)– first performance in Bulgaria.
February 11 – “Bridge Between the Ages”
The closing evening presents a wonderful program with two of the masterpieces of Romanticism: the Violin Concerto in E minor by Felix Mendelssohn and the Fourth Symphony by Johannes Brahms.
The soloist will be Dmytro Udovichenko, and the Allegra Festival Orchestra will partner him under the baton of Johannes Schläfli.
Details about the concert program and soloists, as well as tickets can be found at https://allegrafestival.com/bg/concerts/2026-winter/.
Allegra Festival is held under the patronage of the Embassy of Switzerland and is realized with the financial support of the National Fund “Culture”, Ministry of Culture, Italian Cultural Institute, Liszt Institute – Hungarian Cultural Institute and in partnership with the National Music Academy “Lyubomir Pipkov»
