Romanian writer, musicologist, and jazz critic Virgil Mihaiu, professor of jazz aesthetics at the State Music Academy “G. Dima” in Cluj, will give a lecture titled “Jazz and the Orient” as part of the “Jazz Appreciation Month in Montenegro,” on Thursday, April 17, at 7 PM in the Multimedia Hall of KIC “Budo Tomović.”
The lecture follows the main theme of this year’s festival, “Jazz Est & West,” and contributes to a broader perspective on jazz as an art form that has, for decades, spread and influenced artists in the countries of the Middle East and Far East. The reciprocal influences and the richness of their ethnos that Eastern musicians have brought to jazz are also an important part of the story about cultural and musical influences, intertwinings, and dialogue.
The esteemed professor Mihaiu is a frequent guest of the JAM festival, contributing to the educational segment of the program through relevant topics, always affirming jazz in lesser-known countries. The lecture will be held in English, along with audio and video examples. Professor Mihaiu’s guest appearance is supported by the Embassy of Romania in Montenegro.
About the lecturer
A writer, jazz critic, contributor to numerous jazz magazines, participant in many jazz festivals and concerts, promoter of Romanian jazz and jazz in lesser-known regions, author of books on jazz, and producer of radio and television programs about jazz, Virgil Mihaiu has been teaching jazz aesthetics for years at the State Music Academy “G. Dima” in Cluj. He is the founder and director of the Cultural Center “Casa do Brasil” and the Latin American Library at the University of Cluj. He is also the editor of the “Jazz Context” section in the monthly cultural magazine “ Steaua”, published by the Romanian Writers’ Union. The same Union honored his book “My Jazz Context” by naming it the Book of the Year for 2022.
Since 1993, he has been an honorary associate of the Jazz Journalists Association of the United States, and since 1996, a member of the Romanian PEN Club. In 1997, he founded the Department of Jazz and became a professor of the subject Jazz Aesthetics at the Music Academy in Cluj. Since 1998, he has been an honorary member of the Czech-Romanian Cultural Association. In 1999, he became a member of the “Down Beat Jazz” critics club, and since 2001, a member of the editorial board of Down Beat magazine in Chicago. He earned his PhD with a study-monograph on F. Scott Fitzgerald. He was a jury member for the “European Jazz Prize” in Vienna, part of the editorial team of the culture magazine “Tribuna.” In 2006, he served as director of the Romanian Cultural Institute in Lisbon and as an advisor at the Romanian Embassy in Portugal. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors.