Flickr - fusion-of-horizons - George Enescu memorial house

The Luminiș Villa, George Enescu Memorial House is located in the Cumpătu district, the only suburb of

Sinaia Sinaia () is a town and a mountain resort in Prahova County, Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Muntenia. The town was named after the Sinaia Monastery of 1695, around which it was built. The monastery, in turn, is named aft ...

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

. The villa is situated on the right bank of Prahova River. It was owned by the Romanian composer and musician

George Enescu George Enescu (; – 4 May 1955), known in France as Georges Enesco, was a Romanian composer, violinist, conductor and teacher. Regarded as one of the greatest musicians in Romanian history, Enescu is featured on the Romanian five lei. Biogr ...

(1881–1955). The villa was built between 1923 and 1926 by architect Radu Dudescu, and is an example of Neo-Brâncovenesc style.

History

The town of Sinaia and Luminiș Villa held a special significance for Enescu, who considered them his places of refuge. Enescu was both sentimentally and professionally connected to this town, mainly due to Queen Elisabeth's support of his musical career. Relatively isolated among the Bucegi Mountains, Luminiș Villa become his main retreat. The villa is furnished and decorated with elements from both

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language ** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...

and Asian cultures. The marble bust of Enescu, situated at the entrance into the villa, is the work of Ion Irimescu. Enescu lived at the villa from 1926 until 1946. After permanently leaving Romania due to the political events of the post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

era, Enescu signed a document in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

donating his Luminiș Villa as a cultural house, conceived as a rest and recuperation shelter for Romanian and foreign artists. In 1990, Luminiș Villa underwent renovations, as part of a 5-year restoration and conservation project for cultural buildings put forth by the

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: *Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) *Ministry of Culture (Argentina) *Minister for the Arts (Australia) *Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan) * Ministry of ...

and by the European Culture Centre of Sinaia. On September 5, 1995, during the

George Enescu Festival The George Enescu Festival (also known as George Enescu International Festival and Competition), held in honor of the celebrated Romanian composer George Enescu, is the biggest classical music festival and classical international competition hel ...

, Luminiș Villa officially became a memorial site. {{DEFAULTSORT:Luminis Music museums Sinaia Biographical museums in Romania Music organizations based in Romania Houses completed in 1926 Buildings and structures in Prahova County Museums in Prahova County