
Volker Reiter, director of the Interethnic Youth Cultural and Educational Center (ibz) in Sighi?oara, said at Wednesday’s opening of the 21st ProEtnica Intercultural Festival that his inspiration for the event came from Russian literature, through Dostoevsky, the philosophy of Vladimir Solovyov, and the Romanian folk ballad Miorita, which he called „a kind of Romanian gospel.”
„Allow me to share a few personal reflections that moved and inspired me to create this festival. I admit: I am influenced by Russian literature – by Dostoevsky and philosopher Vladimir Solovyov – but also by the Romanian folk ballad Miorita, which for me is a kind of Romanian gospel. We are all born into a certain culture, an ethnicity, a language. That is a valuable starting point in our development. But the goal is not to remain confined there. Our task is to transcend the boundaries of our own ethnic identity and enrich our soul with those of others. This is precisely what we celebrate at…