Ion Marin honoured by the French Republic

France’s Ministry of Culture has announced that Romanian conductor Ion Marin is to be awarded the Order of Arts and Letters at the rank of Knight (Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres), one of France’s most important ministerial honours.
The title of Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres will be conferred on the celebrated Romanian musician for his „contribution and commitment to the service of culture”, as stated in the official letter sent by France’s Minister of Culture, Ms Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin.

In an exceptional career of almost 40 years devoted to musical excellence, Ion Marin has also distinguished himself as a leading advocate of French culture, the French-speaking world and universal European values. From 1983 to the present, Ion Marin has conducted more than 150 concerts and opera performances in France.

He has worked with numerous prestigious orchestras in the French-speaking world, including Orchestre national de France, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre national de Lyon, Orchestre de l'Opéra national de Paris Bastille, Orchestre national d'île-de-France, Orchestre national des Pays de la Loire, Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse, Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris and Orchestre Lamoureux.
He has conducted celebrated opera productions at Opéra national de Paris Bastille, Opéra Garnier, Théâtre des Champs – Élysées, Opéra National de Lyon, Opéra de Monte-Carlo and Opéra Nice Côte d'Azur.
He has taken part in prestigious classical music festivals in the French cultural sphere, including Le Festival de Paris, Festival de Saint-Denis, Festival International d'Art Lyrique d'Aix-en-Provence, Festival de Monte-Carlo, Festival de musique de l'Orangerie de Sceaux and Festival Radio France Occitanie Montpellier.

Maestro Ion Marin has also celebrated the spirit and culture of France around the world in more than 50 symphonic concerts and opera performances featuring French composers, on stages in Europe, the United States of America and Japan. During the St Petersburg Philharmonic’s 2019 season, Ion Marin conducted the season’s series dedicated to French music. In September 2019, he conducted a programme of Enescu, Ravel and Debussy with Orchestre National de France in Bucharest, as part of the Great Orchestras of the World section of the „George Enescu” International Festival.
Ion Marin is an outspoken supporter of cultural cooperation between Romania and France. He was among the figures involved in preparing the official inauguration of the Romania – France 2019 Season in Paris and the participation of the National Chamber Choir „Madrigal – Marin Constantin” in the opening concert at Dôme des Invalides in November 2018, in the presence of the President of Romania and officials from the French capital.