Renaissance celebration at the Bethlen Gábor high-school
The Bethlen Gábor high-school’s early music and dance ensemble, the Collegium Gabrielense, was established nearly 20 years ago. The ensemble hosted a renaissance day at the newly inaugurated dormitory of the school on the 16th of June, 2011.
MEP Csaba Sógor, who has been participating in the school’s godparent program that supports the education of children from Szeklerland, was a guest of the event.
The celebration that also served as a festivity for the closing of the school year, had two purposes. The Bethlen Gábor high-school paid homage to the early music and dance ensemble by dressing students in contemporary clothes, playing renaissance music and performing dances of the era. New members of the ensemble had a chance to make their debut. The other goal of the event was to present the skills of the tourism and catering class: guests could taste their cooking at the reception.
- We have a tradition that dates back almost four hundred years in sustaining and developing young talents – said in her opening speech the headmaster of the school, Ildikó Szőcs, who also believes that the values of the school need to be passed on to new generations.
In his greetings, Csaba Sógor said that knowledge, intellectual fulfillment and art are all base values that were present when Transylvania was living its “glorious golden age” at the time of Gábor Bethlen. The Hungarian MEP from Transylvania declared that in those times it was not the wealth of the Principality, but rather the level of literacy amongst the people that defined the strength of the state because the intellectual activities of the time also enhanced the country’s cultural life.
- The renaissance came after a time of crisis, people realized that moral and spiritual values can bring about a change in the life of the society. The values have a great importance to this day because we live not only in an economic, but a moral and social crisis as well. We need to cultivate our souls with literature, dance and music beside learning and amassing knowledge – he explained. Csaba Sógor also stated that he wishes to contribute to the education of more Transylvanian children through the godparent program.
