Fanfare Zimbrul
Their tempo is breathtakingly fast, their
instruments dented and beloved, and their music gets you off
your feet: the up-to 13 person Romanian Gypsy brass band from
Chetris (a tiny village having less than two hundred Gypsy
inhabitants) is the number one address in their hometown for
births, weddings and funerals. They are even at hand to help out
desperate lovers by serenading sweethearts under their windows.
They articulate the many-facetted rhythms and harmonies of the
Romanian dances with an impressive perfection. Fanfare Zimbrul
is rooted in the tradition of Speed-Gypsy-Brass music, which
developed out of the Turkish military brass bands in the early
19th century during the reign of the Ottomans. Fanfare Zimbrul
is one of the most famous Gypsy brass bands of the Moldavian
part of Romania, which is north of the Carpathians and borders
on the Ukraine. The group is made up of 13 musicians who are
mostly related to each other. They play traditional Romanian
music, handed down from generation to generation.
The group was named official representative of brass music in
their homeland - the region Lasi - in the summer of 2002.
Fanfare Zimbrul played for over 20,000 people at Emir Kusturica
& The No Smoking Orchestra's concert in Bucharest in 2001.
Following that concert they were invited to the international
theatre festival in Sibiu, Romania and finally had their first
tour through Germany and Belgium in the summer of 2002.
