Band - Costel Vasilescu

and his sounds from a bygone age

Costel Vasilescu When people met at weekends in a Bucharest garden café at the beginning of the twentieth century, there was always a taraf playing. Most of the musicians, who passed on these melodies from generation to generation, adding new pieces orientated around the spirit of the time, were Gypsies like the trumpeter Costel Vasilescu.

"A good instrumentalist plays everything, and no-one ever became number 1 among the Lautari without having played folklore first. Uniquely Romanian music is folk music, at first you learn the Hora and Sirba and then the Gypsy songs which are more difficult to play."

A taraf was made up of violin, cimbalom, guitar, accordion and double bass - and if they were lucky enough to have a good singer, engagements were to be had in Bucharest's better café houses. The best weddings Costel Vasilescu experienced were those of the flower sellers in the Tej, Obor and Colentina quarters of Bucharest. "My father took me along to weddings when I was very young, and there I often saw Romania's greatest trumpeter, Hopa Mitica. He always played with a mute, like an American jazz musician." Costel Vasilescu was born in Bucharest in 1940. Like his idol Hopa Mitica, he furnished his trumpet with a metal or wooden mute depending on the occasion, thus giving this instrument a velvet sound which was compatible with southern Romanian suburban music. Using his trumpet he refined the best Electrecord recordings with "muzica lautareasca".

"I was in the studio again and again with Gabi Lunca, Romica Puceanu or the Gore Brothers, but at the end of the day my name was never on a record cover. It was my fortune that I played this unusual instrument, and that's why people always recognised me straight away."

Vasilescu lived primarily from the wedding business up until the end of the eighties. There were days when the trumpeter only slept for two hours and would then have to carry straight on playing. "Today only modern, electrically amplified bands are invited to weddings, a traditional taraf hardly gets an engagement". With "Jocul Boldenilor" and "Hora Lautareasca" Costel Vasilescu released two songs on Fanfare Ciocarlia's 2001 "Iag Bari" album. This guest performance was a homage to the man, who is considered as one of the big names in the Bucharest scene. "The Fanfare Ciocarlia wind players have this staccato technique; their dances are extremely fast and require this style of play. I also have some of these pieces in my repertoire, but I also play slow and solemn melodies from Oltenia, which have not been played before on the trumpet."

However I am aware that the time of the old Lautari tradition is up, but as long as I can still hold my trumpet I am going to continue playing the "Sounds From A Bygone Age" with my old travelling companions.

Line Up:
Costel Vasilescu, trumpet
Leonard Paun, cymbalon
Georgie Petrachie, vocals & Guitar
Vasile Nasturica, violin
Grigore Ciuciuc, double bass
Nelutu Neagu, vocals & accordeon
Marian Stefan, clarinete