Vasile Foica / Fojka László - Hungarian Pop & Classic Music from Romania

Do you like complex, well written, virtuosic music? Is classical your thing, but do you also crave some rocking out rhythms, swaying to the sounds of electric guitar and percussive attacks? With some Jethro Tull-ish flute thrown in for good measure? Then not only are you aware of the entangled story of classical and pop music during the second half of the twentieth century, but you also NEED to check out this record.

The name of Vasile Foica / Fojka László might not sound too familiar to diggers from outside Romania. Romanian prog rock and classical music fans know him as the member of legendary, but still well hidden bands, such as Miraj, or Ethos. Or as the artistic director of the Oradea State Philharmonic, with which he also performed as flutist and went on numerous tours across Romania and around the world.

However, if you think classical and pop are just incomplete tags for musical journeys, which know few boundaries, if you are one of those Deep Purple fans who rank the “Concerto for Group and Orchestra” as one of the band’s most accomplished and experimental records, then you must give the tracks on this platform a good listen and then quickly snatch the record and add it to your collection of mind opening releases.

What you are about to experience sonically on this record is indicative for the music transformations that swept around the world at a time when rock bands blended symphonic music, jazz, blues, and when classically trained musicians remained rockers at their hearts. Even more, this musical voyage was the undertaking of an ethnic Hungarian in socialist and post socialist Romania and shows the cultural melting pot that Transylvania was and still remains. While listening to this musical portrait, you will hear how eclectic Foica’s voyage has been. From early collaborations with prog bands, former band colleagues, or jazz ensembles, such as the Marius Popp Band & Strings, to contemporary performances of classical pieces of music (Debussy’s pivotal “Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune”) with the Oradea State Philharmonic, this record is more than a testimony to one of Romania’s most accomplished classical rockers and overall (composer/performer) musicians. It is a statement that good music knows no geographical, cultural, or ethnic barriers. More than this, it is also solid proof that the best prerequisite for good music is a comprehensive milieu. In simpler words, this record will blow your minds in loop mode.

Last but not least, the music on this record is complemented visually by the stunning art of Barna Fazakas, and completed by accounts written by composer and music critic Zoltán Boros, conductor Ferenc Gábor and historian Claudiu Oancea. Audio remastering and production duties undertaken by Remus Miron.

(promotional text by Claudiu Oancea)

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180gr. DMM (Direct Metal Mastering)
Made in France
MSRP €20