Gheorghe_Zamfir.jpg
Gheorghe Zamfir -Dracula Opera
Gheorghe Zamfir Biography
Gheorghe Zamfir (pronounced [ˈge̯orge zamˈfir] in Romanian; born April 6, 1941) is a Romanian pan flute musician who has received 120 golden and platinum disc awards and sold over 40 million albums [1]. He is widely known as "Zamfir, Master of the Pan Flute".
Zamfir is known for playing an expanded version of the traditional Romanian-style pan flute (nai) of 20 pipes to 22, 25, 28 and 30 pipes to increase its range, and obtaining as many as nine tones from each pipe by changing the embouchure.
Zamfir came to the public eye when he was "discovered" by Swiss ethnomusicologist Marcel Cellier who extensively researched Romanian folk music in the 1960s. Largely through television commercials where he was billed as "Zamfir, Master of the Pan Flute", he introduced the folk instrument to a modern audience and revived it from obscurity. In the United States his commercials were widely seen on CNN in the 1980s.
Famous Works
Selected discography
The Fantastic Gheorghe Zamfir , CBS, 1971.
Solitude , Philips, 1973.
The Light of Experience , Epic, 1975.
Picnic at Hanging Rock , Epic, 1977.
Impressions , Epic, 1977.
Music by Candle , Philips, 1979.
Classics by Candlelight , PolyGram, 1980.
The Lonely Shepherd , PolyGram, 1980.
Rocking-Chair , Mercury, 1981.
Romance of the Panflute , Philips, 1982.
Christmas with Gheorghe Zamfir , Philips, 1984.
Harmony , Philips, 1984.
Fantasy: Romantic Favorites of the Pan Flute , Mercury, 1985.
Colors , PolyGram, 1990.
Love Songs , PolyGram, 1991.
Masterpieces of the Pan Flute , Sound, 1992.
Pan Flute Improvisations , Sound, 1992.
Pan Flute Melodies , Sound, 1992.
Gypsy Passion , Special Music, 1995.
Greatest Hits , Delta/Laserlight, 1998.
Love Themes from the Movies , BCI, 1998.
Folksongs from Romania , Delta/Laserlight, 1999.
Millennium Collection , Millennium, 2002.
Best Selection , Universal, 2002.
Further Reading
Sources
Books
Broughton, Simon, et al., editors, World Music Volume 1: Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, The Rough Guides, 1999.
Richardson, Dan, and Tim Burford, Romania: The Rough Guide, The Rough Guides, 1995.
Periodicals
People, November 24, 1986, p. 140.
Wall Street Journal, August 9, 1989, p. A1.
Online
"Gheorghe Zamfir, Musician, Pan-Flute Virtuoso," Romania On Line, http://romania-on-line.net/whoswho/ZamfirGheorghe.htm (November 22, 2002).
"History of the Panflute," http://www.pan-flute.com/history.html (November 22, 2002).
"Origin of the DAJOERI-Panpipe and Panpipe School," http://www.dajoeri.com/entwicke.html (November 22, 2002).
"Zamfir blowing his flute," Jam! Shobiz, http://jam.canoe.ca/JamAlbumsZ/zamfir_gheorghe_romance.html (November 22, 2002).