When did you start making music and what was the contributor factor that made you to do so?
Hello there. I wanted to play music since I was very young. I guess this wish was running in my blood from early ages. The general climate in Romania back in the communist regime was not friendly at all to artists, not to mention that there few musical instruments available and the quality of those one could find, was very questionable. So, I started my musical journey with a DIY approach by creating first the instruments and the gear I wanted to play. The first attempt to create a guitar was when I was very young, probably 8 years old and it was not a success. The first functional guitar I managed to play was a modified acoustic guitar, which became a single cut hollow electric guitar. I remember I was wiring for hours on that coil of the pickup, but after many hours it was functional. It was a very unstable guitar, but it was functional. This happened when I was twelve. Then I started building guitar effects and amplifiers.
My first band was formed in ‘91 – ‘92 and it was called Hell Survivor and we tried to play a sort of very rudimentar thrash – death.
How hard was it for you to create, record and release your first material?
We started recording our rehearsals with tape recorders, like most of the bands in the 90’s. But the first studio recording was recorded in ‘95, with my band called Makrothumia and it was called “Four stories about… nothing”. We recorded and mixed 4 songs in 6 hours. In the same year we recorded “From Transilvanian Forest”, with Wiccan Rede. Here we recorded and mixed 6 songs in 8 hours.
We rehearsed in improvised places, with improvised instruments, on improvised gear. I remember that the first show I played, we put together all the gear and equipment we had and could borrow and made a gig. I have to say that it was awesome. The enthusiasm was great and I don’t regret living those periods.
The main problem was that on those days in Romania there were no specialized studios for rock, not to talk about metal music. So, knowledge was an issue from both sides: engineers and also musicians. We didn’t know how to create what we wanted to hear, sound wise. This is the main reason I became a sound engineer.
The second issue was the equipment. We had very few instruments that could be suited for recordings in the underground music. And the situation of my bands was not even that dramatic. I remember that we used to borrow our instruments and pedals all the time, especially at live events.
All these materials were self released. In 96 we convinced a music shop owner to release our tapes and this is how Bestial Records was born.
What is the main art form that influenced you in creating? Was it only music or did movies and other forms of art influenced your creative process?
My main influence was my inner drive. I knew I had to make music. I never really had the strong wish to sound like a particular band, or to write music out of social contexts. To be honest, I wanted to integrate spirituality in music, since the beginning, even if it wasn’t that clear in the beginning.
What are the steps that an idea takes before becoming a fully fledged song? And how does that idea affects the way you build an album from the ground up?
Over the years I wrote mainly conceptual albums. In my case everything started with creating a concept for an album. Of course we already had some parts or even songs that we already rehearsed, but I would say that only a specific percentage of the music I composed was actually included on albums, simply because it was not fitting and supporting the concept of the album. Most of the musical parts were shaped to express what was intended in the concept. And of course, in the beginning the ability of shaping an album towards the concept was not yet mastered. But in time, I became better and better in doing it and I still have lots to learn in this regard. So, it’s a never ending learning process.
What do you consider the most important traits that a song and an album must have before you consider it to be completed?
In my case it would be the intention of the message. I personally don’t like to fool around with stupid aims or weird ambitions. It’s like this, because I strongly believe that the music one creates is actually the tribute one pays to life itself. The intention of the music actually makes the difference.
What are the actual steps that you take when you are creating? Do you need to enter or go to a certain setting in order to get creative?
I personally don’t have any specific settings. The most important thing for me, nowadays, is to have the time to do sustained work. In my case it’s not really working, to do today one hour, tomorrow two and so on. I need time to be able to settle my feelings, to set my mind at ease and to focus on what I want to write. I also discovered that meditation helps and makes me creative.
Except art are there any other external or internal factors that influence you when you create, if so what are they?
Nothing i could point out right now.
What is your main motivation to create and be creative?
The only factor that keeps me still doing music is my inner drive to offer people and myself some beneficial states of mind and to bring something creative that might inspire people to a nice direction.
How long does it take to go from a song to an album from scratch to the fully recorded version?
That’s a process one can never quantize. Each song had different dynamics on how it gets materialized. There are actually a couple of steps which always differ on how much it takes to be complete. It’s the concept / idea behind that needs to be shaped in my mind, then it needs to find a musical form, then it needs to be recorded, mixed and mastered. All this takes a lot of time in my case, unfortunately 🙂
Do you take multiple takes of the songs before settling on the final version or do you go with the flow and just do one take?
I usually spend lots of time in recording takes after takes until I settle for the right one. But sometimes you find out that the first take was the best one.
During live shows what do you like to do more, experiment and improvise on the basis of the existing album and songs or you are more likely to recreate the recorded material as faithfully as possible?
We always play the songs that are the adapted version of the songs one finds on our albums. We can’t reproduce live all the instruments included on the album, simply because our logistic situation can’t allow it. To put on stage all that’s on the albums we would probably need more than 8 people, which is something we can’t afford right now.
What are the main ingredients that makes a live show special for you?
It’s usually about the feeling generated during the show. There’s always a mix between what I personally experience and how the audience is reacting to our energy on stage. Sometimes things get magical…
Do new ideas appear during live performances? If so how to do you proceed in order to materialize them?
In my case not really. During a live performance I’m very focused on what I do.
What is the perfect time of day and weather that makes you creative?
I’m sorry, but i don’t have such a thing.
What are your future plans and what advice do you have for people that want to get into creating music?
Well, I really hope to be able to create the possibility in my daily life to have some time to invest in writing a new material for Dordeduh. This should happen next month.
My advices could sound a bit cliche, but that’s the way I feel about it. First of all, a musician should search and define his own path, but should not wait until he finds it, because most of the time what one experiences on the path is more important than the path itself; and to be very truthful towards what one wants because that will actually shape the whole experience through life.
Thank you!
When did you start making music and what was the contributor factor that made you to do so?
Hello there. I wanted to play music since I was very young. I guess this wish was running in my blood from early ages. The general climate in Romania back in the communist regime was not friendly at all to artists, not to mention that there few musical instruments available and the quality of those one could find, was very questionable. So, I started my musical journey with a DIY approach by creating first the instruments and the gear I wanted to play. The first attempt to create a guitar was when I was very young, probably 8 years old and it was not a success. The first functional guitar I managed to play was a modified acoustic guitar, which became a single cut hollow electric guitar. I remember I was wiring for hours on that coil of the pickup, but after many hours it was functional. It was a very unstable guitar, but it was functional. This happened when I was twelve. Then I started building guitar effects and amplifiers.
My first band was formed in ‘91 – ‘92 and it was called Hell Survivor and we tried to play a sort of very rudimentar thrash – death.
How hard was it for you to create, record and release your first material?
We started recording our rehearsals with tape recorders, like most of the bands in the 90’s. But the first studio recording was recorded in ‘95, with my band called Makrothumia and it was called “Four stories about… nothing”. We recorded and mixed 4 songs in 6 hours. In the same year we recorded “From Transilvanian Forest”, with Wiccan Rede. Here we recorded and mixed 6 songs in 8 hours.
We rehearsed in improvised places, with improvised instruments, on improvised gear. I remember that the first show I played, we put together all the gear and equipment we had and could borrow and made a gig. I have to say that it was awesome. The enthusiasm was great and I don’t regret living those periods.
The main problem was that on those days in Romania there were no specialized studios for rock, not to talk about metal music. So, knowledge was an issue from both sides: engineers and also musicians. We didn’t know how to create what we wanted to hear, sound wise. This is the main reason I became a sound engineer.
The second issue was the equipment. We had very few instruments that could be suited for recordings in the underground music. And the situation of my bands was not even that dramatic. I remember that we used to borrow our instruments and pedals all the time, especially at live events.
All these materials were self released. In 96 we convinced a music shop owner to release our tapes and this is how Bestial Records was born.
What is the main art form that influenced you in creating? Was it only music or did movies and other forms of art influenced your creative process?
My main influence was my inner drive. I knew I had to make music. I never really had the strong wish to sound like a particular band, or to write music out of social contexts. To be honest, I wanted to integrate spirituality in music, since the beginning, even if it wasn’t that clear in the beginning.
What are the steps that an idea takes before becoming a fully fledged song? And how does that idea affects the way you build an album from the ground up?
Over the years I wrote mainly conceptual albums. In my case everything started with creating a concept for an album. Of course we already had some parts or even songs that we already rehearsed, but I would say that only a specific percentage of the music I composed was actually included on albums, simply because it was not fitting and supporting the concept of the album. Most of the musical parts were shaped to express what was intended in the concept. And of course, in the beginning the ability of shaping an album towards the concept was not yet mastered. But in time, I became better and better in doing it and I still have lots to learn in this regard. So, it’s a never ending learning process.
What do you consider the most important traits that a song and an album must have before you consider it to be completed?
In my case it would be the intention of the message. I personally don’t like to fool around with stupid aims or weird ambitions. It’s like this, because I strongly believe that the music one creates is actually the tribute one pays to life itself. The intention of the music actually makes the difference.
What are the actual steps that you take when you are creating? Do you need to enter or go to a certain setting in order to get creative?
I personally don’t have any specific settings. The most important thing for me, nowadays, is to have the time to do sustained work. In my case it’s not really working, to do today one hour, tomorrow two and so on. I need time to be able to settle my feelings, to set my mind at ease and to focus on what I want to write. I also discovered that meditation helps and makes me creative.
Except art are there any other external or internal factors that influence you when you create, if so what are they?
Nothing i could point out right now.
What is your main motivation to create and be creative?
The only factor that keeps me still doing music is my inner drive to offer people and myself some beneficial states of mind and to bring something creative that might inspire people to a nice direction.
How long does it take to go from a song to an album from scratch to the fully recorded version?
That’s a process one can never quantize. Each song had different dynamics on how it gets materialized. There are actually a couple of steps which always differ on how much it takes to be complete. It’s the concept / idea behind that needs to be shaped in my mind, then it needs to find a musical form, then it needs to be recorded, mixed and mastered. All this takes a lot of time in my case, unfortunately 🙂
Do you take multiple takes of the songs before settling on the final version or do you go with the flow and just do one take?
I usually spend lots of time in recording takes after takes until I settle for the right one. But sometimes you find out that the first take was the best one.
During live shows what do you like to do more, experiment and improvise on the basis of the existing album and songs or you are more likely to recreate the recorded material as faithfully as possible?
We always play the songs that are the adapted version of the songs one finds on our albums. We can’t reproduce live all the instruments included on the album, simply because our logistic situation can’t allow it. To put on stage all that’s on the albums we would probably need more than 8 people, which is something we can’t afford right now.
What are the main ingredients that makes a live show special for you?
It’s usually about the feeling generated during the show. There’s always a mix between what I personally experience and how the audience is reacting to our energy on stage. Sometimes things get magical…
Do new ideas appear during live performances? If so how to do you proceed in order to materialize them?
In my case not really. During a live performance I’m very focused on what I do.
What is the perfect time of day and weather that makes you creative?
I’m sorry, but i don’t have such a thing.
What are your future plans and what advice do you have for people that want to get into creating music?
Well, I really hope to be able to create the possibility in my daily life to have some time to invest in writing a new material for Dordeduh. This should happen next month.
My advices could sound a bit cliche, but that’s the way I feel about it. First of all, a musician should search and define his own path, but should not wait until he finds it, because most of the time what one experiences on the path is more important than the path itself; and to be very truthful towards what one wants because that will actually shape the whole experience through life.
Thank you!
