Untitled - Tarom

COVER STORY
48
18 oameni / 18 people: Damian and Brothers
® Joe Cocker, Cindy Lauper [i Shaggy, pentru
c‚te 30 de concerte `n Belgia, Olanda, Germania
[i Fran]a. ~n Fran]a se schimba componen]a,
eram eu, Zucchero, Gypsy Kings,
Natasha Saint-Pier [i Chimene Badi. ~n
fiecare sear\ c‚ntam `n fa]a a 25.000-30.000 de
oameni, `n s\li uria[e. A fost visul vie]ii mele.
ANUL ACESTA TE-A ADUS ~N ROMÂNIA
FILMUL...
Lucrez la un documentar despre ]igani,
despre talentul acestei etnii. Se `nt‚mpl\ `n
nou\ ]\ri [i `n fiecare petrec c‚te trei sau
patru zile cu un l\utar. ~i aleg pe cei virtuo[i,
la bas, acordeon, ]ambal, vioar\ [i observ
via]a lor personal\: ce fac, cum se comport\,
tot ce li `nt‚mpl\. C‚nd pun m‚na pe instrument,
sunt uimitori. Am ales Rom‚nia, Ungaria,
Spania, Fran]a, Bulgaria, Iugoslavia,
Grecia, Rusia [i India. Dar `n Rom‚nia am
sim]it ceva ce nu mai sim]isem to]i anii ace[-
tia, de c‚nd eram plecat. Ceva care `mi pl\-
cea foarte mult. Am `nceput s\ c‚nt [i eu cu
ei la o tob\. Dup\ c‚teva zile, nu m-am mai
b\rbierit. Dup\ alte c‚teva zile mi-am l\sat
p\rul mai lung, apoi am `nceput s\ m\n‚nc
cu m‚na... Am sim]it o fericire anume [i
mi-am zis „n-o las s\ plece“.
Am str‚ns 18 oameni, am trimis filmule]e
cu ei coproduc\torilor mei din America
[i c‚nd m-au `ntrebat cine sunt, le-am
zis c\ sunt fra]ii mei. Ne-am numit „Damian
and Brothers“.
A[a s-a n\scut proiectul „R\d\cini“...
Ministerul de Externe voia s\ schimbe imaginea
romilor `n Europa. Am avut concerte
la Viena, Londra, Roma, Dublin. Nu facem
altceva dec‚t s\ transport\m publicul `ntr-o
alt\ dimensiune. S\-i transmitem ceea ce
sim]im noi pe scen\... ∫
„Am început s\ cânt [i eu cu ei la tob\“ / “I started playing the drum by their side“
® takes place in nine countries and
in each I spend three or four days
with a “lautar“ (a traditional gypsy
musician). I choose the most talented
musicians who play the bass, the
accordion, the dulcimer, the violin,
and I observe their personal life:
what they do, how they behave,
everything that happens to them.
When they started playing the
instruments. They are amazing. I
chose Romania, Hungary, Spain,
France, Bulgaria, the former Yugoslavia,
Greece, Russia and India.
But in Romania I felt something I
had not felt all the years since I had
left. Something that I enjoyed very
much. I started playing the drum by
their side. After a few days, I
stopped shaving. After a few more
days I let my hair grow longer.
Then I started eating with my
hands. ...I felt a certain happiness
and I told myself, “I won’t let it go.“
I gathered 18 people, I sent tapes
with their music to my coproducers
in the United States and when they
asked me who they are, I told them
they are my brothers. So we named
ourselves “Damian and Brothers.“
That’s how the “Roots“ project
came to life. ... The Foreign Affairs
Minister wanted to change the image
of Roma people in Europe. We
had concerts in Vienna, London,
Rome, Dublin. We are only trying
to take the public in another dimension.
To share with the audience
what we experience while on the
stage... ∫