| Ioan Gyuri Pascu | |
|---|---|
Pascu jamming with the Nightlosers, June 2008 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ioan Ghiurico (Gyurika) Pascu |
| Also known as | Gyuri Pascu Ghyuri Pascu Joan Pascu |
| Born | August 31, 1961 Agnita, Sibiu County, Romania |
| Genres | Rock music, rhythm and blues, jazz, folk revival, folk rock, reggae, reggae fusion, parody music |
| Occupations | Musician, comedian, stage actor, film actor, television actor, writer, schoolteacher, restaurateur |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, acoustic guitar, drums, harmonica, mandolin, piano |
| Years active | 1977–present |
| Labels | Tempo Music |
| Associated acts | Trandafirii Negri Fundal The Blue Workers Divertis Distractis |
Ioan Gyuri Pascu (Romanian pronunciation: [iˈo̯an ˈɡjuri ˈpasku]; also credited as Ioan Ghiurico Pascu, Gyuri Pascu, Ghyuri Pascu and Joan Pascu; born August 31, 1961) is a Romanian pop music singer, producer, actor and comedian, also known for his participation in the comedy troupe Divertis and for his activity in Romanian cinema and television. Moving between rock music, rhythm and blues, reggae and jazz, the multi-instrumentalist Pascu founded a number of bands and registered success particularly during the early 1990s, when he was the lead singer of a group known as The Blue Workers. Pascu was the manager of several alternative music acts with his label Tempo Music, and remains an outspoken critic of Romanian commercial radio.
Noted for his impressions and musical acts within Divertis' political satire shows, Pascu is also a successful actor, appearing in film productions such as Lucian Pintilie's An Unforgettable Summer and Cristian Mungiu's Occident, and portraying known characters in Romanian theater in various stage adaptations. He has had collaboration with several main television stations, including TVR 1, Antena 1 and Pro TV. He has contributions as a printed media journalist, with columns on soccer, and is also a writer of Christian literature.
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Pascu is a native of Agnita (at the time part of Braşov Region, now in Sibiu County), a town where he also graduated from primary school. He was born to an ethnic Romanian father and a half-Hungarian mother,[1][2] and, on his mother's side, he is also the descendant of Poles and Slovaks.[2] His mother was a Roman Catholic while his father, like Gyuri himself, was a Romanian Orthodox.[2] His name reflects his complex heritage: Ioan was chosen as his Romanian name; his second name was to be the Hungarian Gyurika, but it was recorded as Ghiurico in his birth certificate and personal documents ever since—as he later indicated, this was because neither his father nor the notary were familiar with Hungarian phonology.[1] Pascu, who is fluent in the Hungarian language,[2] prefers the hypocoristic Gyuri.[1]
He took up piano studies by the age of nine, and was also a sopranist in the school choir, entertaining his friends with impressions of known pop singers of the day.[1][3][4] During fifth grade, he became interested in playing amateur handball, discarding music lessons and deciding to become an actor.[1][3][4][5] At around the same time, Pascu gave up on his piano lessons and learned to play guitar.[5]
At age fourteen, Pascu recalled, his voice changed, and, in order to remain a sopranist in the choir, had to use his head voice.[3] During that year, as a high school student, Pascu was enlisted in the Union of Communist Youth (UTC), the Romanian communist regime compulsory youth organization.[3] In 1976, he enrolled at the Agnita High School, which later became the Agro-Industrial High School. The same year, he began a more formal study of guitar music, following a method devised by Romanian musicologist Maria Boeru and giving up on handball.[1][3] He debuted as an amateur actor in 1977, when he took part in a show at the local House of Culture.[1][3]
By then, Ioan Gyuri Pascu became interested in the activities of Cenaclul Flacăra, a series of concerts which were an outlet for American folk-inspired and folk rock music performances under communism.[3] At the time, he became familiar with Western music acts such as Olivia Newton John and Queen.[3] Pascu was also active in the UTC's cultural brigade, writing and performing several rock and folk songs.[3]
In 1978, during the International Workers' Day celebration, Pascu was in Mediaş, where he befriended the brothers Septimiu and Horia Moldovan, who were in the same band as pop singer Elena Cârstea.[1][3] According to his official site, they were the ones to introduce Pascu to international hits such as Deep Purple's "Child in Time" and Uriah Heep's "July Morning".[3] Between 1978 and 1980, Ioan Gyuri Pascu sang with the Moldovan brothers' band Trandafirii Negri, and was invited to perform at weddings and other festivities.[1][3] With the money earned, he purchased his first acoustic guitar from the factory in Reghin, while teaching himself to play drums.[1][3] He composed one of his first known songs, "Melancolie" ("Melancholy"), in 1979.[3]
In 1980, Pascu applied for Târgu Mureş' Szentgyörgy István Drama School, but failed the entry exam.[1][3][4] He was subsequently employed as a lathe operator at a factory, and, for several months in 1980, was conscripted into the Romanian Land Forces.[3][4] Although, as he states, he had problems adapting to military life,[3] Pascu met with other amateur musicians who were undergoing training, and together with them founded the rock band Fundal, of which he was the lead singer and drummer.[3][4] They applied for the nation-wide Cântarea României festival and registered some success with the public.[3]
In 1982, after their term in the Land Forces was over, Pascu and his fellow Fundal members were in Mediaş. It was there that he was discovered by Romanian Radio's Radio Vacanţa branch, who invited him to perform at concerts it organized. On the occasion, he met and befriended Teo Peter, bass player for Compact, and music promoter Andrei Partoş.[1][3] In 1982, he performed in Cenaclul Flacăra concerts, and then in shows organized by the UTC's Scînteia Tineretului.[3][4] He credits his encounters with rock singers such as Cristi Minculescu, Liviu Tudan, Adi Ordean and Vladi Cnejevici with having been his "third real school".[1][3] After 1980, Pascu also became influenced by reggae. The first contacts with this genre were through The Police's reggae fusion records, and through reggae music played by African diaspora students in Romanian colleges.[6] Twenty years later, he told reporters: "Between 1980 and 1985, I was mad about Bob Marley."[6]
In 1984, Pascu moved to Cluj-Napoca, and was admitted into the Cluj University Faculty of Letters, studying Romanian and Spanish. He had previously twice applied for the similar faculty at the University of Bucharest, but failed the entry exam on both occasions.[1] Soon after admission, Gyuri Pascu became active in the university's theatrical company, Ars Amatoria şi Fiii, which was supervised by literary critic Ion Vartic.[1][3][4][5] The period saw his first work in radio comedy and parody theater,[5] as well as a supporting presence on Vartic's Echinox literary club.[7]
Two years later, while touring Bucharest with a student theater adaptation of Ion Luca Caragiale's plays, Pascu met the comedic ensemble Divertis.[1][3][5] During those years, Divertis was also a student group, and, like many other such troupes, made use of subtle political satire targeting Nicolae Ceauşescu's communist rule.[5][8][9] Gyuri Pascu, who notes having been a Divertis fan since 1982,[5] recalled: "I met with the Divertis boys after a show. They liked me [and] asked me to join the group [...]"[1] His first performance with the troupe took place in 1987, at Izvoru Mureşului, Harghita County.[1][3][5]
He also resumed his musical career, and, the same year, was invited by Partoş to sing at the summer festival in Deva.[3] In 1988-1989, after graduation, Ioan Gyuri Pascu taught Romanian language and literature at a primary school in Ulmu, Călăraşi County, but renounced in favor of his singing career.[1][3] Late in 1989, he was in Semenic, where he met Mircea Baniciu, former member of Romania's leading rock band Transsylvania Phoenix.[1][3] He was a guest of Baniciu just before anti-communist Revolution erupted in Timişoara, rejoining Divertis in Iaşi, where their scheduled show was broken up by communist authorities.[1][3]
Upon the end of communism, Pascu took up a career in entertainment. Having performed another solo recital in February 1990, he renewed his contacts with Divertis, and toured the country as a member of the troupe.[3] Late in the same year, Divertis debuted on screen, with a series of comedy shows aired on Romanian Television channels.[3] From December 1990 to 1992, he was employed as a program editor by the same station.[1] In 1992, together with Mircea Rusu, he issued his extended play record, the cassette Ar putea fi ("It Could Be").[3] In partnership with his girlfriend Daniela Marin, Pascu founded the label Tempo Music, which claims to be Romania's first independent venture of its kind.[1][3] At that junction, Pascu also set up his own band, The Blue Workers.[3]
Pascu recalls that, at some point in the early 1990s, the touring Divertis could be called on for tens of consecutive encores, which interfered with their schedule of watching Twin Peaks.[5] According to Gardianul newspaper, his activity with Divertis made him "one of the most popular figures in homegrown comedy".[4] During a 2006 interview with Dilema Veche, Divertis founder Toni Grecu noted that Pascu also stood out as the only member not to originate in the historical region of Moldavia.[8]
In 1993, Pascu registered his first significant success in music, with the album Mixed Grill and the single "Ţara arde şi babele se piaptănă" ("The Country Is Burning and Old Women Are Combing Their Hair", originating with an old Romanian proverb).[3][5] A poll conducted at the time by the journal Evenimentul Zilei nominated the title song as the best one of 1993, and the nation-wide station Radio Contact awarded him the "Composer of the Year" distinction.[3][5] Within this record was Pascu's brief experimentation with a fusion of rock and reggae. With hits such as "Gizzi" and "Mi-am luat colac" ("I Got Me a Lifebuoy"), he is considered one of the pioneers of Romanian reggae, ahead of acts like El Negro and Pacha Man.[6] The mix of genres became a characteristic of Pascu's work in music: "When I was writing records, I figured that, should someone maybe play my record at a party, they should have several kinds to choose from, and not become bored. But it's not because of that, I think that's how inspiration visits me, that's how I write. I won't stick to any one musical genre."[5] In addition to the piano, guitar and drums, Pascu also began playing the harmonica.[5]
Soon after marrying Daniela Marin in August 1993,[3][10] he was invited by film director Lucian Pintilie to star in his film An Unforgettable Summer, alongside Kristin Scott Thomas, Claudiu Bleonţ, Marcel Iureş and others. Pascu, who jokingly refers to this casting as having stood in for his honeymoon,[3] received good reviews for his performance.[11]
Over the following years, Pascu and The Blue Workers released two extended play labels, the rhythm and blues record Maşina cu jazzolină ("The Jazzolin Engine") and Caseta pentru minte, inimă şi gură ("The Cassette for the Mind, Heart and Mouth"), while appearing on a number of comedy cassettes released by Divertis.[3][5] This time consecrated Pascu as a protest song author, who took inspiration from Romanian politics and social debates to write "Morcovul românesc" ("The Romanian Carrot") or "Instalatorul" ("The Plumber"). This trait was acknowledged by Pascu, who believes that there is a necessary link between social phenomena and a songwriter's intimate perspective, and argues that songs need to tell a story.[12] One of the parody songs included on Maşina cu jazzolină, titled "Africa, Africa", drew special interest in cultural circles, because of its satirical undertones: the singer compared modern Romania with African countries. According to historian Sorin Mitu, "Africa, Africa" was one evidence of "the Romanians' tendency to relate to extra-European realities", which he argues was evident during Ceauşescu's final years in power and throughout the early post-revolutionary period.[13]
In 1995, after a series of festivals where he sang together with The Blue Workers, Pascu had a solo recital at Braşov's Golden Stag Festival,[3] and was awarded the Best Album trophy by the music magazine Actualitatea Muzicală, for Maşina cu jazzolină.[14] He also supplied the opening act for Western rock groups concerting in Romania: the British bands Jethro Tull, Beats International and Asia, as well as Germany's Scorpions.[3] As actor, Pascu also took part in the development of Romania's advertising industry. He is chiefly remembered in pop culture as a spokesman for Connex, one of the first mobile phone operators in Romania, within a campaign which coined the catchphrase Alo, Maria? ("Hello, Maria?").[15]
In February 1997, the singer released the album Gânduri nevinovate ("Innocent Thoughts"). His site indicates this as "his first less commercial record."[3] His daughter, Ana Iarina, was born later in the same month.[3] After 1997, Pascu prioritized his activity as a music promoter and producer. Between 1998 and 2000, he and his wife helped launch successful pop and alternative rock acts, among them Vama Veche, Domnişoara Pogany and Dinu Olăraşu.[1][3] Having released the song collection Poveştile lui Gyuri ("Gyuri's Stories") in 1999,[5] he gave up music, stating that he had become disenchanted with the newer pop trends.[1][3] Pascu nevertheless returned in 2000 with a limited-release record, titled Lasă (muzică de casă), "Leave It (Home Music)". According to his site, it registered success with "his closest fans" and, particularly, with members of the Romanian-American community.[3]
Also in 2000, Ioan Gyuri Pascu began working with filmmaker Cristian Mungiu. Having written the soundtrack to Mungiu's short film Zapping, he starred alongside Mircea Diaconu in his medium-length film Corul pompierilor.[3] The collaboration resulted in Occident, which featured music composed by Pascu and his performance alongside lead actor Alexandru Papadopol in the supporting role of Gică.[3] This contribution earned Pascu critical accolades: film critic Alex. Leo Şerban referred to his "memorable" performance as Papadopol's "cynical, good for all neighbor";[16] cultural journalist Eugenia Vodă suggested that the "authentic by definition"[17] comedian adds "diaphanous touches" to Mungiu's black comedy.[18]
Two years later, Pascu released his album Stângul de a visa ("The Left to Dream"). This was less of a commercial success, and, the musician noted, did not agree with the editorial policies of commercial radio. According to his site, it was not promoted by the mainstream radio stations, and sold most of its copies during live performances.[3] In a 2009 interview, Pascu also argued: "every time I had songs to pitch, [the stations] would say: 'they're good, but they don't fit in with our policies.' [...] If commercial radio stations were to count, I haven't had put out a record since 1993."[5] He also stated his thanks to the file sharing community of fans for still circulating copies of his music.[5]
Pascu toured the country to mark the celebration of his 20th year in music, performing mainly in local clubs. He continued to give occasional concerts after that date (including an opening act for Italian singer Albano Carrisi in Arad), and, starting 2003, hosted the musical talk show Taverna on the national television channel TVR 1.[3] With Divertis, Pascu became a co-host of a regular comedy program on Antena 1, and filmed some of the episodes in the United States.[3] Within the show, he had a recurring sketch, titled Felix şi Otilea ("Felix and Otilea"), also starring female pop singers Monica Anghel and Jojo, as well as his fellow comedians Cătălin Mireuţă and Daniel Buzdugan.[19] He also lent his voice to the cartoon show produced by Divertis for Antena 1, titled Animat Planet.[2] For his work in the field, Pascu was designated "the best comedian of 2003" by a TVR 1 poll.[20] In a 2007 interview, reflecting on the show's impact, he stated: "I'm not much of a fan of political humor. I simply like the impromptu kind of humor [...]. If [the joke] happens to be political, it is because that is what we have to do in this series."[1]
He released the solo albums O stea ("A Star")[3] and Jocul de-a joaca ("Pretending to Play"), both in 2004. In July 2005, he was invited to sing Brazil's National Anthem at an exhibition soccer match, in which the 1994 World Cup-winning formation of the Brazilian squad faced the equivalent Romanian team.[21] The same year, he released a greatest hits record, titled 12 ani, 12 balade ("12 Years, 12 Ballads").[2][5] Pascu also reunited with The Blue Workers for a 2005 nation-wide tour[2] and a 2006 performance at the Children's Palace in Bucharest.[22] They also appeared at the ProEtnica event of Sighişoara, a celebration of ethnic minorities and the practice of toleration.[23]
Pascu parted with Divertis in 2007, confessing that he could no longer cope with the routine of regular shows, but indicated that he considered a comeback if a change in schedule was to occur,[2][4] and continued to work for Animat Planet.[2] His split with the group was followed shortly by a conflict between Grecu and the remainder Divertis crew, which resulted in another break.[11] Pascu released the album La jumătatea vieţii ("Halfway through Life") with a November 2007 live show in Cluj-Napoca,[24] and resumed his career as a stage actor. In spring 2007, he starred as Rică Venturiano in an adaption of Caragiale's play O noapte furtunoasă, commemorating the 130th anniversary of its first public performance.[4][25] Pascu, alongside singer Dan Bittman, critic Ion Bogdan Lefter, actor-politician Mircea Diaconu, historian Marius Oprea and others, was interviewed for Marius Barna's documentary film Utopia impusă ("Forced Utopia"), which discusses life in Communist Romania.[26]
In his forties, Pascu became the author of Christian literature, publishing a number of essays on mystical subjects.[2] He declares himself inspired by the Orthodox priest Arsenie Boca and Bulgarian-born New Age mystic Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov.[2] In 2007, he said: "We must understand that our destiny, our earthly road, is rebuilding the connection with Divinity, with God."[2] Although an Orthodox, Pascu also went on pilgrimage to the Roman Catholic Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes.[2]
Pascu was also convoked to appear in a Hungarian-produced film, being cast in the role of a Romanian Police officer,[4] and starred in a stage production of Eugène Ionesco's Le Viscomte.[2][27] He had cameos in various new television commercials,[4] and authored sports columns for publications such as the leisure magazine Time Out Bucharest.[1] In the 2008-2009 season, he joined the cast as Chief Inspector Fane Popovici in Vine poliţia!, aired by Pro TV. The comedy series, based on Spain's Los Hombres de Paco,[28] was described as a "catastrophic" failure by television critic Cezar Paul-Bădescu.[11] In April 2009, Pascu was also invited to provide comedic intermezzos at the UNITER Awards Gala, but his performance received mixed reviews.[29] Three months later, he was the opening act for American folk artist Suzanne Vega at her Bucharest show.[12][30] Pascu noted that he had accepted the invitation after consulting with his daughter, a Vega fan, and specially adapted his electric songs to an "unplugged" setting, replacing his guitar with a mandolin.[12]
In autumn, he reunited with most of his Divertis colleagues, after their common move from Antena 1 to Pro TV,[31] while also taking on a role in a Metropolis Theater production of The Lower Depths by Maxim Gorky, featuring veteran Ştefan Radof in the lead role. The play opened to good reviews, and Pascu's presence, alongside that of other comedic actors (Alexandru Bindea, Tudorel Filimon), was considered unusual.[32] Together with his Blue Workers, he was also a noted act at the Sibiu Jazz Festival.[33] Late in the year, Pascu and his wife agreed to a divorce.[10][34]
HI April 2010, Pascu received criticism in the media when he agreed to perform for disciples of Gregorian Bivolaru's Yoga movement, or MISA, at a reunion in Timişoara. Bivolaru's legal troubles, together with allegations about the MISA group's sexual agenda, and are the topic of controversy in Romania; when contacted by reporters, Pascu stressed that it was a regular gig, and added: "Those people have never harmed me and I have no reason to be avoiding their company."[35] Pascu's activities for that year include several other live concerts, such as one held during the Bookfest event of June.[36] In November, he was a guest appearance at the Mircea Baniciu tribute concert, where he entertained the public with musical impressions of folk singers Nicu Alifantis and Victor Socaciu, and lend his voice to old Pasărea Colibri hits.[37] Pascu also opened his own drinking establishment and live music venue, a Bucharest tavern called Gyuri's Pub. One of the events it hosted was a performance by Moldovan folk singer Radu Captari: a collaborator of Pascu on solo music projects during spring 2010,[38] Captari sang while saddled on a horse.[39]
In late 2010, it was reported that Pascu had suffered a stroke and was recovering at the University Hospital of Bucharest.[10][40] At the time, media speculated that his decline in health was owed to the stress of divorce, even though Pascu had released a statement saying that he and Daniela Marin were still friends.[10] Shortly after being admitted out of hospital, Pascu resumed artistic life, studying for the part of Cadâr in Victor Ion Popa's comedy Take, Ianke and Cadâr. The production went on a tour of Romanian theaters in the early months of 2011.[41]
Pascu also made his return as to the set of Land of Jokes, the comedic series produced by one half of Divertis for Pro TV, where he played the lead character Nemuriciul, a spoof on Highlander: The Series.[42] In June 2011, he and the other Land of Jokes comedians announced that their split with Divertis was final, and that their contract with Pro TV had come to an end. In an interview with Adevărul daily, the freelance group announced that it was interested in finding a new media outlet, while Pascu expressed some criticism regarding Pro TV's focus on talent shows.[43] The troupe rebranded itself Distractis, since "the Land of Jokes brand was left with Pro TV",[43] and, in August 2011, signed with TVR 1.[44]