Biography

I was born on 14 March 1950 in Vulturesti (Arges District) situated about 100 miles north and a little bit west of Bucharest. I come from an Orthodox priest family: my grandfather (on my mother's side) was a priest, my father was also a priest and I have a brother who is currently in the priesthood.

I attended primary and secondary school in Vulturesti, the high school in Cimpulung-Muscel (Arges District) and then the Physics Faculty of Bucharest University, becoming a graduate in 1973. In 1974 I obtained a Master Degree from the same Faculty.

My inclination towards music was discovered by my father when I was six or seven years old. He observed that I have a good musical hearing and a very good memory for music. When I was 10 years old, I passed an entrance exam for admission to a musical school in Pitesti (Arges District). Even though I obtained the maximum mark (ten - with congratulations), the communist political power from that period prevented me from attending the school (I would have been a cello player), because I was a priest's son. That moment marked me for the whole rest of my life so deeply that I had to teach myself to play several musical instruments. I started to play the flute at the age of seven. At the age of 12 I began to play the violin. When I was 17 I discovered the sound of the acoustic guitar, which, in comparison to the violin, offered me the possibility to sing and play at the same time.

After finishing the first year as a student, I composed my first melodies using poems of the most well-known Romanian poets: George Topirceanu, Octavian Goga and Mihai Eminescu.

During the Faculty I became a member of a folk music Orchestra belonging to Bucharest University (playing my flute). Towards the end of stay at the Faculty I discovered the nice sound of the ocarina and started to play this using my flute playing skills. At the same time I intensively practised the acoustic guitar playing classical pieces mainly.

Several years after becoming a graduate in physics I found myself belonging to the golden generation of so called ‘folk music’ (which was something similar with what Joan Baez and Bob Dylan have done in the United States of America - but a Romanian version). I performed for a while as a folk singer in the student clubs. 1974 was my début as a folk singer on the first channel of the Romanian Broadcasting and on Romanian Television. The same year was also my début in the literary circles ‘Amfiteatrul Artelor’ and ‘Flacara’. In 1975 and 1976 I received the first prize for creation and interpretation from the National Organisation of Students.  

During this period I created an instrument of which name was ‘variton’, being able to play in ‘glissandi’ and generating sounds no so far from that of theremin. I also designed and made an ocarina from a different material - bone instead of clay. I was using in my concerts at least eight instruments - for this reason my colleagues and friends gave me the name ‘Benedict Popescu - the Orchestra Man’. My audience tasted for several years my syncretic spectacles - a combination of music, poems, images and light effects.

As a folk singer I performed more than 300 events before the public, and recorded, in the studios of the Romanian Broadcasting and Romanian Television, more than 40 original compositions and re-arranged Romanian folk songs. All that period I was present in many programs of the Romanian Broadcasting and I appeared more that 100 times at the Romanian Television. I toured widely, covering the whole area of Romania. Abroad I participated at two International Festivals of Political Songs: Soci in 1977 and Berlin in 1981. I also participated at an International Meeting of young people from the capitals of some European countries, which was organised in Moscow in 1979.

In the period 1983-1996 I dedicated my time and energy to my physicist profession obtaining, in the scientific research field, all the grades from scientific researcher up to senior scientific researcher - grade I. In 1994 I obtained my PhD in Physics from the University of Bucharest. During this time I obtained ten Romanian patents, for nine of which being the sole author.

In 1982 I discovered another instrument, perhaps more peculiar and more interesting than all the instruments used by me until that moment: the musical saw. In the period 1982-1996 I had only sporadic manifestations with my musical saw: among these - a recording session in the studio of Romanian Television in 1983, an appearance at the Romanian Television in 1986 and a presence in a spectacle organised at the Romanian Broadcasting in 1987. However, all this period I accumulated a lot of playing techniques and I have enlarged my repertoire which now consists of more than 100 pieces.

In 1999 I discovered the theremin, perhaps one of the most peculiar, yet wonderful, instruments ever conceived. In the same year I started work on my first CD with the musical saw as a solo instrument. I finalised this CD in the summer of 2001. In the following period I dedicated my time and energy improving some features on the theremin and recording a CD with this as a solo instrument. I finalised this work in the autumn of 2002.

In comparison with my music as a folk singer these two instruments - the musical saw and the theremin - offer the advantage of universality. With them can be expressed a sentiment without words. I have verified this many times performing in different European countries and I can now say in truth that this is so.